Love and its Dramatic Effect on Romeo and Juliet - Book Report/Review Example

Shakespeare’s Portrayal of Love and its Dramatic Effect on Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare is typically thought of today as a serious subject that requires extensive, sober study if one is to understand his works. Of his most well-known plays today, most are tragedies or histories, with a few that extend outside of these bounds. Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet in 1597 reflecting through his characters and action the Elizabethan values and traditions of England while focusing on the story of a young couple in Verona. In this way, he also incorporates some of the values that were understood in his time to have been important to people of an even earlier time. In several of his plays, for example, he uses his characters to explore the meaning of love. In many cases, his exploration is centered on the concept of young, romantic love rarely, if ever, compared to more mature love. This is presumably because the effect of love on young people is so much more dramatic. Shakespeare’s concept of young love as a highly destructive force can be easily discovered in his plays Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Romeo and Juliet is often examined for its dramatic content, its investigation into the nature of love or the elements of tragedy. However, each of these greater themes can be better understood when you look at smaller clues to the characters, such as their personality characteristics or levels of maturity. It is often forgotten that the play is about two young teenagers attempting to find a means of being together in spite of a bitter feud existing between their two families. Maturity plays a significant role in their story as it dictates the way in which they respond to the pressures brought upon them. Within the play, there are many ways in which Romeo can be said to be less mature than Juliet. In considering this, it is important to think about the known generalities regarding maturity and the actions of each of the two characters involved to understand how love had such a strong effect on them. The generalities that are known about maturity are that girls tend to mature faster than boys. This is generally true physically as well as mentally. While this idea is not always true in specific cases, it can be assumed to be true in the case of Romeo and Juliet because of the ways in which they act. It is assumed that both of these characters are of sufficient physical maturity to take on the roles of adults as judged by the way the other characters interact with them, but that their mental maturity is still lacking in judgment as evidenced by the decisions they make. Juliet is 13 and Romeo is slightly older at 17, indicating that perhaps they have been able to reach comparable maturity levels. However, their actions make it clear that Romeo is decidedly less mature the Juliet. Romeo spends most of the play exhibiting an impetuousness that greatly works against him. He is quick to take anger with others and quick to fight, both attributes that are consistent with being male. However, he is easily compared at all times with other men in the play, all of whom within his same class and age range can be seen to exercise more caution and thoughtfulness in their actions than Romeo does himself. Romeo’s infatuation with Rosalind is also seen as a childish crush. Compared with his sentiments expressed toward Juliet, Romeo can be seen to mature during the course of the play, but not by so much as to qualify him as more mature than Juliet. He is very eager to be with Juliet and is impatient for every minute that separates them regardless of the fact that they have just met. In his dealings with others, he sounds very much like a spoiled little boy as he begs the friar to marry them and, when he finds Juliet dead in her tomb, he is quick to take the poison that will kill him as well. A little bit of thought might have spared both their lives. Juliet, on the other hand, shows much more restraint and maturity in her actions. When Romeo comes to plead with her to run away with him, she suggests they slow things down a bit and get to know each other a little first. When he insists he can’t wait, she brings up the topic of marriage and takes each necessary step to ensure that her reputation will remain in good standing. She is given little support and emotional encouragement at home, treated by her parents as a commodity rather than a daughter, and meets their expectations with grace and restraint within the bounds of what she wants for herself. She is not hesitant in speaking her mind and is decisive in what she wants; quickly convincing the friar, on an adult level, that she means what she says when she suggests she will kill herself before marrying Paris. When the friar suggests she take a potion that will make her appear dead to everyone, slowing her heart to an imperceptible beat, she bravely faces the risks and doesn’t give in to the kinds of hysterics many young women might have while Romeo, finding Juliet in the tomb, instantly downs the poison he brought for that purpose. This rather feminine means of death is compared to Juliet’s final action in which she plunges Romeo’s dagger into her heart, an action that takes a great deal more nerve and passion that simply taking a drink. This destructive element of love and its effects on young people is also brought out in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream to different purpose. The concept of young love is demonstrated in this play through the relationship of Hermia and Lysander. Although Hermia wants to marry Lysander, her father wishes her to marry Demetrius, apparently for no other reason than to assert his own authority. Hermia does not wish to subject herself to this disgrace because she knows Demetrius has already proven himself unworthy by making out with another girl. Any emotion that springs up between Hermia and Demetrius then can be founded on nothing remotely resembling her conception of a pure love. The apparent purity of young love between Hermia and Lysander is brought into question though with the application of Oberon’s pansy-juice. This potion causes Lysander to change his mind about who he loves, pledging his undying love for Helena. Because he doesn’t forget his past love for Hermia, this calls into question the strength of even the purist love to resist the course of life events. Although the two young people finish the play by getting married, Shakespeare has demonstrated how even the most ardent, pure and innocent love can be quickly and easily damaged by a change in the wind. Within his plays, Shakespeare glorifies the emotions of young love as an all-powerful force that can sweep away all reason and logic while he also demonstrates the other side of the coin in which this kind of love is disproportionately destructive to the individual. For Romeo and Juliet, the two young people were unable to think of anything other than being together. Because they know their parents won’t support their plans, they make plans to run away together but plan imperfectly so that their story ends in complete tragedy. As a comedy, Shakespeare allows the young couple in Midsummer Night’s Dream to reunite and presumably live happily ever after, but again calls into question the true depth of young love while pointing out the great divide that it introduces in the young person’s other relationships as Hermia becomes separated from her father. In both plays, love is a life-changing yet highly unreliable force that frequently brings sorrow rather than joy to the remainder of life. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The Complete Pelican Shakespeare. New York: Penguin Classics, 1969. Read More