In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare shows different age groups and their stereotypes in Verona, Italy. The different characters in this play express each age group's advantages and disadvantages. In Romeo and Juliet, youth and age is seen as the amount of respect the characters have during this time period. When someone is younger, they are interpreted as alliterate and innocent. On the other hand, the characters who are older are seen as wiser and more mature, being superior to everyone else. Shakespeare also shows how when youth expresses themselves, they are understood as childish. The elders in this play take younger characters' words as a joke, and some elders even judge them harshly for their opinions because of their age differences. …show more content…
When Friar Lawrence says, “Young men’s love then lies./ Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes (2.3 71-72). He is saying that young men only think that they are in love when they see someone who is beautiful. Friar Lawerence says that youth does not know how to actually love. Another youth stereotype that is shown in the play is how younger characters need to be taken care of at all times. Shakespeare shows that the younger characters need to be looked after. When Juliet wants to marry someone other than Paris, Capulet informs that “My child is yet a stranger to the world./She hath not seen the change of fourteen years” (1.2 8-9). Meaning that Capulet protects and takes care of Juliet and he knows what is best for her. This quote is saying that younger characters do not know what is changing in the world. Later, the Nurse talks about how the youth is ignorant and that younger characters don’t understand what is going on around them. When Nurse says “Thou wilt fall backwards when thou has more wit” (1.3 46). She is saying how Juliet does not know much at all. The nurse is saying that Juliet will understand the feud when she is old enough. The nurse says that she is too young to know what is happening right now. This shows the stereotype of youth being ignorant and not knowing what event is taking …show more content…
Elders also represent a big part of Romeo and Juliet. The adults in this play get mad at each other for a long time. The Capulets and the Montogues have family feuds run by adults. These feuds are Haney 3 made by grudges the two families have together. Older characters in the story keep Romeo and Juliet from seeing each other because of their own selfishness. Juliet talks about adults by saying “But old folks, many reign as they were dead” (2.5 16). This means that people who are older stay mad at each other for a longer period of time. When an adult gets upset about something, they will stay mad about it for what seems like an eternal amount of time. Overall, in Romeo and Juliet, younger characters in the book do not know what true love is. Adults stereotype children as illiterate and ignorant. The youth in this play are shown as chaotic and hard to take control of. On the other hand, the adults in Romeo and Juliet hold grudges until drastic measures happen. They smother their children and do not let them have their own path. Even so, in Romeo and Juliet, both age groups were not afraid to show their full capability throughout the
Mathew Chen Ms. Bautista/Ms. Raeisi English Period 7 23 February 2023 Romeo and Juliet Argumentative Essay Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is a tragic play about two star-crossed lovers. In Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, a long-standing feud between two families causes the main characters Romeo and Juliet to love in secret. Romeo is a 16-year-old boy, in love with Juliet. Juliet is a 13-year-old girl, in love with Romeo.
Lastly, and most importantly, Juliet turns away from her closest confidant and friend, the Nurse. Juliet calls her a “damned old lady” and ‘wicked fiend,” stating that “thou and (her) bosom henceforth shall be twain.” Although she says this to herself, in her mind, she is breaking the last of her ties to childhood, she realises she can’t rely on her Nurse anymore. This last step is the final difference, bringing her changing loyalties into light. Juliet clearly demonstrates that they are to her
Ben Eayre DiIanni Honors English 9 29 March 2023 Minor Characters in Romeo and Juliet Every action has consequences, and ideally, people would always evaluate these consequences as part of their decision-making process. However, some people, especially teenagers, lack capacity to fully consider the consequences, and their hasty decision-making process increases the risk of pursuing actions with damaging consequences. In William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, many characters convey the ramifications of ill-advised decisions as the two fated and forbidden lovers desperately try to escape their families’ feud. The author uses various minor characters to establish the plot and theme of the play; hasty and poor decisions have undesirable outcomes.
The older characters view love as a process, believing that love takes time. Romeo’s immaturity got the best of him, and he marries Juliet. The Nurse keeps the marriage confidential and supports Juliet. The Nurse considers Juliet to be her daughter as she says “Thou wast the prettiest babe that e’er I nursed.
Adolescent brains and young love are the most to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, ultimately leading to their demise. Even though it may seem like the rivalry between the families was the leading cause of their death, it was rather a small piece to a cornucopia of issues for these star-crossed lovers. Identifying the ages of maturity levels in Romeo and Juliet is a significant element in the story that can help us understand important themes and morals of the story. Romeo and Juliet are still children, as stated by the drama. And children are generally incapable of viewing things from the perspectives of others.
The tale was told in a very different era, which shines through the story somewhat disturbingly. Culturally, people from his time were very hard on young girls and expected a lot of them, which is shown in the play. Also, pressures from several areas were on the youth of his society, and this is depicted in the text as well. Romeo and Juliet is primarily about how familial, social, and
Teens will choose to satisfy their feelings and make choices where one may think is irrational or dumb. Romeo and Juliet, a play written by William Shakespeare is a story of romance and an example of teens making bad choices that usually only favor one’s feelings. Three teen characters that fit the behavior description in Romeo and Juliet are Gregory, Sampson, and Romeo. Gregory and Sampson both hate the Montagues (Romeo’s family) which causes them to start fighting them and cause trouble. While Romeo is driven by love and not hate he still makes choices only for his feelings which at the end ultimately lead to his death.
Therefore, one may infer that Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, is more for a mature audience than a young one because of the story's sensitive
The theme of maturity is a recurring topic in literature and art, as it speaks to the universal experience of growing up and confronting the challenges of life. In many stories, characters undergo a transformation as they grapple with the consequences of their actions and develop a greater sense of responsibility and self-awareness. This theme is particularly evident in Shakespeare's tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, which portrays the journey of two young lovers as they navigate the societal pressures and conflicts that prevent their union. As the story unfolds, the protagonists must confront the harsh realities of life and come to terms with the consequences of their impulsive decisions. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare addresses the concept
Scientific studies show that humans brains do not finish fully developing until the mid to late twenties. This means that young adults and teenagers can not always be trusted to make the best decisions for themselves. Romeo and Juliet are both very young characters who are immature and inexperienced. Juliet is merely thirteen years old and Romeo is estimated to be in his late teens. In Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet” the main characters’ youthfulness causes them to make rash and immature decisions that ultimately lead to their downfall.
Teenage rebellion in Romeo and Juliet Almost everyone in the world wants to someday have children. Children are cute and people want to start a family. The idea of kids sounds great until you think of one thing, dealing with the teenage years. The teenage years are when the sweet, little child turns into the stubborn, little teenager who doesn’t listen, argues with everything and tries to do whatever they want, whenever they want. In Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, the two main characters and their friends are just those teenagers who in many ways, show characteristics of being the most rebellious teenagers around.
Age plays a significant role on decision-making not only in Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet but also in modern times. In the play, Romeo and Juliet are only young teenagers which influences on making childish and no-thought decisions. This is shown In Act 2 where Romeo is depressed because Rosaline, who he had confessed his love to has rejected him, and refuses to crash the Capulet’s party. It’s not until his friends Mercutio and Benvolio force him to go when he lays his eyes upon Juliet and proceeds to forget about his love and fall in love with Juliet instead.
The Immaturity of Romeo and Juliet Immaturity can spread throughout things and people creating problems for the present and future. Similarly, Romeo and Juliet not only shows the development of love, but the loss of maturity that leads to tragedy. People develop maturity, but the amount of immaturity makes the process go backwards. From Romeo and Juliet’s fast evolving relationship to the hate between the two families, and the lack of thought in different characters is recurrent throughout the story. Therefore,the theme of Romeo and Juliet evolves around the idea of immaturity.
Juliet tells Romeo, “How camest thou hither, tell me, and wherefore?/ The orchard walls are high and hard to climb,/ And the place death, considering who thou art,/ If any of my kinsmen find thee here (II.,ii, 62-65) Romeo risked his life for the person he loves, which shows a shift in maturity. “I would not for the world they saw thee here” (II., ii, 74). Juliet tells Romeo she wouldn’t let anything happen to him, which also shows a shift in maturity. The revenge, love, and secret marriage caused Romeo and Juliet to grow up quickly and become more of an adult and make more decisions on their own.
Noah T. Kintz Mrs. Shanahan English 1 February 10 2023 Young And foolish The story, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, shows lots of youth and foolishness. Because of the bad decisions made in the story.