Throughout time, parents have consistently had drastic influence over their children, and still do to this day. Whether this influence is through beliefs, academics, sports, or morals, parents are the people who truly morph their children into the types of people they are for the rest of their lives. Parental influence is often seen as a central theme in plays due to how relatable the topic is to an audience, as this theme tends to affect most people in some shape or form. In West Side Story by Arthur Laurents and The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, an immense contrasting factor is parental influence seen through the reasoning behind rivalry, overall parental involvement, and marital influence. An suitable example of contrasting parental influences is the drive behind why these strong, passionate …show more content…
It is these differences that allow new perspective to be brought within the consistent themes and ideas passed on from each variation of a play, bringing upon deeper thought and greater appreciation. Parent’s involvement in their children's lives does not only impact who they become, but the types of choices they make. In situations like Romeo and Juliet’s as well as Maria and Tony’s, the different types of lacking parental involvement had influence over their decisions, especially with love, as both female protagonists were almost unwillingly forced into marriage. In modern time, similar situations can still occur due to types of parental influence, like lack of academic pressure leading to failing grades, or too much pressure in athletics leading to high stress. The amount of parental influence in children’s lives, whether it be lacking or plentiful, has immense effects on their attitudes, their actions, and the types of people they