ipl-logo

Identity In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

635 Words3 Pages

Identity is a central theme in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, as it shapes the actions and decisions of the characters and ultimately leads to the tragic outcome of the play. The concept of identity can be seen in various forms, including family affiliation, gender, social class and age. Firstly, family affiliation plays a significant role in the story of Romeo and Juliet. The Montague and Capulet families are locked in a longstanding feud, and the characters' identities are deeply tied to their family name. Romeo and Juliet's love for each other is hindered by their family's hostility towards one another, and their decision to secretly marry ultimately leads to their deaths. The feud between the two families is a constant reminder of the characters' identities and their duty to their respective families. This is exemplified when Romeo states, "O, I am fortune's fool!" (Act 3, Scene 1) after killing Tybalt, Juliet's cousin, in a fit of rage. He is not only expressing his regret for his actions but also how his identity as a Montague has led to this tragic event. …show more content…

Romeo and Juliet's gender roles are established early on in the play, with Romeo being portrayed as a typical male lover and Juliet as a typical female lover. Their gender roles shape the way they express their love for each other and the way their families and society view their relationship. Juliet's gender identity is also seen when she defies societal norms and takes control of her own fate by seeking out Friar Lawrence to help her and Romeo be together. She states, "Here, here will I remain with worms that are thy chamber-maids. O, here will I set up my everlasting rest, and shake the yoke of inauspicious stars from this world-wearied flesh" (Act 4, Scene 3) showing her determination to be with Romeo regardless of societal expectations of a woman during that

Show More
Related
774 Words | 4 Pages

His reckless behavior causes much of the turmoil. He even made a successful suicidal attempt, and unknowingly inspired Juliet to ensure the same afterward. His brashness, impatience, and his disregard to logical thinking are a recipe for disaster, despite his undying love for Juliet, the daughter of his family’s enemies. Romeo secretly finds a way that not only allows the beginning of a wonderful relationship, nonetheless also a short lived one with the scent of death

Read More
753 Words | 4 Pages

But by saying ‘villain cousin’, Juliet is saying that even though she loved Tybalt, he could’ve killed Romeo. When Juliet consents to drinking the elixir that would make her seem dead, she says: “And I will do it without fear or doubt, / To live an unstained wife to my sweet love “ (4.1.87-88). Juliet shows her bravery and commitment to marrying Romeo by saying that she would do anything without fear or doubt, so that she may be a good wife to him. Juliet’s bravery and forgiveness are emphasized when Shakespeare uses juxtaposition and complexity to show these

Read More
662 Words | 3 Pages

The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare concerns two young, unfortunate lovers who die in the name of love. These lovers fall in love at first sight at a masquerade ball. However, their families are in a feud making it hard for them to marry each other which ultimately, leads to the deaths of the youngsters. Those who bear the most responsibility in the deaths of the adolescent teens include Lord Capulet, Mercutio, and Friar Laurence. To begin with, in act 3, scene 5, Romeo didn’t want to have a duel with Tybalt anymore since they were cousins now as Romeo and Juliet recently got engaged.

Read More
1015 Words | 5 Pages

Juliet is caught between abiding by her family’s ancient loathing for the Montagues and going against the Capulets in the name of love. These curiosities also question the importance of love and hate in Juliet’s mind. She has to choose between enduring her parent's expectations of her and her personal feelings for Romeo, knowing the latter will upset both parties. If they reveal their relationship to their families, Juliet risks immense punishment and, as we find out later, be disowned by her father. The secrets that cloud her love for Romeo are a testimony to

Read More
860 Words | 4 Pages

Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, the children of the feuding families, fell in love after meeting at a party hosted by the Capulets. Because of their families, however, their relationship had to be kept secret. Later in the play, two characters: Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin, and Mercutio, a friend of Romeo, got into a fight because Romeo was not supposed to be at the party because he was a Montague, and Tybalt was upset. Romeo tried to stop the fight, but that only resulted in Mercutio dying. He then killed Tybalt as revenge.

Read More
786 Words | 4 Pages

Masking Identity On the internet, there is an obsession with being anonymous. A priority of many who log onto their computers or phones wants to keep what they do a secret from the outside world. But how do people stay hidden if you take away the screen? During Shakespeare’s time, people would wear masks at parties, performances, or for pernicious behavior.

Read More
460 Words | 2 Pages

The long-standing family feud made an environment that influenced the lives of Romeo and Juliet. The rivalry between these two families, Montagues and Capulets ,made the two lovers secrecy with their relationship,thus intensifying the risks they faced .Speaker: Lady Capulet “I beg for Justice, which thou, Prince, must give. Romeo slew Tybalt. Romeo must not live” (3.1.176-177) .In

Read More
478 Words | 2 Pages

Truth behind Names In Act II, scene II of “Romeo and Juliet”, Juliet says one of the most prominent lines of the play. “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet.”

Read More
174 Words | 1 Pages

Another scene where we can see the theme of mask vs true identity is in Act 3 Scene 5 when Romeo and Juliet spend their last night together, Lady Capulet enters Juliet's room and notices that she has been crying all night and assumes it is by virtue of her dearest cousin Tybalt’s death. She says “ Evermore weeping for your cousin’s death? “ and Juliet responds by saying “ Yet let me weep for such a feeling loss.” Juliet masks the true cause of her sorrow by implying that she is crying over Tybalt’s death and is clearly shown by Lady Capulet who can not see through Juliet’s visor of mourning over for not Tybalt but the “villain” himself, Romeo. Juliet’s cunning use of word play in this scene helps keep her private thoughts safe from the public

Read More
1044 Words | 5 Pages

With all of this stated, Romeo is portrayed as a typical male of the time since he married Juliet despite the fact that she was so

Read More
621 Words | 3 Pages

William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a story of love at first sight and tragedy. The identity of the people in the story is the most important part of how they interact with each other. The difference of identity between people changes their actions towards each other. Girls and guys are seen differently in the play. Girls are seen as property being sold to counts and lords.

Read More
219 Words | 1 Pages

Romeo and Juliet represents two families of similar social economic status and wealth but are in an interpersonal conflict between a flourishing love and a gory family feud. Juliet immensely changes during the course of the movie from a young girl to a mature young lady because she must deal with a forced marriage, abusive parents, and the banishment of Romeo. However, Romeo is a flat character focusing more on love than understanding the seriousness of the feud. When the two beloved children die, the dynamic changes as both families have empathy towards each other, therefore peace emerges from the tragic loss. Romeo and Juliet, the star-crossed lovers are very relatable and that is why we still read and watch his play four-hundred years

Read More
778 Words | 4 Pages

Their tough archetypes were always present in many plays and reinforced the idea of male superiority. This fact held true, especially for a certain tragic classic by William Shakespeare. There was a misogynistic mentality towards women in Romeo and Juliet, evident through the way women were shown as objects, portrayed as weak, and made to seem unable to dictate their own lives. Men in Romeo and Juliet could be seen acting like owners towards women. Women were seen as nothing more than possessions, as illustrated when Romeo first described Juliet as, “My lady…/my love” (II.ii.10).

Read More
784 Words | 4 Pages

“O, I am fortunes Fool /(3.1.134)! This statement given by Romeo in act 3 scene 1 is meaning that Romeo was mad at himself because he killed Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt. He was then banished, however, this hate for himself did not last long. He spent the following night with Juliet which permitted him to forget what he had done. His hatred for himself led to his actions being disorderly.

Read More

More about Identity In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

Related Topics

Open Document