Comparing Romeo And Juliet 'And West Side Story'

West Side Story/Romeo and Juliet Comparison Thesis

Ah, young love. The feeling and emotion driving two hormonal teenagers to do questionable things. The thought that it 's only the two lovers who matter. The belief in fairytale endings. Young love, when forbidden, perhaps forges bonds between the lovers, allowing them to grow closer. They grow stronger, because they share the secret of their love. But why is their love forbidden? Is there an ongoing feud between the two families? Alas, these two lovers will not receive a happy ending. The musical West Side Story, written by Arthur Laurents, and the Shakespearean tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, both share many similarities between the theme of family feuds, the theme of impulsivity, and the

Impulsivity is Romeo’s fatal flaw; he’s so reckless he kills himself believing Juliet is dead, even though she is warm and appears as she is only sleeping. She wakes up minutes after he takes his life. “Beauty’s ensign yet/Is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks, And death’s pale flag is not advanced there … O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die.” (V.iii.95-120) Romeo picks up on the fact that Juliet is warm and that she still has color in her cheeks, which suggests she isn’t decesed but only sleeping. However, he is so angsty and care free that he notices these things and kills himself anyway, not even attempting to wake his sleeping love. While West Side Story doesn’t contain suicide, the theme of impulsivity is found through Tony, when he runs into the street begging for Gino to show himself, believing Gino has shot and killed Maria. Tony knows that Gino is searching for him and wants to harm him but runs out into the street anyway. He finds Maria alive but Gino shoots and kills him. If he had waited with the Doc instead of being impulsive and running after Gino, Maria would’ve come to him and all of the sorrow could’ve been avoided. In both Romeo and Juliet, and in West Side Story, the theme of impulsivity drives the fate of the pairs of lovers. Just like Impulsivity, the theme of Forbidden Love is one of the most important and influential themes of both works of