Romeo And Juliet Flashcards
What are the 2 recurring themes throughout the play?
Love and conflict
What quote in the prologue displays the pairs fate?
‘’star-cross’d lovers take their life’’ showing how they are already doomed and their death is inevitable. Their fate being set can be used as an excuse throughout the play for the way they act because they cannot change anything. It creates dramatic irony between the audience and the characters and makes us disagree with their actions because we know the outcome.
‘Part, fools!’
What does this quote show about benvolios character?
Shows that he thinks fighting is foolish and he agrees with keeping the peace.
What does the prince say in act 1 to foreshadow how the rest of the play will turn out?
‘Your loves shall pay for the forfeit of the peace.’
How is the prince portrayed?
He is portrayed to be a neutral, moderniser who wants to stop the conflict in Verona.
What quote displays Romeo’s confusion about attitudes towards love?
‘O brawling love, o loving hate’ - Shakespeare provides no clear answers to the audience. The oxymoron shows how Romeo is conflicted about love and displays his emotional turmoil.
What type of lover is Romeo?
A Petrarchan lover.
What is tybalt the initiator of?
Violence.
How is Juliet presented initially?
-stubborn - ‘it is an honour that I dream not of,’ - Shakespeare foreshadowing through Juliet’s individuality and difference that she may not be as she seems.
How is lady capulet and Juliet’s relationship presented?
She is not very present in Juliet’s life. She juxtaposes the nurse who loves Juliet. her role is being a mother in a Patriarchal home.
What is the nurse initially like?
-She is a mother/ maternal figure to Juliet.
-she is a foil character.
-she is the comic relief character.
-she emphasises the division between lady capulet and Juliet.
What is Romeo fuelled by?
Romeo is fuelled by his love.
What is Romeo’s hamartia (fatal flaw)?
His rashness.
What word describes Romeo and Juliet’s secretive marriage?
Clandestine.
During the balcony scene, which quote shows that Romeo worships Juliet?
‘And I’ll be new baptised; Henceforth I never will be Romeo’ - religious imagery shows the way he idolises Juliet and would give himself up for her.
What are the two recurring semantic fields throughout?
Light and darkness.
What does the contrasting imagery of light and darkness show?
-the darkness (Romeo) will always win and it will consume Juliet and drag her down.
What quote shows that friar Lawrence is Romeo’s parental figure?
‘Blessed father,’ showing their close relationship. He gives him advice.
What are the nurse and Friar Lawrence?
Crucial enabler or Fundamental facilitators of Romeo and Juliet’s union.
Why can we see the friar as selfish?
He puts ending the feud infront of Romeo’s wellbeing and gives him advice that ultimately leads to his death.
What does Shakespeare show about conflict?
That conflict can easily lead to more conflict and escalate.
How does Shakespeare present love as destructive?
-Romeo kills Tybalt because of his love for mercutio
-Romeo and Juliet kill themselves because of their love for one another
What quote shows that Romeo values materialistic qualities in girls?
Friar:‘young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts but in their eyes,’
‘Young’ shows the contrast between friars wiseness and Romeo’s immaturity.
Why is the friar to blame for the twos death?
He agreed to marry them and he kept their relationship a secret.
How does love change Romeo’?
In act 3 scene 1 he is mature and level headed but in the middle, he begins to let his feelings dictate his actions.
What has love driven characters to do?
-act irrationally
-kill
-lie/decieve
-hide
-kill themselves
-betray
-made bad decisions
How is lord capulet presented in act 1: scene 2?
-protective
-considerate
-loving
How is lord capulet presented in act 3: scene 4?
-protective
-dominant
-careless
-authoritarian
-his love is dependant on Juliet’s obedience.
What does capulet rage show?
That the men have agency and that women are defined by their role as a woman. They have no voice in a patriarchal society.
What are the 9 key themes of r&j?
-love
-conflict
-marriage
-light
-darkness
-family
-fate
-violence
-sexism
What does this quote show ‘I beseech you on my knees,’?
-shows Juliet’s utter desperation
-she is powerless beneath male dominance
-height difference/ positioning represents the power imbalance
-‘knees’ : connotations of sexual imagery - shows how women are viewed.
When lord capulet refers to lady capulet as ‘wife’ what does this show?
-she is defined by her role as a woman.
-showing his superiority over her - she calls him ‘sir’
Is Juliet’s youth and nativity to blame for her death?
Yes: she is unsure on what to do as she hasn’t experienced it before.
No: she is being guided by people around her (Friar)
Her love is to blame- She loves Romeo a lot.
What does Shakespeare use the pairs love to do?
To criticise the views of a fourteenth century Britain.
How does Shakespeare evoke sympathy for capulet?
By showing how he is misunderstood and is in reality just worried about his daughter in this patriarchal society and wants her to be set up for life.
What does capulet and Juliet’s argument do?
-generates pity in the audience
-acknowledge how difficult parenting can be without obedience
-shows how damaging negative parental relationships can be
-revealing the extent of the patriarchy and its impact on relationships.
-to challenge societal expectations about marriage.
What are the messages of the play?
-all actions have consequences
-fate cannot be changed or defied
-hatred and anger are destructive
-excessive emotion leads to your downfall
-chaos and confusing feeling of being in love.
