Romeo and Juliet: Summary & Analysis

Maybe you know the well-known song «Love Story» by the American singer Taylor Swift? It’s just one of many songs written by William Shakespeare drama «Romeo and Juliet» was inspired. The love story of the two main characters is anything but simple and romantic, because it comes different from the song no happy ending.

Romeo and Juliet fall in love without knowing that they are Children of two enemies families are. Their love is so strong that they immediately decide to get married. There were several arguments between the two families, Romeo was banished and out of desperation the young couple finally committed suicide.

Characters in «Romeo and Juliet»

The drama focuses on Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, who are the children of two feuding families.

Romeo Montagu

  • only son of the Montagues
  • about 18 years old
  • passionate and cocky
  • but also gentle and sensitive
  • falls in love with Juliet Capulet

Juliet Capulet

  • about 14 years old
  • only daughter of the Capulets
  • good and polite
  • develops her own will in the course of the play

Other characters in «Romeo and Juliet» are MercutioRomeo’s close friend and Benvolio, Romeo’s cousin. Also Romeo’s parents Earl and Lady Montague appear in the play.

Tybalt is Juliet’s cousin and thus belongs to the side of the Capulets. He likes to quarrel with the Montagues. Juliet’s parents are Earl and Lady Capulet. Her closest confidant is her nanny (nurse).

Other important characters are Prince Escaluswho is the ruler of Verona and strives for the peace of the city and Count Pariswho asks for Juliet’s hand.

Friar Laurence is a monk and the confessor of the Montagues and Capulets. He always acts with good intentions and even secretly weds Romeo and Juliet.

Summary of «Romeo and Juliet»

«Romeo and Juliet» is a dramathis in five acts and 24 scenes is divided. The drama is introduced by a prologue performed by a choir. Here, the action, which takes place within five days, in the form of a sonnets implied.

The sonnet is a form of poetry from the 16th century. If you want to learn more about it, check out the «Shakespeare Sonnet» explanation. A prologue is used to explain the intentions of a piece and is read or performed before the actual piece.

Act One – The First Meeting

The feuding families Capulet and Montague fight each other in a public square in Verona. Only when Prince Escalus arrives can the argument be ended. If the fighting should continue, he threatens everyone involved with the death penalty.

In a conversation, Romeo confides in his cousin Benvolio that he is unhappily in love with a girl. At the same time, Count Paris proposes to Juliet in the Capulet house. Her parents agree, but Juliet asks for time to think.

In the evening, the Capulet family hosts a masked ball, which Romeo, Mercutio and Benvolio also found out about. They want to mingle with the ball guests so that Romeo can forget his lovesickness.

Arriving at the ball, the Montagues remain undiscovered at first. When Romeo sees Juliet for the first time, he is completely overwhelmed. However, he is recognized by Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt, and challenged to a duel. The upcoming duel is stopped by Count Capulet. Tybalt Romeo then swears Revenge.

Before Romeo can leave the ball, he talks to Juliet. Both falling in love into each other immediately. They find out that same evening that they have fallen in love with someone from the enemy family.

Act II – The balcony scene and the wedding

Romeo sneaks into the Capulets’ garden after the ball to be near Juliet. Meanwhile, Juliet is standing on her balcony holding one monologue about her feelings for Romeo.

A monologue is a soliloquy in which the person expresses their feelings, plans, or personal attitudes. The monologue is not aimed at a specific person, but at an imaginary listener.

After Romeo secretly overhears Juliet’s monologue about her feelings for him, he confesses his love to Juliet. The two decide to marry.

After the conversation, Romeo meets with Monk Laurence, who knows the families well. The monk agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet, hoping that the families will finally be together Peace shut down.

Juliet’s nanny then meets up with Romeo and tells him that Count Paris has proposed to Juliet. You develop the planthat Juliet Romeo in the confessional cell can marry. She should just pretend to go to confession. Her plan is put into action and the two marry.

The Battle and the Banishment – Third Act

Romeo’s friends Mercutio and Benvolio meet Juliet’s cousin Tybalt. A arises Fight, which comes to a head when Romeo joins in. Tybalt challenges him to a duel again. Wanting to defend his friend, Mercutio begins fighting with Tybalt. The fight between the two ends with one for Mercutio fatal injury. Out of anger and sadness stabs Romeo thereupon Tybalt.

After the argument between the men from Verona, Romeo is arrested exile banished and thus escapes the threatened death penalty. The nanny and monk Laurence then send Romeo to Juliet so they can say goodbye.

A stay in exile is a long-term stay away from home because of banishment or persecution by the state.

After Romeo and Juliet spend the night together, Juliet learns that she is to marry Count Paris and is horrified. Her father threatens her that she will be rejected by the family if she does not marry the Count. Her nanny advises her to marry Count Paris, and Juliet pretends to agree. But first she wants to go to confession.

The Plan – Fourth Act

Juliet devises a plan with Monk Laurence to avoid marrying Count Paris. She is given a poison to take the night before the wedding, which she puts in a deep, deathlike sleep drops. The family will then take her to the family vault, believing that Juliet is dead. Romeo is to receive a letter from Monk Laurence telling him to rescue Juliet from the tomb so that he can flee into exile with her.

The night before her planned marriage to Count Paris, Juliet takes it poison. As planned, the nanny finds Juliet the next morning and declares her dead. The wedding is then canceled and Monk Laurence orders the apparently dead Juliet to be taken to the family tomb.

The catastrophe – fifth act

Romeo receives news of Juliet’s death. However, Monk Laurence’s letter does not reach him in time, so he believes that Juliet actually dead is. He then decides poison to take his own life next to Juliet in the family tomb.

When Romeo arrives at Juliet’s tomb, he takes that poisonthat he had previously bought. When Juliet wakes up from her apparent death, she sees him dead Romeo and stabs himself with his dagger.

After the deaths of both children are announced, Prince Escalus demands final peace between the families. The families realize that their enmity and hatred has cost them too much and make peace. They decide to build a memorial for each other’s children.

Analysis of «Romeo and Juliet»

«Romeo and Juliet» is one tragedy and thus belongs to the genus des drama. However, the story of the lovers also contains passages that are typical for a comedy are.

Tragedy and comedy are the main genres of drama. A comedy shows human weaknesses coming to the surface within a conflict. Comedies usually end with a happy ending.

Tragedies often involve a tragic hero. The tragic hero often has a vulnerability or makes a moral mistake that becomes his/her undoing and leads to his/her social downfall or catastrophe.

In a classic tragedy there is always one tragic herowho has a vulnerability. In «Romeo and Juliet» this vulnerability is the hatred of families, which is neither Romeo’s nor Juliet’s fault. So it is not a mistake made by Romeo or Juliet that leads to the tragic end, but rather their fate and the external circumstances, for which they are not responsible.

Construction

«Romeo and Juliet» is like a classic drama in five acts divided, which contain a total of 24 scenes.

If you want to learn more about the structure of a drama, then take a look at the «Drama English» explanation.

«Romeo and Juliet» begins with one prolog, which already hints at the plot. Then follows the exposurewhich introduces all the characters and the conflict introduces. The conflict here results from the love of Romeo and Juliet, who live in two hostile families. In the second act, the conflict deepens and the tension starts to rise. At the end of the act, Romeo and Juliet secretly marry.

The exposition is the first act of a drama in which the circumstances on which the conflict is based are clarified. In addition, it provides information about the time, place, background, history and plot of the drama.

It comes to Climax of the drama when Tybalt and Mercutio die and Romeo has to flee. A good ending for Romeo’s fate is unlikely at this point since he killed Juliet’s cousin. To the falling plot contributes to the forthcoming marriage of Juliet to Count Paris. Monk Laurence’s plan to reunite the couple gives viewers some hope before they finally reunite catastrophe comes.

In the Capulet family tomb, Romeo commits suicide with poison. Juliet, who was only pretending to be dead, wakes up to see Romeo dead. She then takes her own life too. The solution to the drama is the reconciliation of both families after the death of their children.

narrative perspective

The narrative perspective in «Romeo and Juliet» is neutral because it typical of a drama no clear narrator’s voice are. Only by stage directions it becomes clear to you as a reader how characters interact with each other and where they are located. The feelings and thoughts of the people involved are also revealed to you in this way.

The lovers’ point of view plays the most important role in «Romeo and Juliet», which is why most of the stories are told from their point of view. Dominated in the first half of the piece Romeo’s point of view. This is how you experience how Romeo advances the story and his destiny through his actions.

In the second half of the piece then dominates Juliet’s point of view. From this point on, she’s the one who moves the story forward, devising a plan to avoid marrying Paris. In addition, Juliet talks to herself more so that you can understand her feelings and thoughts much better.

language

That was typical of the love poetry during the making of «Romeo and Juliet». So nice. Shakespeare contrasts the sonnet with the more modern blank verse, which consists of unrhymed lines in which every other syllable is stressed….