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Crushes In Romeo And Juliet

Decent Essays

Teenage crushes are a big deal. They are so great a matter that “parents must not take [them] lightly or make fun of [them],”(Pickhardt). When teenagers are under the influence of crushes, they are under a lot of stress. Many authors and playwrights have shown this through their works, and Shakespeare is one of them. In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses both romantic and identity crushes to show that parents should take teenage crushes seriously. The most commonly recognized crush is the romantic crush. Teenagers’ “Romantic crushes are formed by finding someone whom they find powerfully attractive, who they feel excited to be around, and with whom they want to spend a lot of time,” (Pickhardt). Romeo and Juliet were teens who felt a very …show more content…

. ./ In the meantime, against thou shalt awake,/ Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift,/ And hither shall he come, and he and I/ Will watch thy [waking,] and that very night/ Shall Romeo bear thee hence to Mantua . . ./ If no inconstant toy nor womanish fear/ Abate thy valor in the acting it,” (Shakespeare 4.1.94-100, 115-119, 121-122). Friar Lawrence was trusted by the Montagues, he was a friar after all. Though his intentions were in the right place, he failed to secure the safety of the child who looked up to him. Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet shows the highs of teenage crushes, but also how they are dangerous if not taken seriously by parents: “And Romeo dead, and Juliet, dead . . .” (Shakespeare 5.3.204). Romantic and identity crushes play a big part in deciphering the values the crusher likes in a person; however, “growth is advanced by this influential experience, most often for the good, but sometimes not. This is why parents need to pay attention to the crush relationship, not just leave it to their son or daughter and look the other way,”

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