Essay On Social Expectations In Romeo And Juliet

Parental expectations are basically the way parents expect their kids to live their lives. The definition of expectation is “the act of expecting; to have a prospect of future good or profit”. Parents often expect their kids to be perfect. By this I mean make all the right decisions, do everything the way the parents want it to be done, and live up to their parents standards. I don’t always agree with a lot of today’s parental expectations because some parents try to benefit themselves instead of the kids. In this essay, I will describe parental expectations from today and from the play Romeo and Juliet. I will link some of the examples of expectations to movies, or real life scenarios.

In a patriarchal society, women are expected to conform to social restrictions by demonstrating reverence and obedience to the males in their lives. Shakespeare's tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, explores the effects of patriarchal authority exerted over women and how the patriarchal structure left no escape from it, save death. Through Juliet, Lady Capulet, and the Nurse, Shakespeare establishes a common understanding of this type of society, but illuminates three different reactions to the social oppression by portraying the responses of a passionate lover, an idyllic housewife, and an attendant.

In the tragedy 'Romeo and Juliet', Shakespeare presents the inner struggles of Romeo and Juliet, the two protagonists as one of the main themes. This is clearly shown at the end of Act 3 Scene 2 when Juliet receives the news that Romeo has been banished and Tybalt has been killed. Juliet is distraught at the conflict of her loyalties. Should she express love for her family or should she express love for Romeo? By using many different language features, such as oxymorons, paradox, antithesis and dramatic irony, Shakespeare effectively displays Juliet's conflicting emotions. Later in the play, Shakespeare uses the betrayal by adults to again show the inner struggles of Romeo and Juliet.

Shakespeare's famous play of the two star crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet arouses many debates in the literary world; among them belongs the question of who Shakespeare portrays as the culprit responsible for the couples death: foolish young love, societal norms and customs or simply fate?The plot of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare unfolds in Verona, where the protagonists, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, each belong to powerful feuding Verona families. Juliet, who is only 14 years of age, has been promised by her father to a man named Paris without her consent, as was common for women at the time. In Verona, expectations and societal norms for men and women diverge. Men are portrayed as sexual, violent, strong characters who fight for honor while women are portrayed as inferior, weaker and represent possessions and conquests of men. Although, Juliet does not conform to these expectations and defies them throughout the play by her actions and behavior until she meets a tragic and untimely death with her lover Romeo. William Shakespeare uses Juliet, an unconventional protagonist compared to the society’s gender roles, and her tragic downfall to criticize the patriarchal society he lived in during the Elizabethan era.

In many literary works, there are methods that authors use to make a story better. In The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, dramatic irony is the driving method. Dramatic irony is something in which characters do not know something, but the reader or audience knows what the true reality is. According to some researchers, “A staple of Elizabethan and Shakespearean drama was dramatic irony” (Halio 25). Furthermore some researchers also belive that dramatic irony is very prominent in the play, “ One of the more prominent literary devices in the play is irony” (Sauer 673). Romeo and Juliet, and also their friends and families face a lot of instances of dramatic irony in the story. Dramatic irony creates suspense and adds to

In William Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet”, Shakespeare defies most traditional gender roles by allowing his characters to exceed the stereotypical expectations and allowing them to be true to themselves. Society in Verona is clearly portrayed as the expectations for beliefs, values, and behaviours in both men and women. Women are thought of as inferior, weak, and objects to possess while men are driven by power, bravery, and sexual domination. The character of Romeo, however, challenges these ideas about men and incorporates very feminine traits into the way he presents himself. He is repeatedly associated with failure to stand, weakness and weeping, as well as privacy. Romeo’s inability to conform to society’s expectations of men brings him and Juliet together, however his later attempts to re-conform lead to their ill-fated tragedy.

In Act 1, scene ii. Capulet appeared to be a kind hearted man and he defers to Juliet’s ability to choose for herself, “My will to her concent is but a part” (I.ii.15). Juliet’s mother, Lady Capulet also has an influence over Juliet and her life and puts pressure on Juliet to marry Paris (the suitor that her father picked for her to marry). Juliet admits the power of the influence of her parents when she says of Paris, “I look to like, looking liking move; / But no more deep will I endart mine eye / Than your consent gives strength to fly” (I.iii.100-101). The specter of parental influence is very evident in this scene and it shows the influence of the society that they lived in.

The play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is about the dilemma of choosing love over loyalty for your family. In the story Romeo and Juliet come from separate families who hate each other, but still find love in each other. They get married without telling their families and eventually the two families get into a fight which ends in Romeo getting banished from the city where Juliet lives. They have a plan for him to get back into to the city to prevent Juliet from being forced to marry another man, but it fails and ends with the suicide death of both Juliet and Romeo. Shakespeare's major theme in the text is that Love plays a major role in our lives and can heavily affect our decisions.

In the first scene of Act one there is the servants Sampson and Gregory talking about sexual love. As they both talk about taking girls virginity. They both sound arrogant as they talk as if it is through experience. To them the thoughts of taking a girl’s virginity seems a joking matter.

Romeo and Juliet is set in Verona. They are two star crossed lovers from two different families who have been feuding for generations. This is apparent in the line “The quarrel is between our masters and us their men”. This demonstrates that the play is destined to result in tragedy. The effect that is created on the audience is that the families have been fighting constantly for many years and that it has been passed down from generations to generations. The Montague’s and Capulet’s ancestors were feuding and this fight has carried on over the years. Looking from a social context women were ruled over by men. Women were possessions or baggage. This relates to the play through Capulet and Juliet’s relationship. Capulet tells Juliet

Love is spoken about a lot in all of these stories, one thing that these stories talk about is love can come with a cost. As you will see in these stories ( Romeo and Juliet, Pyramus and Thisbe, and Duty) there will be death due to love.

With respect to Lord Capulet, he says to Paris, “Sir Paris, I will make a desperate tender/ Of my child’s love” (III.iv.12-16). Not knowing that Juliet has secretly married Romeo, Lord Capulet arranges a marriage between Juliet and Paris. Shakespeare characterizes Lord Capulet as forceful and unyielding. Because Juliet does not want to marry Paris, she agrees to Friar Lawrence’s dangerous plan that ultimately ends in her death. If Lord Capulet had considered Juliet’s wishes, she would not have had to go along with Friar Lawrence’s suggestion. The literary element, dramatic irony, is demonstrated here because the reader knows that Juliet is already married to Romeo, while Lord Capulet does not. Juliet’s single mindedness also plays a part in her death and that of Romeo. As Juliet drinks the potion that will “kill” her, she says, “Romeo, I come! This do I drink to thee” (IV.iii.58). In the scene, Juliet drinks the potion but fails to consider the consequences. Disaster

“For never was a story of more woe, than that of Juliet and her Romeo”.

Lady Capulet tells Capulet he'd better have a crutch instead of a sword, and Lady

As a woman, Lady Capulet can relate to how Juliet feels when she is told she is to marry Paris. However, as a wife, she cannot voice an opinion of who or when Juliet is to marry. She is experienced, and asks Juliet, "Speak briefly: can you like of Paris’ love" (1.3.98). Because she is the caretaker, she respects Juliet’s feelings, but she can do nothing, even if Juliet does not learn to love Paris. Perhaps she asks this question because her own mother never asked it. She may want to know her daughter’s opinion, because until a woman is married, she has all the rights of a man according to Pitt. However, the father ruled over his daughter, and it was virtually impossible to remain unmarried while the father held all the decision making (14).