The Social Conventions Of William Shakespeare 's Romeo And Juliet

This does not allow Juliet to make her own decision. An example of this is when Lady Capulet reinforces the plan in which Paris would be Juliet's husband, rather than letting Juliet choose who she marries. Lady Capulet speaks for Juliet when she says “marry, my child, early next Thursday morn.” Having little to no knowledge aforetime about this news, Juliet is utterly astonished. Lady Capulet continues by saying “[the] young and noble gentleman, the county Paris... shall happily make thee there a joyful bride” (III.v.112-115). After having already prepared her life with Romeo, Juliet is in disbelief that her mother would not attempt to step into her father's plan. Juliet lashes back at her mother by saying “I will not marry yet” and threatening that she would marry Romeo “whom you know I hate” rather than Paris (III.v.115-122). The lack of communication between the two characters makes them distant from one another, and the little effort provided by Lady Capulet to approach her daughter is the main reason for this occurrence. The control Lady Capulet has over different characters and her

Shakespeare places Juliet in interior, domestic settings as a metaphor for the how females were viewed as property. Initially Juliet fits the role of a designated daughter who yields to her parents matchmaking with Paris, claiming she “won’t let myself fall for him any more than your permission.” The use of formal phrasing and need for “permission” highlight her docile acquiescence.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet in the 16th century, at a time where the role of the woman was to be subservient to men and act as a wife to their husband and a mother to their children. Women were expected to conform to the expectations of society, and were seen as possessions by their fathers and husbands. Fathers arranged their daughters’ marriages, usually for financial or social gain for the family. In Romeo and Juliet, the unfair treatment of women is conveyed through characters such as Juliet, a young girl who is growing into the expectations of society, and Lady Capulet, who represents a traditional side of love and values social position rather than men themselves.

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.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet in the 16th century, at a time when the role of the woman was to be subservient to men and act as a wife to their husband and a mother to their children. Women were expected to conform to the expectations of society, and were seen as possessions by their fathers and husbands. Fathers arranged their daughters’ marriages, usually for financial or social gain for the family. In Romeo and Juliet, the unfair treatment of women is conveyed through characters such as Juliet, a young girl who is growing up within the expectations of society, and Lady Capulet, who represents a traditional side of love, and values social position rather than men themselves.

William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet is a traumatic love story between young adults Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet come from different families who have been feuding for years, the Capulets and the Montagues. Abandoning the indifferences between their families they go against it all, fall in love, and marry in secret. Little do they know their love story will result in a tragic ending, death. William Shakespeare writes this play set in Verona, Italy and to him this place is thought of as a timeless fantasy land. Even though Shakespeare sets the play in Verona the characters do not act the way people from there acted and their beliefs and customs were not the same. The way the families act and treat others in based more on

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.

In Elizabethan times, women were treated as objects and only useful when bearing children. When Juliet showed contempt for being forced to marry Paris, her father would've taken this as disobedience and that she was unwilling to fulfill her purpose in life. Also, if this argument had been heard by the public, the Capulet name would have been laughed at and they would have been greatly embarrassed. Because of this, Lord Capulet was not wrong. With Juliet refusing to marry Paris, the entire family risked embarrassment and disgrace. Also, Juliet would have nothing. Her father would have disowned her and she would not have a man to support her. She could not have worked because that was not allowed. Juliet risked death and disownment. Another custom for Elizabethan marriages was that the couple did not meet each other until the wedding day. Lord Capulet thought that Juliet was being irrational because she had seen Paris and was being given an opportunity to serve her family. In lines 142-145, Lord Capulet says, "How, will she none? Doth she not give us

Lord Capulet and Paris have some similar opinions of Juliet's marriage and so do Romeo and Friar which also influenced the end of the story negatively. Capulet thinks that Juliet should be married to Paris and Paris agrees with him. “But woo her, gentle Paris, get her heart” (1.2.16) and Paris says “Younger than she are happy mothers made” (1.2.12). This means that Capulet is encouraging Paris to get Juliet’s heart and Paris influences him by telling him younger woman than her are married and happy mothers. This determines that the two of them want Juliet to get married to Paris because Capulet tells

Juliet and her father definitely had different ideas about her future relationships in this play. Back in that time period, the father of the family was the one who made important decisions for their children, which included who his daughter was allowed to get married to, even if they opposed their preference. So, in the play, Lord Capulet gives his approval to a man named Paris to marry his daughter because he had a promising future and was very prosperous and could provide Juliet with anything she might require. Although she had this option of spouse, she chose

In the Elizabethan era, children of the high class were expected to obey without question. There was no free will to make their own decisions about their own lives. Few had experiences relating to romance before marriage. They were expected to grow up, get married, get their money, have kids, pass it on, and carry on in the cycle. Juliet’s parents say that she should give her consent to marrying. Marrying Paris would increase their wealth and raise their social status in society. Lady Capulet says of Paris, “…And what obscur’d in this fair volume lies /Find written in the margent of his eyes,/ This precious book of love, this unbound lover, / to beautify him only lacks a cover.” Besides describing his beauty, she also concludes with “So shall you share all that he doth possess by having him making yourself no less.” This means that

<br>This shows how Juliet has passion and faith in her relationship with Romeo, while her parents are old-fashioned; her father arranges a marriage for her, and her mother takes the side of her husband, rather than that of her daughter. This scene also shows how Juliet has changed and has gained the courage to speak against authority.

Imagine yourself, dear reader, transported to Shakespearian Verona, a bustling, peaceful city (aside from the occasional death or two), with its obligatory social classes going about agreeably (aside from the occasional brawl or two), and all people happy and successful (aside from the occasional poor wretch or two). The Verona in which Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet takes place in is made sinister by the deadly consequences than ensue from its strict, unbending society. Romeo and Juliet paints a tale about two young lovers, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, whose attempts to be together are cruelly thwarted by society. Society’s fixation on honor and disgrace, poverty-creating laws, and austere social roles all have crucial

George Edward Woodberry once said, “Shakespeare is, essentially, the emanation of the Renaissance. The overflow of his fame on the Continent in later years was but the sequel of the flood of the Renaissance in Western Europe. He was the child of that great movement, and marks its height as it penetrated the North with civilization” (“George Edward Woodberry Quote”). The Renaissance, as Woodberry stated within his quote, would not have been as popular if it was not for William Shakespeare. He is a crucial part of the Renaissance. Not only did Shakespeare have an impact on the Renaissance, social class did as well. Social Classes have been building for many years and they made a tremendous difference during the Renaissance, to the point where the social classes controlled society. The Renaissance was a time period of rebirth and Shakespeare was taking advantage of that by contributing a majority of his pieces of writing, as well as his plays. One of his most known pieces of work is Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare uses the idea of social classes and portrays it throughout his play, Romeo and Juliet. He generates various characters and places them into different social ranks and standing. This impacts the play significantly and brings a new light and perspective on Shakespeare 's writing. Shakespeare also illustrates the specific advantages each social class received during the this time period and within

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).