William Shakespeare-Why do we study William Shakespeare?

Nicknames-The Bard, The Bard of Avon and The Swan of Avon

His works has been translated into every major language

The most quoted writer in the English language and World history

Wrote 38 plays-11 Tragedies, 17 Comedies and 10 Historical

Wrote 154 Sonnets (special form of poetry)

The House of the Montagues

Romeo

Lord and Lady Montague

Benvolio

Mercutio

Balthasar

Abram

The House of the Capulets

Juliet

Lord and Lady Capulet

The Nurse

Tybalt (cousin)

Sampson and Gregory (servants)

The House of Verona

Prince Escalus

Paris

Mercutio

The Church

Friar Lawrence

Friar John

Other Characters

Rosaline

The Apothecary

The Chorus

Character Descriptions

Romeo

His name means “a lover”

Young, intelligent and handsome

Reckless, Passionate, Intense and lacks moderation

Best friends are Benvolio and Mercutio

Friar Lawrence is his advisor

Juliet

Beautiful, 13 years old

Naïve

Expected to marry soon

The Nurse is her confidant

Grows up quickly when she falls in love with Romeo

More cautious and level-headed than Romeo

Lord Montague

Romeo’s father

Bitter enemy of the Capulets

Capulet

Juliet’s father

Enemy of the Montagues

Loves his daughter (his only child)

Demands respect

Flies into a rage when angry

Lady Montague

Romeo’s mother

Dies of grief when Romeo is exiled from Verona

Lady Capulet

Married Young, gave birth to Juliet when she was about 14

Eager to see Juliet marry Paris

Ineffectual mother, relies on Nurse to raise Juliet

The Nurse

Juliet’s nurse her entire life

Actually breast Juliet as an infant

Confidant, extremely LOYAL

Wants Juliet to have a husband

Comic Relief throughout the play

Tybalt

Juliet’s cousin

Deeply hates and loathes the Montagues

Aggressive, Violent,

Quick to draw his sword, excellent with this weapon

Kills Mercutio and is then killed by Romeo

Benvolio

Romeo’s cousin and thoughtful friend

Mercutio

A kinsman to the Prince of Verona

Romeo’s close friend

Hotheaded

Loves word play, especially about sex

Gives Romeo advice about love and women

Tries to convince Romeo “there are many fish in the sea”

Killed in a swordfight with Tybalt

Curses the Montagues and Capulets

Prince Escalus

The prince of Verona, the law, judge and jury of Verona

Kinsmen of Mercutio and Paris

Has threatened the Capulets and Montagues to end the feud with death/execution

Banishes Romeo from Verona to Mantua (merciful)

Rosaline

Romeo is infatuated with her at the start of the play

Beautiful

Sworn to a life of chastity (most likely is becoming a nun)

Never seen on stage

Friar Lawrence

A Franciscan Friar (part of the Roman Catholic Church)

Expert in potions, medicines, poisons, plants and herbs

Advisor to Romeo

Friend to Romeo and Juliet

Secretly marries Romeo and Juliet

Hopes the Marriage will bring Peace to Verona

Ambitious, wants to be popular and influential in Verona

Friar John

Works with Friar Lawrence

Supposed to take a message of Juliet’s FAKE death to Romeo

Gets stuck in a quarantined house and the message never reaches Romeo

Paris

A kinsman of the Prince

Asks to marry Juliet and liked by her parents

The Apothecary

A druggist

Takes a bribe to sell poison to Romeo

The Chorus

The Narrator of the Play, presents the prologue to each act

Sampson and Gregory

Capulet servants--hate the Montagues

First Scene of the play fight with Montagues

Demonstrate the feud that leads to the threat by Prince Escalus

Balthasar

Romeo’s servant, brings Romeo the news of Juliet’s death

Abram

Montague servant, fights with Capulet servants in the first scene

PROLOGUE

2 families from Verona, Italy are feuding (fighting)

One child from each family has fallen in love

The lovers are “star-crossed” and cannot be together, they commit suicide

Their deaths end the family feud

ACT 1:1—Fighting in the Streets

Streets of Verona

Servants from the Montague and Capulet families fight
Benvolio tries to stop the fight
Prince Escalus of Verona comes and stops the fight
Prince promises to execute anyone who fights in the future
Romeo is introduced, he is sad and depressed because the woman he loves (Rosaline) does not love him

ACT 1:2—Juliet gets a proposal

Capulet House

Paris asks Lord Capulet to marry his daughter Juliet
Lord Capulet say she is too young to marry, he wants her to wait 2 more summers
Lord Capulet wants his only child, Juliet, to be happy
The Capulets plan a party

Romeo and Benvolio find out about the party from a servant
Romeo finds out Rosaline will be at the party
Benvolio wants Romeo to go to the party to look for a new love

ACT 1:3—Juliet gets the sex talk from Mom

Capulet house, before the party

The Nurse, Lady Capulet and Juliet talk about Juliet marrying Paris
The Nurse and Lady Capulet think Juliet is old enough to marry

ACT 1:4—There are more fish in the sea

Streets of Verona

Romeo and his friends Benvolio and Mercutio are on their way to the Capulet Ball
Romeo sad and depressed
Romeo is worried about a dream he had last night
Mercutio teases Romeo about his dream (QUEEN MAB)
Romeo has a bad feeling about the party, afraid of death (FATE)
Romeo puts his fate/future in God’s hands

ACT 1:5-Love at first sight and kissing

The Capulet Ball

Lord Capulet makes a speech

Romeo walks in a sees the most beautiful girl in the world!

Tybalt (A Capulet and Juliet’s cousin) finds out Romeo is at the party, he’s furious

Tybalt tells his uncle, Lord Capulet, wants to fight Romeo at the Ball

Lord Capulet forbids the fight

Juliet and Romeo meet and fall in love at first sight, they KISS

Romeo finds out the love of his life is a Capulet

Juliet discovers that the love of her life is a Montague

Act 2:1-Where in the world did Romeo go?

Capulet Garden

Romeo is in the Capulet’s garden and orchard
Mercutio and Benvolio are looking for Romeo
They can’t find Romeo and they leave

ACT 2:2 THE MOST FAMOUS SCENE IN THE PLAY

Romeo is in the garden hoping to see Juliet on the balcony

Juliet comes out on the balcony and is talking to herself
Romeo learns that Juliet loves him, but is afraid because he is a Montague
Romeo and Juliet talk and admit they love each other
They are willing to give up their families and their names
They plan to marry

ACT 2:3—You’ve got to help us

The next morning

Romeo goes to see his priest, Friar Lawrence

Romeo says he has forgotten all about Rosaline
He is in love with Juliet now
He asks Friar Lawrence to marry them
Friar Lawrence agrees to marry them in secret and hopes it will end the feud

ACT 2: 4—A secret wedding is planned

In the afternoon

Mercutio and Benvolio are looking for Romeo
They are afraid Tybalt wants to fight Romeo
They find Romeo and The Nurse arrives with a message for Romeo
Romeo and The Nurse plan the secret wedding
Romeo and Juliet will meet with Friar Lawrence to marry in a secret ceremony

ACT 2: 5—Juliet sneaks away

Capulet House

The Nurse teases Juliet and makes her wait for news from Romeo
Juliet tells her parents she is going to Church to go to confession, instead she will marry Romeo

ACT 2:6—Going to the Chapel of Love

At the Church

Romeo and Juliet meet to get married
They are so in love they are not worried about the future
Friar Lawrence hopes to be the man that saves Verona form the feud
He marries Romeo and Juliet

ACT 3:1—Sword fights, dead bodies and Romeo is banished

Streets of Verona-the same day

Benvolio and Mercutio are walking around Verona
Mercutio is looking for a fight
They meet Tybalt (Juliet’s cousin) and argue
Mercutio and Tybalt have a sword fight
Romeo tries to stop the fight, he steps in between them and Mercutio is stabbed
As Mercutio is dying her curses both families, “A plague on both your houses”

Tybalt fights with Romeo

Romeo kills Tybalt and runs away
The Capulets, The Montagues and the Prince come to the scene
The Capulets are angry—Tybalt is dead
The Prince is angry—Mercutio, his cousin, is dead
The Prince declares that Romeo must be punished
Romeo is exiled from Verona to Mantua forever

ACT 3:2—The bad news

Juliet’s bedroom

The Nurse tells Juliet about the news about Tybalt and Romeo
Juliet is upset her cousin is dead, but devastated that Romeo has been banished
Juliet upset that she will not have a wedding night and “will die a maidenwidow” (virgin)
The Nurse promises to arrange “a wedding night” meeting for the lovers

ACT 3:3—The plan for the wedding night

Friar Lawrence’s Cell

Romeo is worried about his punishment for Tybalt’s death
Friar tells Romeo he is lucky to be alive and only exiled from Verona
The Nurse arrives and they make plans for the wedding night
Romeo will leave Verona in the morning
The Nurse gives Romeo and ring from Juliet as a sign of her love

ACT 3:4—Juliet will marry Paris

The Capulet House

The Capulets meet with Paris
They decide that Juliet will marry Paris on Thursday, because Wednesday is too soon?!?

ACT 3:5—Romeo and Juliet and some nooky-nooky

Juliet’s bedroom, the next morning

Romeo and Juliet have consummated their marriage
Saying good-bye, do not want the night to end and morning to arrive
They notice they “look pale like death”
The Nurse enters and warns Juliet her mother is coming
Romeo leaves
Lady Capulet enters and tells Juliet she will marry Paris on Thursday
Juliet is upset and refuses to marry Paris
Lord Capulet is enraged, fights with Juliet and her parents leave

Juliet asks The Nurse for advice
Nurse tells Juliet to marry Paris and forget Romeo, because he is as good as dead
Juliet pretends to take the Nurses’ advice
Juliet plans to go see Friar Lawrence for advice
Juliet says if Friar Lawrence can’t help her she can always kill herself

ACT 4:1—A short scene but a fateful plan is hatched!

At the Church

Paris goes to see the Friar to plan his wedding to Juliet

Paris explains the wedding will make Juliet happy
Juliet arrives and talks to Paris lovingly
To get Paris to leave, Juliet asks for confession
Juliet threatens to kill herself is she has to marry Paris
Friar Lawrence comes with a plan

Juliet will agree to marry Paris

Before the wedding she will drink a “sleeping potion”

Her family will think she is dead

She will be put in the family vault

The Friar will send a message to Romeo, telling him about the plan

Romeo will sneak back to Verona to get Juliet

Juliet agrees to the plan

ACT 4:2—Juliet deceives her parents

The Capulet House

Juliet tells her parents she will marry Paris
Parents are happy
Juliet goes to her room to prepare for the wedding

ACT 4:3—Juliet makes a big decision

Juliet’s bedroom

She convinces her mother and the Nurse to leave her alone
She worries about drinking the potion
Juliet drinks the sleeping potion

ACT 4:4—Is Juliet asleep or dead?

Juliet’s bedroom

The nurse finds Juliet dead
Lord and Lady Capulet come in, the three are very upset
Friar Lawrence and Paris arrive
The Friar tells the family to prepare for the funeral

ACT 5:1—I want a new drug

While Juliet body is lying in the family vault

In Mantua
Romeo remembers a beautiful dream about Juliet
Romeo’s servant Balthasar arrives to tell Romeo that Juliet is dead
Romeo is distraught “I defy you stars”
Romeo looks for an apothecary (druggist) to buy poison to kill himself
He plans to go to the tomb “to lie with” his Juliet

ACT 5:2—Friar Lawrence comes up with another plan!

The Friar realizes Romeo never received the message about Juliet’s fake death
The messenger (Friar John) never got to Mantua, he got stuck in a quarantined house
Friar Lawrence decides to go get Juliet out of the tomb and hide her at the church

ACT 5:3—Hey, let’s all hang out at the tomb tonight, More people are going to die

Capulet Family Tomb

Paris goes to the tomb to leave flowers

Romeo goes to the tomb with a crowbar to break in
Paris thinks that Romeo, a Montague, is planning to damage the Capulets
They argue, sword fight, Paris is dead!
Romeo drags Paris’ body into the tomb
Romeo sees Juliet’s “dead” body, drinks the poison and commits suicide
Friar Lawrence finds Paris and Romeo dead
TIME FOR ANOTHER NEW PLAN
Juliet wakes up, Friar Lawrence tries to convince her to leave. She refuses and the Friar takes off
Juliet sees the vial of poison and realizes Romeo is dead
She tries to take the poison by kissing Romeo’s lips, then she takes a knife and kills herself
The Prince, The Capulets and the Montagues arrive at the tomb

Friar Lawrence is forced to tell them all the truth

The Prince blames the Capulets and Montague Feud for all the deaths
The families end the feud and decide to build a memorial statue to the lovers
The play ends as the Prince declares, “Never was there a story of more woe, Than that of Juliet and her Romeo