Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet - TUEnglishEd Web viewIn this chapter we will discuss William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet ... love in . Romeo and Juliet. The second movie

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Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

In this chapter we will discuss William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and they ways in which it may be taught in the classroom. Romeo and Juliet is the first of Shakespeare’s plays that is taught in the English curriculum. Introducing students to this piece is very important in their learning of Shakespeare because students can relate to it. Students can relate to the characters, plots, and theme of the love story in many different ways.

In order for teachers to successfully teach Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in the classroom, they must know how to incorporate all elements of the piece into various lesson plans. Teachers must also use contemporary works that will allow the students to make a deeper connection with the material. Although students are able to make a basic connection with elements of the work, they may not fully understand it. Therefore, using more contemporary works that some students may already be familiar with will allow all students to successfully learn the content.

This chapter will focus on the theme of love in Romeo and Juliet. There will be many additional sources that could be used with Romeo and Juliet in the classroom. These sources include; books, websites, movies, songs, and articles. All of these sources will have the similar theme of love that can be seen in the original Romeo and Juliet. Each of the sources that I will provide for you will have an explanation as to how it relates to the original text.

At the end of the chapter, you will find activities involving the original text as well as a contemporary piece that can be taught in the

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classroom. Before we begin, let me give you a brief overview of Shakespeare’s original text.

Romeo and JulietRomeo and Juliet is the story of two star

crossed lovers from two different families. Romeo is a Montague and Juliet is a Capulet, two families that are enemies. Romeo and Juliet first meet at a masquerade that Juliet’s fiancé is throwing. Romeo goes to the masquerade uninvited so that he can compare the beauty of the woman he loves, Rosaline, to the women at the masquerade. As soon as Romeo sees Juliet it is love at first sight.

The two come face to face and share their first kiss without knowing each other’s name. When both Romeo and Juliet find out that they come from either side of the feuding families, they are equally upset and distraught. Despite the fact that both lovers are from two different feuding families, Romeo can’t leave Juliet behind. He goes to her window and the both exchange vowels of love.

Romeo then rushes off to see Friar Lawrence who agrees to marry the two young lovers. The next day the two are married in Friar Lawrence’s cell. The two lovers are to share their wedding night together, but they must do so in Friar Lawrence’s cell. The reason for this is because Romeo has been banished from Verona for killing Tybalt. Tybalt challenged Romeo to a duel because he was enraged that Romeo came to the masquerade and fell in love with Juliet. Romeo pleads for Tybalt to stop the duel and listen to the reasons why Romeo doesn’t want to fight. Mercutio, Romeo’s cousin, decided to take matters into his own hands and begins to fight Tybalt. Romeo tries to stop the two from fighting, but Tybalt stabs Mercutio under Romeo’s arm. Romeo then kills Tybalt in a fit of rage.

The two share their wedding night before Romeo must bid his love farewell. Juliet’s father finds out the Tybalt has been slain and forces Juliet to marry Paris in only three days. Juliet has no idea what she is going to do, but her nurse tells her to act as if Romeo were dead and to marry Paris. Juliet is not satisfied with the nurse’s answer so she runs to Friar Lawrence to ask for help. Friar Lawrence devises a plan to have Juliet drink a

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potion that would make her seem as if she were dead. He tells her that once her family has brought her body to the family crypt, he will call for Romeo to be with her once again.

The note that Friar Lawrence sent to Romeo telling him of the plan to reunite the two never got to him. Romeo only knows now that Juliet is dead. Romeo, struck with grief, decides to kill himself and remain by Juliet’s side. In haste, Romeo rushes back to the Capulet crypt where his sweet Juliet lay dead, or so he thinks. He comes across Paris in front of the crypt and kills him. He then enters the crypt to lie beside Juliet. Romeo drinks a deadly poison and dies next to his love. Juliet wakes up and realizes that Romeo lay next to her dead from poison. She tried to kiss his lips so that she too will die but it doesn’t work. She then takes Romeo’s dagger and drives it through her heart.

The two families, the Capulet’s and the Montague’s, arrive to see that their children are both dead. Both Romeo and Juliet’s fathers decide that it is time that the feud between the two families ended. Statues of the two lovers are then placed side by side in the now peaceful Verona.

Although not many students today kill themselves over love, this story of Romeo and Juliet is one the many classis love stories that students can relate to. Students in any school and any secondary grade can relate to their parents not approving of someone they like. They can also relate to the fact that they want to do what they want and if they could run away they would. Since this is something that we see in adolescence all throughout middle and high school, this love story is a great classic to use to get students involved in what they are learning, especially when it comes to Shakespeare. Some students, however, get a little intimidated by the language and vernacular that is used in Shakespeare’s original text. Therefore, we will discuss ways in which Shakespeare’s original text of Romeo and Juliet can be taught in the classroom with more contemporary works.

BOOKS

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Introducing students to contemporary books that are based on the same themes or topics as the classics are very important to student understanding. Romeo and Juliet is a classic love story that is shown and represented in many young adult novels. In this section, I will discuss two specific young adult novels that can be used in the classroom as a substitute or addition to Shakespeare’s classic.

The first contemporary book that can be used as an addition to the classic Romeo and Juliet is Son of the Mob. Son of the Mob is a story about a 17 year old boy named Vince Luca who lives in a family of mobsters. We meet Vince in the beginning of the novel as he is getting ready

for a date with a young lady by the name of Angela. Vince is excited about the date and thinks that it is going well until he finds a dead body in the trunk of his car. As soon as Angela sees the body, she leaves Vince and he becomes very angry with his father.

Vince meets another young lady by the name of Kendra after a football game. The two fall in love at a frat party, much like the masquerade in Romeo and Juliet, and share their first kiss. Vince is scared to tell her about what his father does for a living in fear that she might leave him like Angela. Vince eventually finds out that Kendra’s father is the kind of man that puts men like Vince’s father in jail. So, the two decide that they won’t allow the families to meet. They go through a few rough patches throughout their relationship but they end up falling more and more in love.

This novel is one that students in high school can really understand. Although we don’t really hear about many mobs in society today, there are elements of this novel that are relevant to students. The dialect that is used in Son of the Mob is very similar to the dialect that students speak. Students will be able to understand the basic concept that Romeo and Juliet is trying to portray just by the text alone. There are also references to events and things that students are interested in like parties and football games. When students can relate to things like this they understand the material.

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Although many students from middle to high school can relate to this novel, I would have to say that only high school students should read it. The references to the mob may be a bit mush for students under the age of 12. When I was researching this book the age also said for readers 12 and up. Other than this, I think this would be a great book to use in the classroom as an addition to the classic.

How do we use this novel in the classroom? I think it may be best to have the students read this novel first so they can get a sense of what is to be expected when they read Romeo and Juliet. This way, when they read the classic they will be able to follow along with what is going on. Students may also find it easier to make references between the characters in Son of the Mob to those in Romeo and Juliet, rather than trying to learn who all of the characters in Romeo and Juliet are.

The second contemporary novel that can be used as addition to the classic is Romeo and Juliet: The Graphic Novel. This graphic novel is a retelling of the exact classic text. It uses the same characters, plot and setting. The only difference

between this novel and the classic is that this novel is set up like a comic book.

Although students will be able to get a vivid picture as they read, the readability for this novel is less than simple. The authors of this novel decided to use the original text of Shakespeare’s classic. Therefore, students may find it very difficult to understand what they are reading. Due to the readability of this text, I would say it could be used as a substitution rather than an addition. I also believe that this novel is appropriate for students of all ages, but again there will be an issue of student understanding when it comes to the text. All of the pictures in this novel are suitable for students and should be shown in class for better student understanding.

As I have previously stated, using this book as a substitute for the classic rather than an addition may be a better idea. This will also be a

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great novel to give to students who may have special needs so that they can see what is going on as the rest of the class reads through the classic text. It can also be used in a classroom with students who have different ready abilities. As a teacher, you could give the higher level readers the classic text, the average level readers the Son of the Mob novel, and the lower level readers the Graphic novel. This will ensure that all students are able to read at their level while reading basically the same text as the rest of the class.

While contemporary books and novels are a great way to teach the classics, students in today’s society may need something a little more. In the following portion of this chapter, I will discuss various websites, movies, songs, and articles that can be paired with Shakespeare’s classic Romeo and Juliet. All of these elements will be related to Romeo and Juliet in some way that will help students in their understanding of the classic text.

Websites

Allowing students to connect what they are learning in the classroom to what they are viewing on the internet is vital to student learning. In today’s society, students are always connected to the internet. Whether it is by lap top, cellular phone, Play station portables, or even game systems, students can access the internet and various websites at any given moment. Therefore, when students are learning about the classics it is important to show them what resources they can use to assist in their learning. In this section I will give you two websites that can be used in the classroom to accompany Shakespeare’s class Romeo and Juliet.

One web site that can be used as an addition to teaching Shakespeare’s classic is “1986’s Romeo and Juliet.” This website is a great tool to use if you were asking students to locate information on the internet about Romeo and Juliet. This website includes a brief overview and summary of the classic and what people everywhere think about it. This would be of great use when asking students to reflect on audience reactions. The website also offers pictures that can be helpful to students in their understanding

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of the classic and the time period. As this website is based on the 1986 movie version of Romeo and Juliet, students may have a better time relating to it unlike some other websites.

Another website that may be used in addition to the classics is “William Shakespeare: The Complete Works.” This website offers anything there is to know about Shakespeare. It gives a detailed list of his complete works, biography, poems, and dictionary. All of these elements are useful to students who are assigned that task of writing a paper about Shakespeare. This website would also be useful for students who may not be able to understand the classic dialogue of Romeo and Juliet. Any word that they wanted to look up from the original text can be found on this website. Although this website would be great for students to use to assist them in their understanding of the classic, it can be a bit confusing at times.

While students are always connected to the web, it is not the best place to have students look for the information needed to understand a classic like Romeo and Juliet. Another contemporary element that can be used in the classroom to

assist in student understanding of the classics is movies.

MoviesUsing movies in the classroom is a great

way to assist in the learning and understanding of your students. There have been many movies throughout time that have been based on Shakespeare’s classic Romeo and Juliet. In this section I will discuss two specific movies that can be used as an addition to the classic to assure that students get the most out of the text.

The first movie that can be used as an addition to the classic is the 1996 movie Romeo and Juliet staring Leonardo Dicaprio and Claire Danes. This movie would be great to use in the classroom because it is a contemporary film with contemporary characters, but it still includes elements from the time when the classic was written and performed. Teachers could use this movie to show students those elements that appear in both the play and the movie.

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Students would be able to grasp what the times were like during the time of the original play. It is also a great idea to use this movie because there are elements in the movie that students could relate to. These elements include, but are not limited to, cars, guns, some contemporary clothing, and locations that may be familiar to some students. This movie could also show the students the severity of the love and longing to be together that Romeo and Juliet portray in the original text. The movie focuses more on this aspect of the story. Therefore, if you, as a teacher, were working on the theme of love this would be the perfect movie. In addition to

showing students a Romeo and Juliet movie, you may also show them a movie that is based on the theme of love in Romeo and Juliet.

The second movie that could

be used in addition to teaching the classic is the highly acclaimed Twilight saga. The Twilight saga includes many elements from Shakespeare’s classic Romeo and Juliet. Most importantly, the element and theme of love, the same kind of love portrayed in the classic is portrayed in these movies. Students everywhere have either seen or heard of these movies and it may be of great use to use them when teaching the classic.

Twilight focused on the love of two young people who should not be together, just as Romeo and Juliet should not be together because of their feuding families. In Twilight however, Bella and Edward cannot be together because Edward is a vampire and Bella is human. Although the characters in Twilight are a bit different from Romeo and Juliet, they still try to do whatever it takes to be together. If you have not read the books or seen the movies I will not ruin the ending for you, but in

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/6305364613/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=130&s=dvd

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Twilight Bella tries to become a vampire to be with Edward. This is very similar to Juliet’s desire to be with Romeo, just as we see them in the crypt. Juliet sees her dead Romeo and kills herself, and Bella wants to be with her vampire boyfriend and decides to become one of them to be with him.

I think that using this movie in the classroom to teach the classic would allow many students to make a deeper connection between the actual movie and the play. When students are presented with information and true to life experiences, like a familiar movie, they are able to understand classic material more effectively. In addition to allowing students to make a connection between the classic Romeo and Juliet and movies, it is also important to allow students to make a connection between the classic and music.

MusicMusic is certainly one thing that all students

have in common. Every student in your classroom

listens to music and can often find deeper meaning through the music they listen to. As there have been many books and movies based on the love in Romeo and Juliet, there have also been many songs based on that love. Using music representing the love in Romeo and Juliet can assist in student learning for those students who may find music more relatable than books, websites, or movies. In this section I will discuss two specific songs that can be used as an addition to the classic Romeo and Juliet.

One of the most popular songs that tell of the love between Romeo and Juliet is Taylor Swift’s “Love Story.” In this song Taylor sings as if she were Juliet asking her Romeo to save her. The lyrics in the song go great with the classic text. It is as if Taylor summed up the entire story of Romeo and Juliet’s love in one song. This would be a great song to use in the classroom to show the students the desire that both Romeo and Juliet had for each other. Some of the lyrics to the Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” are shown below.

We were both young, when I first saw you.I close my eyes and the flashback starts-I'm standing there, on a balcony in summer air.

I see the lights; see the party, the ball gowns.I see you make your way through the crowd-You say hello, little did I know...

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles-And my daddy said "stay away from Juliet"-And I was crying on the staircase-begging you, "Please don't go..."

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It is also important to note that this song is from the viewpoint of Juliet whereas the classic text is mainly from the viewpoint of Romeo. Therefore, students are able to see how Juliet is feeling with this song. In addition to allowing your students to see the points of view from Romeo

and from Juliet, you could show the students what their love was actually like.

One song in particular that does this is Jordan Sparks’ song “Battlefield.” This song describes a love that causes a lot of turmoil. Although this song may have been written for a couple who was having problems with their love and relationship, it explains Romeo and Juliet’s love.

Romeo and Juliet have the type of love that many young people, and older people, wish they could have. On the other hand, they are not welcome by their families to have this love. Therefore, it sometimes felt like their love was like walking through a battlefield. They must watch themselves every step of the way and once anyone finds out it is time to suit up for battle. As is shown in the lyrics on the next page.

We were both young, when I first saw you.I close my eyes and the flashback starts-I'm standing there, on a balcony in summer air.

I see the lights; see the party, the ball gowns.I see you make your way through the crowd-You say hello, little did I know...

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles-And my daddy said "stay away from Juliet"-And I was crying on the staircase-begging you, "Please don't go..."

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As you read these lyrics it is very evident where one could connect the words to the feelings that Romeo and Juliet may have had as they tried to hide their

tumultuous love. It is important to note that when using song lyrics with students, it is vital to use a variety of songs to accommodate all students. It is also important to make sure that any song that you bring into the classroom does not have an underlying meaning that isn’t appropriate for students. You must also make sure that all of the words are appropriate as well. In addition to using songs in the classroom to accompany the classics, you may present your students with articles that may assist them in their learning of the text and author.

ArticlesUsing articles in the classroom is a great

way to get the reluctant reading involved in the material. Articles are also a quick and sure fire way to get specific information about a certain topic to your students. Many articles are easy to read and understand, and it is also easy to find articles that would benefit every type of student that you have in your classroom. In this section I will discuss two articles that could be used in the classroom in order to teach Romeo and Juliet.

Both hands tied behind my back with nothingOh noThese times when we climb so fast to fall againWhy we gotta fall for it now

I never meant to start a warYou know I never wanna hurt youDon't even know what we're fighting for

Why does love always feel like ...a battlefield (battlefield)a battlefield (battlefield)a battlefield (battlefield)[repeat]Why does love always feel like

Can't swallow our pride,Neither of us wanna raise that flagIf we can't surrenderthen we both gonna lose what we had, oh no

Both hands tied behind my back with nothing(nothing)Oh no, these times when we climb so fast to fall againI don't wanna fall for it now

I never meant to start a warYou know I never wanna hurt youDon't even know what we're fighting for

Why does love always feel like ...a battlefield (battlefield)a battlefield (battlefield)a battlefield (battlefield)[repeat]

I guess you better go and get your armor(get your armor)Get your armor (get your armor)I guess you better go and get your armor(get your armor)Get your armor (get your armor)

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One article that can be used in the classroom to assist in the learning and teaching of Shakespeare’s classic is “Love, Sex, and Death in Romeo and Juliet” by Clayton MacKenzie. This article is simply about what the title says it is about, love, sex, and death. This article could be used in the classroom when directly looking at the theme of Romeo and Juliet. As a teacher, it is your duty to decide whether or not discussing sex in the classroom is appropriate. In this case, we are going to focus on discussing the theme of love.

When discussing the theme of love in Romeo and Juliet, this article would be perfect. This article discusses the love between both Romeo and Juliet and how others view that love. Te author of this article also discusses the symbols and symbolism of love within the story. This would also be an important aspect to point out when teaching your students because students seem to make a connection to a text when they are able to picture or relate to it in some ways. In addition to presenting articles about Romeo and Juliet to your class when teaching the classic, you may also want to present them with articles about the time period or Shakespeare himself.

Another article that may be used in the classroom to teach the classics is “William Shakespeare: The Modern Victorian Protestant.” This article is all about the life of Shakespeare and the beginnings of his play writing. This would be a great article to use in the classroom at the beginning of the unit. It is important for student to learn about Shakespeare before they even begin to read and discuss his works. Students may find this article a bit daunting and hard to understand, but if you find a way to incorporate elements of this piece in the classroom it would only be beneficial to the students and their understanding of the classics.

It is important to incorporate as many additional sources as possible when teaching the classics. It is even more important to incorporate activities that the students can do in the classroom that may help them to understand the material. In the following section I will discuss a few activities that can be used in the classroom when examining Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

Activities

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Incorporating various activities in the classroom when teaching the classics is very important in student understanding and comprehension. This section will focus on two small or large group activities, and two independent activities that can be used in the teaching of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

Large/Small Group ActivitiesActing Scenes:

This activity can be used in the classroom as a small or large group activity. When I was reading Shakespeare and Romeo and Juliet in ninth grade, we were asked to act out specific scenes in the play. Usually, the scenes consisted of those with many different characters and events. When we acted these scenes out, many students had the opportunity to participate. Those who didn’t were asked to describe what was going on in the scene.

With an activity such as this one, students are more apt to understand what they are reading. You may have to give students time to

rehearse and read the modern text so that they can act out the scene. This may also be used in small groups to act out a variety of scenes. You will have to give the students time to work with their group members to perfect their acting. When they have done this, you can have each group act out the scene for the rest of the class and have the other students do write ups about what they got out of the scene in relation to the text.

Station Rotations:This activity can be used as a small group

activity. As the teacher, you can take the elements that I have presented you with in this chapter to create stations that each group can rotate to. There could be five stations that two groups can go to at a time. The stations would consist of excerpts from each of the mentioned books, websites, movies, songs, and articles.

Each group will be asked to connect the material you have given them to the classic text. The students will have had to read Romeo and Juliet prior to completing this assignment. Once the group has made the connection between the

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text and the materials, they must explain why it relates to the text. They may present this information to the class in the form of an oral/visual assignment.

Individual ActivitiesWriting Songs:

Students can work individually to complete this assignment. The students can pick a character or event from the original text and write their own song. The song should describe their feelings towards the character or event that they pick. The song may also be from the point of view of the character they pick, as well. The students should have the opportunity to present their song to the rest of the class without tell the class what or who they are writing about. The class should be able to tell the writer of the song who they wrote about.

Critical Analysis Paper:This assignment may be an individual

assignment that spans throughout the course of

the unit. The paper that students will write will include and analysis of the class as well as an analysis of the contemporary young adult novel that they read before reading Romeo and Juliet. The students should also be able to connect the two works in their paper.

It may be of great help to let the students do research on both pieces by using the elements I have presented to you in this chapter. This will allow the students to use various sources, practice researching, and show that they understand the classic.

ConclusionRomeo and Juliet is one of the most popular

love stories of all time. It is also one of the first pieces of Shakespeare’s that students work with in the classroom. The amount of contemporary material that can be used in teaching this classic should not be overlooked.

In this chapter, I have presented you with various materials and activities that can be used in the classroom to help in student learning,

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understanding, and comprehension of Romeo and Juliet. The material varies from books, to websites, to songs and movies, all of which students will find quite entertaining.

I hope that you have enjoyed reading this chapter and can take from this vital information that can be used in your own classroom. In the words of William Shakespeare, “parting is such sweet sorrow.”

The End

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(n.d.). Retrieved May 04, 2010, from http://www.william-

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Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet - TUEnglishEd Web viewIn this chapter we will discuss William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet ... love in . Romeo and Juliet. The second movie