Romeo and Juliet

Grade Levels

Excerpt

Your Playbook

• You will turn in your playbook at the end of the unit. It is required in order to pass—it’s part of the final exam.

• Always bring your entire playbook to class.

• If you lose your playbook, you must come in outside of class for a new one.

Unit Goals - Students will use The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet to learn how to…

• Identify figurative and literal language (Reading 1.1, 3.7).

• Explore ambiguity and subtlety (Reading 3.8).

• Identify different types of irony (Reading 3.8).

What's the big deal?

• Shakespeare was the greatest writer in the 1,000-year history of the English language.

• His plays demonstrate an understanding of human character, human relationships, and human complexities unknown before his time.

• His poetry and his use of words to express ideas has impacted all of Western Civilization.

Background Information

• Shakespeare was part of the Renaissance, a revival of classical literature, science, and philosophy in Western Europe. His plays contain many classical allusions, and many are set in Italy.

• Romeo and Juliet, written about 1594, was one of his early plays. He wrote 37 between 1592 and 1611.

• He was not very famous during his lifetime.

• His plays were often performed at The Globe in London, and sometimes at the court of Queen Elizabeth, and later King James.

Life in 1594

Anne Hathaway’s house was a 3-bedroom house with a small parlor, kitchen, and no bathroom. Mother and Father shared a bedroom. Anne had a queen-sized bed, but did not sleep alone. She also had 2 other sisters and 6 servant girls. They didn’t sleep like we do lengthwise, but all laid on the bed crosswise.

Unit Map - Romeo and Juliet is about…OVERWHELMING ROMANTIC LOVE

• through the CHOICES made by two people

• through FATE / DESTINY (were they meant to be together?)

• in spite of AN ANCIENT BLOOD FEUD

• in spite of LOSS, SACRIFICE (loyalties, life)

• in spite of TRADITION (the need to retaliate, family pride, obeying elders)

Play Map - A Shakespearean Tragedy

• The main character(s) either totally innocent (FATE) or totally responsible (FREE WILL)

• Do you believe in fate, or do you believe in free will?

What usually happens in a Shakespearean tragedy

• exposition introduces conflict, characters, setting

• rising action a series of complications to the conflict

• crisis / turning point a choice made by the main character(s)

• falling action events that result from the turning point

• main character(s) die, loose ends tied up

Scene Summary I.1

A question this section of the play raises about human nature is: How do some people come to believe that fighting and retaliating is so important that it doesn’t matter why the fight started? Why do some people believe fighting is more important than getting along? Why do some people fall in love with the idea of love, instead of falling in love with the actual person they think they love?

My original title for this section of the play is: “Romeo in Love with Love, and Disconnected from the Fight” “Posers Fight While Romeo Dreams of Love”

About

A powerpoint designed to be used throughout the study of the play. It is also designed to be used with the unit map, but most of the information will be useful without it.