Romeo and Juliet: Act 1, Scene 5

When Romeo and Juliet interact for the first time they immediately begin to “talk in sonnets”. The religious nature of their “conversation” and their language of martyrdom ultimately predicts their upcoming tragic love affair.

Read the side-to-side translation here: http://nfs.sparknotes.com/romeojuliet/page_58.html

Analysis

This link, and the following video, provides some analysis of the shared sonnet

http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/romeojuliet/section6.rhtml

This blog post offers a pretty solid discussion of this scene and the use of the sonnet as a literary and story telling device.
https://unseenflirtspoetry.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/romeo-and-juliets-first-kiss-act-one-scene-four/

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Romeo and Juliet Dramatic Performance (Audio)

Librivox recording of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. (Version 2)

For various downloadable formats to add to your personal devices visit the Internet Archive.

Romeo and Juliet is Shakespeare’s famous tragedy of two “star-crossed lovers” from rival houses. Romeo and Juliet meet at a party and fall instantly in love, realizing too late that their families, the Montagues and the Capulets, are mortal enemies. Braving parental opposition, the teenage lovers marry in secret, with the aid of the well-intentioned Friar Lawrence. Yet, as Shakespeare has often observed, the course of true love does not run smoothly, and Romeo and Juliet must risk death to be together. (summary by Elizabeth Klett)

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R&J Act I Song Analysis

 

Romeo and Juliet Journal Entry #1:

What is true love?

Do you believe in love at first sight? Is it realistic?

What would you do if you were Romeo or Juliet?

Make connections with the music videos below regarding the ‘Power of Love.”

Which song do you feel best represents the theme of love in Romeo and Juliet? Be specific with references to the lyrics, evidence from the text (quotations and line numbers, please), and the imagery presented in the video.

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Men In Dark TimesThe world is not humane just because it is made by human beings, and it does not become humane just because the human voice sounds in it, but only when it has become the object of discourse. However much we are affected by the things of the world, however deeply they may stir and stimulate us, they become human for us only when we can discuss them with our fellows… We humanize what is going on in the world and in ourselves only by speaking of it, and in the course of speaking of it we learn to be human. | Hannah Arendt

Between the World and Us: Hannah Arendt on Outsiderdom, the Power and Privilege of Being a Pariah, and How We Humanize Each Other