shakespeare digest-3.pdf

8/16/2019 SHAKESPEARE DIGEST-3.pdf

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S H A K E S P E A R E D I G E S T

L I T E R A T U R E + A R T + E D U C A T I O N May 20

3A M A Z I N G

C O N N E C T I O N S

from the act to the

adaptations

R o m e o a n d J u l i e

An in-depth look of the masterpiece.

PLUS

Summary and

timeline of the

whole act!


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c o n e n s

MAY 2016

On the cover:

Romeo andJuliet by Frank

Bernard Dicksee

page 7

P l o t a n d s u b p l o t d e t e c t i v e . . . . . . . . . 3

L i n g u i s t . . . . . . . . 5

A r t s y G e e k . . . . . . . . 8

H i s t o r i a n . . . . . . . . 1 0

P s y c h o l o g i s t . . . . . . . . 2 5

P h i l o s o p h e r . . . . . . . . 2 1


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P L O T A N D S U B P L O T

D E T E C T I V E

M A R I A R O B A Y O

In Act IV of Romeo and Juliet, many of the characters are involved in

subplots. These make up the big plot of the act, which is Juliet’s escape

from mariage with Friar Lawrence’s help. Juliet goes to Friar Lawrence

for help since he is the only one she trusts. Friar understands that she

doesn't want to get married to a man she does not love; she would

rather die than be stuck as Paris’s wife. With Juliet’s parents stressing

about the wedding, Juliet has little time to come up with a plan. Friar

finds a solution for her that would confuse everyone but finally help her

be with her true love. As awful as it sounds, pretending to be dead would

cancel the wedding. Although, she did have doubts about the potion and was terrified of being posioned.

The first subplot of the Act is Juliet’s apology to her father. After all the

disagreements between the two Juliet convinces her father that

disobeying him is a sin, although her intentions are the opposite.

Capulet believes her, while she silently plans her way out of the

wedding. Juliet shows her little affection for her father, compared to the

one she has for Romeo. The second one is between Juliet and LadyCapulet who finally seem to get along, but Juliet’s intentions are false

even if both of her parents think she does want to get married. Lady

Capulet shows how much she loves her daughter when she is told Juliet

is dead; she cries for her only child and we see another side of her. For

once Lady Capulet forgets about the wedding and thinks about her

young daughter. Even if Juliet is just asleep this scene shows how much


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people care about her even if they have been presuring her constantly.

The third subplot is between Paris and Juliet. Paris tries to talk about

Romance with her but all she does is reject his love. Paris tells her she

will soon be his but Juliet makes it clear that before the wedding she will

not love him. This attitude mainly comes from her feelings for Romeo.

The last subplot is in Scene I, where Paris and Friar Lawrence discussthe marriage. Friar tells him it’s too soon while Paris argues that it will

help her get over Tybalt’s death. Friar on the other hand knows exactly

why the marriage should be slowed down; for Romeo and Juliet’s sake.

All these subplots are puzzle pieces to the big puzzle, each one

between different characters and unique.


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LINGUISTm a r i a c a m e l i a u r e n a

Romeo and Juliet is a very recognized novel

worldwide. It was one of the most important works

of literature in the 16th century and has been one

of the most impacting novels, even in the present

day. Whenever we listen to someone talk about

Romeo and Juliet, immediately we make a link to

Shakespeare’s way of writing. William

Shakespeare’s writings helped contribute to the

standardization of the English language, with

many Shakespearean words and phrases

becoming embedded in the English language. In

Act IV, we can see how this language and

vocabulary is used. some words used by

Shakespeare such as dirge, slander and pestilent

have Latin etymology. Others may have oldEnglish etymology like shroud and slack. Haste

has old French etymology and writ has Germanic

etymology. Some of theses words are comply

used in the English language.


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In the text, we can see the use of figurative

language. These devices might give a second

meaning to what is being said. For example in

page 261, line 28 “Death lies on her like an

untimely frost.” In this quote, Capulet compare’s

Juliet’s death to an “untimely frost” which signifies

how unexpected Juliet’s death was. Another

example of figurative language is in lines 79-80

on page 262. “Dry up your tears and stick yourrosemary n this fair corse” Rosemary is a symbol

because Rosemary was often used to cover up

the smell of dead bodies in that time and honour

the memory of the dead.

Works Cited:

http://www.herbco.com/t-rosemary-article.aspx


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Artsy

geekIsabella Holguin-Veras

Adaptations; a great majority of them capture the

beauty of the novel, play, story or article they arebased on, but some of them do not. Anyhow,

adaptations nowadays come in all shapes and

sizes: from plays to movies and musicals! Today,

I will be discussing with you three adaptations of

Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

The first adaptation I chose was a painting titled

“Romeo and Juliet’s first anniversary” By

Madeleine Carol Matz. In this painting Juliet’s left

hand bears the wedding band from their secret

marriage and her right is holding the dagger she

had plunged into her breast. I chose thisadaptation because I felt the pain inside the

canvas. I felt the mourning and the tragedy when

I first saw it. This painting is touched off with a

lone mouse, their only guest at their anniversary

party.


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Now let’s discuss our second adaptation: West

Side Story, an award winning adaptation

directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise.

The feuding families become two brawling New

York City gangs; the Jets, led by Riff, and theSharks, led by Bernardo, both gangs battling

for territories in their neighborhood. In this

musical film, Maria, Bernardo’s sister, falls in

love with Tony, a member of the Jets. She

confides in Anita, who is the equivalent of Friar

Laurence in the film, about her problems with

her love for Tony. The film ends somewhat like

Romeo and Juliet, except Tony is shot by a

member of the Sharks and Maria accuses

everyone of his death.

The third and last adaptation I chose is

“Romeo + Juliet” Directed by Baz Luhrmann.

You could say its Romeo and Juliet with a

modern twist but although it is set in modern

times, it is still the timeless story of the “star-

crossed lovers” . The movie retains the play’s

original dialogue, character names and

characteristics, except for Mercutio, who is a

homosexual in the film.


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HISTORIANEDUARDO FERNANDEZ


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T I M E

K i n g H e n r y V I I I

d i v o r c e s C a t h e r i n e o f

A r a g o n b e c a u s e s h e

b o r e n o m a l e c h i l d t o

s u c c e e d h i m a s k i n g .

1 2 A p r i l , 1 5 3 3 9 M a y , 1 5 3 6

A n n e B o l e y n ,

a n o t h e r o n e o f

H e n r y V I I I ' s

n u m e r o u s w i v e s , i s

e x e c u t e d d u e t o n o t

b e i n g a b l e t o

c o n c e i v e a s u c c e s s o r

t o t h e k i n g .

K i n g H e n r y V I I I

m a r r i e s J a n e

S e y m o u r w i t h

t h e h o p e s t h a t

s h e c a n b e a r

h i m a m a l e

c h i l d .

3 0 M a y , 1 5 3 6 8 J u n e , 1 5 3 6

T h e A c t o f

S u p p r e s s i o n i s

p a s s e d . I t p l a c e d a l l

s m a l l m o n a s t e r i e s

u n d e r t h e K i n g ' s

d i s p o s a l s o t h a t h e

c o n t r o l l e d t h e

m a j o r i t y o f

r e l i g i o u s

e s t a b l i s h m e n t s .

T h e T e n A r t i c l e

p a s s e d ,

w h i

p r o c l a i m e d t h a t s

w e r e t o b e p r e a

a g a i n s t t h e R o

C a t h o l i c C h u r c h

h a d d e n i e d H e n

r i g h t t o d i v o r c e f

w i v e s .

A l s o

n o w ,

c h i l d r e n w

l e a r n a b o u t t h e s

( H o l y C r e e d

,

C o m m a n d m e n

E n g l i s h r a t h e r t h a

i n d e f i a n c e o f t h e

i n R o m e .

J u l y , 1 5


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i n e

h e B i s h o p ' s

B o o k i s

u b l i s h e d ,

t i n g t h a t a l l

C h r i s t i a n s

u s t h o n o r

e K i n g e v e n

o r e t h a n

h e y l o v e d

e i r n a t u r a l

f a t h e r

3 7 J u n e , 1 5 3 9 1 5 5 8 1 5 5 8

1 5 t h t o 1 7 t h c e n

T h e S i x A r t i c l e s a r e

p u b l i s h e d a s t h e

d o c t r i n e o f t h e

C h u r c h o f E n g l a n d ;

H e n r y V I I I p r o c l a i m s

t h a t t h e h e a d o f t h e

C h u r c h o f E n g l a n d i s

t h e K i n g r a t h e r t h a n

t h e P o p e .

T h i s

s i g n a l e d t h e f i n a l

b r e a k o f t h e E n g l i s h

p e o p l e f r o m t h e

C a t h o l i c C h u r c h

T h e A c t o f S u p r e m a c y

o f1 5 5 8

i s p a s s e d ,

w h i c h c o m p l e t e l y

a b o l i s h e s r e s p e c t f o r

a n y e c c l e s i a s t i c a l

a u t h o r i t y o u t s i d e o f

E n g l a n d , a n d w a s

e s p e c i a l l y a i m e d a t

u n d e r m i n i n g t h e

P o p e .

J o h n K n o x ,

l e a d e r o f t h e

P r o t e s t a n t R e f o r m a t i o n ,

w r i t e s i n 1 5 5 8 t h a t ' W o m a n

i n h e r g r e a t e s t p e r f e c t i o n

w a s m a d e t o s e r v e a n d

o b e y m a n " . M o r e o v e r ,

T h e

c h u r c h i s e x t r e m e l y

p o w e r f u l a n d r e l i g i o u s

f u n d a m e n t a l i s m

d o m i n a t e d e v e r y a s p e c t o f

l i f e i n B r i t a i n .

G i r l s c o n t i n u e

t o b e i n d o c t r i n a t e d f r o m

b i r t h t h a t t h e y w e r e t h e

i n s t r u m e n t s o f t h e d e v i l ,

w h o l u r e d m e n a w a y f r o m

G o d a n d i n t o s i n .

D u r i n g t h e R e n a i s s a n c e

w o m e n l o s e e v e n m o r e

w h a t l i t t l e e c o n o m i c

p o w e r t h e y h a d ,

b e c a u s

m e n i n c r e a s i n g l y g o o u t

t h e h o m e t o w o r k i n a l l

m a l e p r o f e s s i o n s ,

t h u s

s e p a r a t i n g h o m e a n d

w o r k ,

l e a v i n g w o m e n

b e h i n d ,

w o r k i n g u n p a i d

t h e h o m e .

M e r e l y t e a c h i n g g i r l s t o

r e a d a n d w r i t e i s

c o n s i d e r e d u n n e c e s s a r

a n d e v e n f o l l y b y m o s t

p e o p l e .

A w o m a n w h o i

e x c e p t i o n a l l y

a c c o m p l i s h e d r i s k s b e i n

l a b e l e d a s '

m a n n i s h ' .


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I n t r o d u c t i o n

It is easy to read a play like

Romeo and Juliet and enjoy itsolely based on

Shakespeare’s complete

mastery of the English

language, but it would be a

grave mistake to ignore its

other merits, most notably the

way in which the author

relates his literature to the

society in which he found

himself. After all, French

philosopher Louis GabrielAmbroise once stated that

“Literature is an expression of

society just like the word is

the expression of a human

being”. The play is set in 14th

century Verona, in Italy and

even though it focuses on the

trials and tribulations of two

families - the Capulets and

the Montagues - it also

incorporates Shakespeare’s

knowledge of 16th centuryElizabethan England in order

to appeal to his audience. In

Romeo and Juliet,

Shakespeare satirizes some

of the most widespread and

influential mindsets and

behaviors in the society he

lived in. These included male

oppression of women, strictly

defined gender roles for both

sexes, and a discriminatingattitude toward members of

the Catholic church.


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T h e C a t h o l i c C h u r c h i n e n g l a n d

Shakespeare addresses the

views toward the Catholicreligion – which were more

often than not very negative -

in the play by presenting the

reader with the character of

Friar Laurence, and making it

difficult to determine whether

he is a hero or a villain. A

peer-reviewed paper written

by authors from Long Beach

City College explains that

“The religious mood inEngland was anti-Catholic (in

Shakespeare’s time)… The

English split from Catholicism

had occurred only decades

before Elizabeth I’s rise to

power”. Shakespeare notes

this tendency and so he

writes in lines 93-98 of Act IV,

Scene 1:

Friar Laurence: Take thou this

vial, being then in bed,And this distilled liquor drink

thou off;

When presently through all

thy veins shall run

A cold and drowsy humor; for

no pulse

Shall keep his native

progress, but surcease;

No warmth, no breath, shall

testify thou livest;

Juliet complains about herfuture forced marriage with

Paris to Friar Laurence, and

instead of suggesting that

she openly speak out against

the arrangement or that she

just peacefully complies with

her family’s wishes and

marries Paris without

resistance, he suggests that

she drink a potion in order to


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create the perception that she

is dead for a certain period oftime even though she was

truly very much alive.

Recognizing that there was a

widely held stance of

disapproval toward members

of the Catholic Church in his

time, Shakespeare created

Friar Laurence as a morally

ambiguous character, as he

appeared kind and generous

but simultaneously concocteda plan that would result in

doom. Specifically, all the friar

was trying to do when telling

Juliet to fake death was to

help her deal with her

personal problem of being

obligated by her family to

marry Paris even though she

was entirely against

it. However, because Romeo

found her as though she was

dead when he came backfrom Mantua, he committed

suicide by poisoning himself.

Then, when Juliet woke up

from the sleep that was

caused by the potion that

Friar Laurence suggested she

drank, she found Romeo

dead and stabbed herself.

Friar Laurence had indirectly

led to the death of the two

main characters of the play.At the same time, Friar

Laurence was the character

who had married Romeo and

Juliet at the end of the second

act of the play and supported

the development of their

relationship while all others

forcefully rejected it or openly

mocked it.


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This was the ambiguity that

Shakespeare wanted toachieve in his most

controversial character when

presenting him to the

audience, which he knew was

going to be biased against

considering him in a positive

light due to his profession

and cultural background: Was

he to be honored as a hero

because he had the heart to

promote true love? Or was heto be shamed as a villain

because his actions resulted

in deaths that could have

easily been prevented?


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O p p r e s s i o n o f w o m e n

Shakespeare not only

showcases the maleoppression that was so popular

in his time but also responds to

it when he shows that in fact

women were able to stand up

for their beliefs and express

their opposition to being denied

basic liberty.

One of the most prevalent

attitudes in England during the

Elizabethan era was the

inferiority of women comparedto men.

Jeanne Gerlach of West

Virginia University explains that

“women [in Renaissance

England] as the feminine

represented the following

virtues, which even have their

meaning in relation to the male:

obedience, silence, sexual

chastity, piety, humility,

constancy, and patience”.

These are all representativeof the view held toward

women as necessarily

submissive to men and thus

lesser in value. In general,

they were viewed as little

more than slaves with

practically no capabilities of

their own nor the right to

make their own decision.

Shakespeare observes this

and takes it into account when Juliet states in Lines

77-81 of Act IV, Scene 1 of

the play “O, bid me leap

rather than marry Paris,

From off the battlements of

yonder tower, Or walk in

thievish ways or bid me lurk

where serpents are; chain

me with roaring bears or

shut me nightly in a churnel


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O p p r e s s i o n o f w o m e n

house” Juliet prefers practically

any situation, no matter howhorrendous it may make her

feel, rather than marrying the

man who her parents have

forced upon her not only as an

obligation but also without

taking into account how she

might feel about the union.

As a response to the

overwhelmingly patriarchal

nature of the society he lived in,

Shakespeare presented Julietas a female character who

vehemently opposed

oppression from males. He

presents women not as the

compliant, yielding characters

that his audience always

expected when presented with

a woman on stage, but rather

as a figure who actively

engaged in resistance toward

discrimination, since she was

seeking a way to avoidmarrying Paris.


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M a l e a n d f e m a l e g e n d e r r o l e s

Moreover, Shakespeare also

demonstrates the extremely

strictly defined gender roles forboth males and females in

England at the time, which he

humorously mocks when he

has Capulet temporarily

become a housewife.

For some historical background

on the topic, according to

Leanne Pettit of Cedar Crest

College, who describes

England during the

Renaissance, “a woman andgovernment officers were both

to uphold authority: a woman to

her husband and a government

officer to his king. The perfect

husbandman is the father and

master of the family… whose

office and employment are for

the most part abroad, or

removed from the house”.

Pettit makes it clear that the

men Shakespeare was

surrounded by didn’t deal witthe affairs of the household b

rather with their professions

outside of it.

This is recognized by the

playwright who writes in lines

3-8 of Act IV, Scene 4:

Capulet: The second cock ha

crowed,

The curfew bell hath rung, ‘tis

three o’clock.

Look to the baked meats, gooAngelica;

Spare not for cost.

Nurse: Go, you cot-quean

(housewife), go,

Get you to bed! Faith, you’ll b

sick tomorrow

For the night’s watching.

In order to prepare for Juliet’s

wedding, Capulet is helping


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M a l e a n d f e m a l e g e n d e r r o l e s

out in the kitchen and is

extremely busy when managing

the others who are helping inorder to have everything ready,

to the very last detail, when the

wedding comes. However, the

nurse mocks him by telling him

to calm down and stop working

and calling him a housewife, in

a ridiculing, insulting tone rather

than in a serious one.

In Shakespeare’s society, a

male’s role in the household

was very well-defined andincluded mastery over others

and a general avoidance of

mundane tasks like cooking or

preparing for guests.

Shakespeare responded to this

perspective by portraying

Capulet, the male head of a

prominent, powerful family in

Italy, as capable of doing and

even desiring to take part in

more menial tasks that were

reserved for housewives durihis time. This inclusion result

as unexpected and probably

produced a humorous respon

in his audience because of ho

familiar they were with the

typical home in which a

dominating male controlled

submissive subordinates.

Works Cited:

Gerlach, Jeanne, Rudolph Almasy, and Rebecca Daniel. "Revisiting Sha

and Gender." Virginia Tech Digital Library and Archives. Virginia Polytec

Institute and State University, 1996. Web. 17 May 2016.

.

"Henry VIII and the Break with Rome Timeline." History on the Net.

HistoryOnTheNet, 14 Aug. 2014. Web. 17 May 2016.

.

Pettit, Leann. "A Look at Male Gender Roles in Shakespeare’s

Renaissance."Cedar Crest College. Cedar Crest College. Web. 17 May 2

.

"Shakespeare and the Legacy of Friars in England." Long Beach City Co

Long Beach City College. Web. 17 May 2016.

.


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INSERT TEXT HERE

P H I L O S O P H E R

M a x i m o b e r a s - g o i c o

Quite literally, the term "philosophy" means, "love of wisdom." In a broad sense

philosophy is an activity people undertake when they seek to understand

fundamental truths about themselves, the world in which they live, and their

relationships to the world and to each other.

As the philosopher of Act IV, I had 4 “subroles”.

-First, I had to find 3 quotes that I consider could be problematic in the act.

-Then, I had to present a solution to the problem the quote might cause.

-Furthermore, I had to find 3 more quotes which sparked rhetorical questions in

my mind.

-Finally, I had to present all possible answers to the questions.

In essence, I will explain how a small action can affect the overall development

of the story.

Keep in mind that in this article I will try to summarize everything that crossed

my mind after reading this act. Moreover, I will try to make you think what I

thought, see what I saw, feel what I felt while reading this act, in order to try to

make as much of an expert as I am.

First, I want to start mentioning some themes that are present in the act. Love

and treason are two of the most notable themes. There is always some madne

in love. But there is also always some reason in madness. Love is present in th

whole play


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but in this act we can see how Juliet loves Romeo so much that she is

willing to risk her life to see him again. With her drinking the sleeping

potion, so many things can go wrong, but she did it anyways for the

mere possibility of seeing her beloved Romeo again.

Now moving on to the 3 quotes that spark questions and thoughts: In

the very beginning of the act in line 6 of page 253, we can see that

Paris says “Immoderately she weeps for Tybalt’s death”. Immediately

after reading this I asked myself, is she actually crying because of he

cousin’s death or because of the Prince’s decision to exile Romeo? I

believe that she is not crying for her cousin’s death, but because of

Romeo’s exile. I believe so because her connection with Tybalt wasn’t

half as strong as her connection with Romeo, she loves Romeo with all

her heart. Remember, love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two

bodies.

In lines 89 and 90 of page 255, the Friar says to Juliet “Go home, give

consent to marry Paris”. After reading this I had many questions. First I

asked myself, will she or will she not tell her parents that she will marryParis? And then I asked, but even if she does tell her parents that she

will marry Paris, will she actually marry him or will she go with Friar

Lawrence’s plan. Again, because of Juliet’s profound love for Romeo, I

strongly believe that she will happily give consent to marry Paris.

However, I think that she will not actually marry Paris, but that she will

carry out the plan and take the sleeping potion. Many things can go

wrong with this plan and she can even lose her life, but I believe thatshe will do it to live freely with Romeo. In dreams and in love there are

no impossibilities.

“Gentle nurse, I pray thee leave me to myself tonight” is what Juliet said

to her nurse in line 1 and 2 of page 257. This was something very


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decisive what she just said, but I had one question in my mind. Does she

want to be alone because she will drink the contents of the vial and carry out

the friar’s plan, or does she want to be alone because of the stress, anxiety

and anticipation she has for tomorrow, the wedding day? Again, I believe tha

he will drink the content of the vial. Why is this? She want to live with

Romeo, she want to live free of her father’s wishes, she wants to be free to

love whom ever she wants.

Here are 2 other quote which I found could create a problem in the play and

a respective solution:

“Come, we’ll in here. Tarry for the mourners, and stay for dinner” is what a

musician said when Paris and the Capulets were mourning Juliet’s death.

This could be a big problem since the musicians probably weren’t there to

help the Capulet’s mourn, but to take advantage of their broken hearts to eat

and drink. They should be thrown out of the funeral and let the family mourn

in peace. The Capulets should remember, givers need to set limits, because

takers rarely do.

“Stay, Tybalt stay! Romeo, I come, this do I drink to thee.” is what Juliet said

to herself in her bed right before drinking the potion. This could be hugely

problematic in the story. Reading these lines, I felt a sense of fear, instead of

love. This means that she drank the contents of the vial because of fear,

because she was scared of losing Romeo forever. When you do things

because you are scared, you don’t think. I could only ask myself, what if

something went wrong with the plan? The only person that can inform

Romeo about Juliet’s false death and save Juliet’s life is Friar Lawrence. If

he carries out the plan, everything will be fine and Juliet and Romeo will live

happily. However, I live my life by an idea, people living deeply have no fear

of death.

Now I will talk a little about the play in a broader sense, the social and

political problems that are presented in it, and what could be a solution in the


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real world, in the present:

Throughout the play, specially in this act, we can see that during that period

in England arranged marriages were a common thing. In Jodi O’Brien’s

book, “The Encyclopedia of Gender and Society: Volume 2”, he explains how

arranged marriages were very common up until the middle of the 18th

century. He goes on saying that in most cases these marriages were

arranged by a close relative, such as the parents or the grandparents.

According to a study conducted by Rong Pan, in some countries (such as

China), these marriages usually involved negotiations between the parents.

The Organization “Rights of Women” has made sure that laws are passed to

protect women from forced marriages. Kim Gandy, the president of the

organization, said that forced marriage is a crime. The only solution to this is

to pass laws in all countries to make it illegal, since it is in those dark corners

of the third world countries that these types of marriages are most common.

Works Cited:

http://philosophy.fsu.edu/content/view/full/36588

https://books.google.com.do/books?

id=rkIOAQAAMAAJ&q=isbn:9781412909167&dq=isbn:97814

7&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y

http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/blog/love-quotes-philos

http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2007/05/11/22-inspir

quotes-on-fear/

http://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?

func=downloadFile&recordOId=1328263&fileOId=1328264

http://rightsofwomen.org.uk/get-information/family-law/forcedmarriage-

law/#The%20criminal%20offence%20of%20forced%20marria


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In the play, Romeo and

Juliet, act 4 serves as a

platform to analyze and

understand in depth many

of the play’s characters.

This is due to the fact that

act 4 is such a culminating

point with a strong

dilemma which

implements perplexity on

the characters. Thiscauses an exhibition and

manifestation of the

characters’ personality

traits. Throughout this

article we’re going to beplaying the role of

psychologists to study the

characters’ actions in

order to make

conclusions of their traits

A definitely indispensable

character in the act is Fri

Laurence since he’s a ke

player regarding Juliet’s

supposedly wedding with

Paris and because he

helps Juliet avoid such

wedding. The most

important action of Friar

Laurence in the entire ac

is when he comes up hiscreative plan of Juliet

drinking a sleeping pill to

make everyone believe

she’s dead, which will of

course call off the weddinbetween Juliet and Paris

This action and actions

from the beginning of the

play,

Psychologist

Eduardo Elias


26/30

such as Laurence

marrying Juliet and

Romeo secretly, proves

that he’s a very civic-

minded, kind, and

comprehensive man. The

fact that he married

Romeo to Juliet and

helped Juliet avoid the

wedding with Paris,

despite the

consequences this could

have brought, speaks

loudly of his desire to

help others; “And, if youthou dearest, I’ll give

thee remedy. Get you

gone, be strong and

prosperous in this

resolve.” The socialpsychologist Robert

Cialdini stated: “Empathy

is directly tied into

feelings of “oneness” with

the

person in need.” This

leads to the speculation

that Friar Laurence feels

connected somehow wit

Juliet which causes him constantly aid her. In one

side of the coin, Friar

Laurence demonstrates

be one of the most

sympathetic characters ithe play, however, the

other side of the coin is

the part where he

conducts a wedding

secretly being conscious

of the rivalry of the famili

of the couple that he

married which can be

seen as out of line. This

why it can be concluded

that Friar Laurence has a

strong willing of helping

which makes him bypass

any consequences he ca

foreshadow of his action


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Another crucial character

in act 4 is Paris, since it’s

arranged for him to marry

Juliet throughout the act. It

is manifested throughoutscene 1 that he acts as if

he’s already married to

Juliet, “Happily met, my

lady and my wife! So will

ye, I am sure, that you loveme.” Before going in to

depth in analyzing Paris’

behavior, it is crucial for

your comprehension to

know what’s going on in

this scene. Paris is with

Friar Laurence at his cell

and then Juliet enters, at

this point Paris treats her

as if they are already

married by claiming that

she is already her wife and

that they already have a

mutual love, “Thy face is

mine, and thou hast

slandered it.” These

actions of Paris, proves

that he’s arrogant,

presumptuous, confident

and selfish. As stated byclinical psychologist Dr.

Leisa Bailey, arrogance

mainly consists on putting

yourself higher than the

others in order for you tofeel better and she

thoroughly explains that

this roots in insecurity;

“Arrogant people build

themselves up by putting

others down - to “win.”

Arrogant people feel goo

about themselves only

through affirming their

superiority to others.”

According to Psychology

Today, this arrogant

behavior, exhibited by

Paris, links to the narciss

physiological disorder;


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“Narcissistic Personality

Disorder involves

arrogant behavior, a

lack of empathy for

other people, and aneed for admiration-all

of which must be

constituently evident a

work and in

relationships. People who are narcissistic are

frequently described as

cocky, self-centered,

manipulative, and

demanding.” This leads

to the conclusion that

Paris behavior roots in

insecurity which leads

him to his arrogant and

presumptuous traits,

because he must feel in

power of every situation

and superior to others in

order to feel satisfied

with himself.

One of the closest

characters to Juliet,

which plays a

fundamental role, is the

nurse. In the act it’sobserved that the nurse

exhibits to be absolutely

loyal, caring, and lovely

to Juliet. She manifests

this throughout heractions of serving as an

intermediate of Juliet

and Romeo since she

delivers messages to

each other, and she als

helps organize and

arrange the secret

wedding; “Well, sir, my

mistress is the sweetes

lady.” The fact that the

nurse bypassed the

Capulet’s orders and

delivered messages to

Romeo is a very strong

exhibition of her loyalty


29/30

According to Emory

Bogardus, “Loyalty

is one of the most

important products of

intersocial stimulation.In its essence it is love.”

This quote corroborates

the fact that the nurse’s

loyalty shows she’s very

appreciative of Juliet.This leads to the

prediction that she will

remain in Juliet’s side

along the entire play,

despite anycircumstances.

According to the

Optimum Performance

Institute, “Some

Borderline PersonalityDisorder signs that are

specific to the

discouraged personality

include: Loyalty, even to

an excessive degree.”

Therefore, due to the

nurse’s loyalty to Juliet,

her behavior and

actions can be linked tothe borderline

personality disorder.

Overall, it can be

concluded that the

nurse is very caring,loyal, and appreciative

of Juliet.

Finally, other essential

characters in the act areLord and Lady Capulet,

which in act 4 they

advocate for Juliet’s

marriage with Paris. In

general, it is concludedthat both Lord and Lady

Capulet areprotective o

their daughter since

they want to marry her


30/30

with Paris which they

believe is the best

choice to assure her

daughter’s wellbeing in

the future. As stated inthe Anxiety Support

Network, overprotective

parents think they’re

doing the best for their

children, however theyare implementing

anxiety in such children;

“The overprotective

parent is one who never

seems to let his or herchild do anything, and if

he or she is allowed to

do something, it is only

done with careful

supervision from thatparent and also a large

amount of unnecessary

rules. One very obvious

f i l i t

and other anxiety

disorders is parents who

are overprotective and

over controlling of their

children's lives.” They bothlove Juliet very much. Also

Lady Capulet proves to be

less imposing on the fact

of the wedding than Lord

Capulet.

In conclusion, act 4 is

useful in studying and

analyzing the character’s

personality traits since

their actions exhibit many

of their attributes and

moral values. This also

helps predict which

disorder certain characters

might have.

Works Cited:

Bailey, Dr. Perspectives on Psychological Wellness. 9 March 201

2016. .

Bogardus, Emory. Brock University. n.d.

.

Optimum Performance Institute . n.d. 15 May 2016.

.

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