Introduction to “Romeo and Juliet”
Romeo and Juliet is a play written by the English playwright William Shakespeare. It was published for the first time in 1597.
Romeo and Juliet is probably the most famous love story of all time. It is a tragic tale depicting the forbidden love shared by two young lovers coming from two feuding families. The story is, along with Hamlet, Shakespeare’s most popular and frequently performed play. Romeo and Juliet is regarded by many experts as a great example of Shakespeare’s early dramatic skill.
The play is set in the Italian city Verona where two noble families, the Montagues and the Capulets, have been sworn enemies for years on end. An unlikely turn of events results in Romeo (the son of
Montague) and Juliet (Capulet’s daughter) falling in love and getting married in secret.
What ensues is a typical Shakespearean tragedy in which social norms, honor and pride irreversibly affect Romeo and Juliet’s love story. The play’s prologue calls the two protagonists “star-crossed lovers”, a most fitting description of their story – one in which the Universe seems to conspire against them.
Although the play draws lots of elements from classical Greek tragedies, William Shakespeare’s take on the theme of forbidden love is a unique, masterful piece of literature. This fact is proven by its endurance in the public’s conscience and by its numerous adaptations, spanning over four centuries
Throughout this lesson series, for the purpose of intelligibility, Romeo and Juliet will be presented in a simplified, mostly-narrative version and not in its original, traditional play form.
