In how far do the views of love presented in the play reflect 19 the attitude towards love the Elizabethan audience had Essay Example For Students

  In how far do the views of love presented in the play reflect 19 the attitude towards love the Elizabethan audience had? Essay William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet has the high profile as the love-tragedy everybody knows1. Although it is regarded as the ideal of romantic love there are many other (quite unromantic) views represented in the play, too. In this term paper I will try to give a survey of the different views of love in Romeo and Juliet. First of all there are Romeo and Juliet, the star-crossd lovers (Prologue) who establish a quality of love, of life intensively lived, that becomes its own value 2. Apart from these two main characters and their view of love there are in general five other attitudes towards love: to the servants of the house of Capulet, the Nurse and Mercutio love means nothing else than sex, to Romeos friend Benvolio the most important thing about love is not only sex but that love makes you happy, Juliets parents Capulet and Lady Capulet together with the Prince and Paris share an Elizabethan view of love and marriage, Romeos parents Montague and Lady Montague in contrast to Juliets parents have a relationship full of love, and last but not least there is Friar Laurence who is afraid that Romeos and Juliets passion will lead to a bitter end but nevertheless shows a big sympathy for the young lovers and wants to make their love holy by marriage. In the following part of this term paper I will have a more detailed look on these shortly sketched views of love, dealing with them in the order just named above and laying great stress on Romeo and Juliet and the way they deal with their feelings. Finally Id like to take a short look on the question in how far the views of love presented in the play reflect the attitude towards love the Elizabethan audience had. 2. Main part: Views of love in Romeo and Juliet 2.1. Romeos and Juliets view of love: Love as the reason for living The star-crossd lovers Romeo and Juliet both fall in love at first sight and are determined to marry just after their first encounter. Their love is the most precious thing Romeo and Juliet have in their lives so both are ready to die for each other and chose to die in the end because each knows that he or she cannot live without the other, and knows this as a simple, literal truth to be acted on at the first opportunity3. Romeo as well as Juliet regards his banishment as death. Although the lovers are hoping to see each other again they are willing to die after Tybalts death/their wedding night. After their separation due to the banishment both kill themselves in order to be together again: Juliet drinks Friar Laurence sleeping potion in order to die and be with Romeo again when she awakes, and Romeo drinks the poison to be reunited with Juliet, whom he thinks lifeless, in death. When waking up in the monument and finding her love having committed suicide, Juliet kills herself for the reason of a reunion after death, too. The lovers even drink to each other when they drink their potions. Up to here Romeo and Juliet seem to share the same view of love but on having a closer look there are some differences in their ways to deal with their feelings. So Ill characterize both separated from each other in detail. 2.1.1. Romeo From the beginning of the play, where Romeo is introduced as being lovesick, till the end of the action, where he takes the poison and commands himself to die quickly (V, iii, 117-118), Romeo is a Petrarchan lover. In the beginning he indulges himself in eloquent images and enjoys his role as the rejected lover. He pities himself and says that he feels heavy and burdened with his love for Rosaline (I, iv, 12; I, iv, 20-22). This is the Elizabethan lover, expressing himself in wild antitheses which are a sort of verbal equivalent for his distracted state balanced between two extremes ( feather of lead, cold fire , etc.), and in conceits ( Love is a smoke the fume of sighs ) which serve to represent the pleasing anguish of the lover, the grief of unrequited love which is yet happier than not loving at all would be.4 But as soon as Romeo lays eyes on Juliet he is so overwhelmed by her beauty that his unhappy love for Rosaline is forgotten at that instant: O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright. It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night As a rich jewel in an Ethiops ear Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear. Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! For I neer saw true beauty till this night. (I, v, 44-53) He gets to know Juliet after the dance and from the first moment their love is so right and true that their conversation effortlessly forms a sonnet. Romeo uses Petrarchan images in that first conversation (e.g. calling Juliet a saint that he is unworthy to touch) and goes on with this when he watches and describes Juliet in the orchard after the party. She is his sun (II, ii, 2 and 3), her eyes are even brighter than the stars (cf. II, ii, 15-22) and she is a bright angel. When talking to her Romeo wants to swear how much he loves her but she doesnt want to hear his oaths. Although in II, ii Romeos language is not different from the Petrarchan language he used to describe Rosaline and the love he felt for her, Romeos love for Juliet is much different from the love he bore for Rosaline. When loving Rosaline, Romeo was in love with love and unable to act. But now he has found a purpose for living in Juliet and in the fact that his new love doth grace for grace and love for love allow (II, iii, 82). Romeo is so much changed by this experience that for a short time he is able to be the old Romeo, the Romeo his friends are missing, again. He jests with Mercutio and wins their battle of wits which makes Mercutio cry out: Why, is not this better now than groaning for love? Now art thou sociable, now art thou Romeo; now art thou what thou art, by art as well as by nature. For this drivelling love is like a great natural that runs lolling up and down to hide his bauble in a hole. (II, iv, 88-92) Romeo gets more mature by his marriage to Juliet, too. When he comes back from the wedding, he is so full of peace and love that Tybalts insults cannot hurt him. Moreover he calls Tybalt cousin and tells him love thee better than thou canst devise Till thou shalt know the reason of my love. (III, i, 68-69) But when Tybalt stabs Mercutio, Romeo accuses Juliet of having made him act so peacefully: O, sweet Juliet, Thy beauty has made me effeminate And in my temper softend valours steel. (III, I, 115-117) In a fury he takes revenge for Mercutios death and kills Tybalt. This action throws him back in the role the feud forces him to play but at the same time it hinders him to be what he intends to be a peaceful young man enjoying his happiness as a freshly-made bridegroom. Romeo seems to realize this, crying out that he is Fortunes fool. He flies to Friar Laurence cell and bursts out in tears. When the clergyman informs him that the Princes doom is not death but banishment, Romeo moans about this banishment because it means that he has to leave Juliet whereas every cat and dog And little mouse, every unworthy thing, Live here in heaven and may look on her, But Romeo may not. (III, iii, 30-33) This clearly shows that Romeo is himself only in his Juliet; she is his only reality, his hearts true home and idol5 and this strong and passionate love he feels for her makes him able to face death in the end of the play. To Romeo love is the most important thing in life. He has the blessing and the curse to feel things deeply6 so being banished from his Juliet after having killed Tybalt really is purgatory, torture, hell itself (III, iii, 18) to him. He doesnt want to live like this, so he denies to hide himself hearing someone (the Nurse) knocking at the door. Learning from the Nurse then that Juliet is in the same state of mind, Romeo is so afraid that Juliet might not love him anymore that he offers to stab himself. But Friar Laurence makes him go to his wife and after having spent the night with her Romeo is so absolute happy that death doesnt give him a fright anymore; he would die at that instant if it pleased Juliet: Let me be taen, let me be put to death, I am content, so thou wilt have it so. I have more care to stay than will to go. Come death, and welcome. Juliet wills it so. (III, v, 17-25) But she makes him leave her at dawn. Bidding her farewell Romeo shows himself certain that they will see each other again and that makes him accept his banishment. Just before he learns about Juliets death in V, i, he is happy having had a dream of Juliet which he takes as the harbinger of joyful news (V, i, 2). Hearing of his wifes death then he is at once determined to lie with thee tonight (V, i, 34) and gets to Verona to commit suicide at his ladys side. He is possessed by this idea and cannot be stopped by Paris who gets in his way. Romeo does not want to put another sin upon his head (cf. V, iii, 62) and beseeches Paris to leave him alone. But Paris refuses to go, so they fight and the County gets killed. Romeo promises to fulfil his last wish to lay him next to Juliet in the tomb. Noticing that the man he just killed is Paris, the man who should have been Juliets bridegroom, he pities him for being writ with him in sour misfortunes book (cf. V, iii, 82) and lays the corpse in to the grave. Inside the tomb Romeo feels merry; he is with his beloved Juliet again, he will remain at her side and no one will ever separate them again. After having praised Juliets beauty, having taken her in his arms and kissed her once again, Romeo drinks the poison to his love and hus with a kiss (V, iii, 120) he dies. 2.1.2. Juliet Juliets attitude towards love is a bit different to that of her lover Romeo. In this couple, Romeo is the romantic one, and Juliet is the practical one7. Whereas Romeo indulges himself in Petrarchan images she discourages Romeo from stereotyped love-vows, and spurs him to make arrangements for their wedding8. In the beginning of the play Juliet is a child, not yet fourteen. To her marriage is an honour that I dream not of (I, iii, 66). This changes when she meets Romeo at the party and falls in love with him. To her as well as to Romeo this is love at first sight and right from the beginning her feelings for him are very deep: If he be married, My grave is like to be my wedding bed. (I, v, 134-135) After the party, Juliet as well as Romeo seems to be too excited to go to bed at once. Instead she is talking to herself in the orchard lamenting about Romeos name. If he were not a Montague and by this her enemy, she could be in love with him so she bids him to doff thy name, And for thy name, which is no part of thee, Take all myself (II, ii, 47-49) Juliet is as well happy as taken by surprise when Romeo disturbs her. She knows that he has overheard her private counsel and that is why she doesnt want to frown or play around. In her practical mind that would make no sense. Juliet is confused by this unexpected meeting, she is a bit shy. She is very young so this is probably her first love and first secret date. She wants a bit more time to make up her mind about all that has happened so far: Although I joy in thee, I have no joy of this contract tonight: It is to rash, too unadvisd, too sudden, Too like the lightning, which doth cease to be Ere one can say à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½It lightensà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½. Sweet, good night. This bud of love, by summers ripening breath, May prove a beauteous flower when next we meet. Good night, good night. As sweet repose and rest Come to thy heart as that within my breast. (II, ii, 117-124) However, at her re-entering Juliet has worked out a plan: if Romeo does honestly love her, he shall marry her the next day, otherwise he shall leave her to her grief (cf. II, ii, 143-148 and II, ii, 150-154). In II, ii Juliet presents herself rather as a child than a young women. This can be seen in the metaphors she uses to describe her love for Romeo, e.g.: Juliet: I would have thee gone, And yet no farther than a wantons bird, That lets it hop a little from his hand Like a poor prisoner in his twisted gyves, And with a silken thread pulls it back again, So loving-jealous of his liberty. Romeo: I would I were thy bird. Juliet: Sweet, so would I: Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing. (II, ii, 176-183) However, her marriage makes her become a young woman waiting impatiently for her wedding night: Come gentle night, come loving black-browd night, Give me my Romeo (III, ii, 17) She wants the night to learn me how to lose a winning match Playd for a pair of stainless maidenhoods. Hood my unmanned blood, bating in my cheeks, With thy black mantle, till strange love grow bold, Think true love acted simple modesty. (III, ii, 12-16) But before she can enjoy her wedding night, Juliet is informed about Tybalts murder committed by her bridegroom. Although she calls Romeo a despised substance of divinest show (III, ii, 77), she repents her words a minute later when the Nurse joins in her laments. If not hers what tongue shall smooth thy name When I thy three-hours wife have mangled it? (III, ii, 98-99) Romeos banishment is worse to her than Tybalts death, she even mourns more over the lost wedding night than over her cousin: Take up those cords. Poor ropes, you are beguild, Both you and I, for Romeo is exiled. He made you for a highway to my bed, But I, a maid, die maiden-widowed. Come, cords, come, Nurse, Ill to my wedding bed, And death, not Romeo take my maidenhead. (III, ii, 132-137) When the Nurse promises to find Romeo for her, she bids her to bring him to her to take his last farewell (III, ii, 143). The next morning Juliet seems to have enjoyed her wedding night and doesnt want Romeo to leave at dawn. She pretends that It is not yet near day. It was the nightingale and not the lark, That pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear. (III, v, 1-3) Nevertheless she makes Romeo go when he agrees to stay willing to die in case he should be found there. When Romeo descends from her balcony, Juliet is haunted by an evil fore-shadowing. She sees him as one dead in the bottom of a tomb (III, v, 56) and bids fortune to bring him back to her quickly. After this parting Juliet is forced to get more and more mature. Things happen very quickly. Her mother enters telling her that she shall marry Paris, her father threatens her to throw her out on the street to starve if she doesnt agree to this marriage and she hasnt got a single friend in her household anymore since the Nurse advices her to forget Romeo and to marry the County. But to Juliet her marriage to Romeo and her love for him are holy and she will not betray those. So she turns from the obedient daughter she was in the beginning of the play into a woman who takes charge of her own life. She already showed her loyalty to Romeo when talking to her mother. There she speaks so ambiguo usly that she appears to be loyal to her family although she speaks well of Romeo, too. Now Juliet turns entirely against her familys will and seeks help in Friar Laurence. She is even ready to die: Write a magazine article for a film magazine commenting on how Baz Luhrmann makes Shakespeare appealing to a young, modern audience EssayNonetheless Capulet might have been different in the past when love (or better sex) might have been of a bigger value to him since his wife describes him as having been a mouse-hunt (IV, iv, 11) in his youth. He says so himself at the party in his house: I have seen the day That I could tell A whispering tale in a fair ladys ear, Such as would please. (I, iv, 22-25) All in all this makes it quite difficult in my opinion to understand Capulet. His behaviour becomes even more strange when he learns of Juliets death. Partly he returns into the loving father whom we know from the beginning and who mourns deeply about his dead daughter. But the other part of him seems to be more sad about the murder our solemnity (IV, v, 61) and about the loss of an heir than about the loss of someone he, referring to what he said in I, ii, loved well. However, this state of mixed emotions is eliminated in the end when Capulet really seems to be hurt seeing his daughter stabbed (cf. V, iii, 201). 2.4.2. Lady Capulet What kind of woman is Juliets mother? She does neither speak of love nor does she appear to love or even like her husband. She makes satirical remarks to hurt his feelings right from the beginning of the play (I, i, 75) where she says that a crutch is fitting Capulet better than a sword. Nevertheless Lady Capulet shows herself as a typical Elizabethan wife; she is obedient to her husband and does whatever he wants her to do, e.g. go to Juliet in the middle of the night to tell her that she has to marry the County Paris two days later. Moreover she expects to cheer her daughter up by this news which is really ridiculous because Paris has never wooed Juliet before as she says in III, v, 118-119. In my opinion, Lady Capulet is not at all emotional. She tells Juliet to stop grieving so much about her cousin Tybalt advicing her that Some grief shows much of love, But much of grief shows still some want of wit. (III, v, 72-73) Furthermore she shows no sympathy for her daughters denial to a marriage with Paris: I would the fool were married to her grave. (III, v, 140) Lady Capulet does not even agree to delay the marriage with the County, instead she tells her unhappy daughter Talk not to me, for Ill not speak a word. Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee. (III, v, 202-203) To her a marriage with Paris seems to be paradise. Hes not only wealthy, but young and attractive: everything in a husband she might have wished for herself but doesnt have21. I hold the opinion that this attitude derives from her unhappiness in her own marriage. As already mentioned above, I suppose that the marriage of Juliets parents was an arranged one due to the fact that Lady Capulet tells Juliet I was your mother much upon these years That you are now a maid. (I, iii, 72-73) So she is not yet thirty. Her husband is probably much older than her as one learns at the party where he talks to his cousin about the time when they used to go in masks, which is already thirty years ago (I, v, 31-42). It might be that Lady Capulet hopes that Juliets marriage to Paris, although being an arranged one, will turn out well in the end by believing in the Elizabethan way of thinking: love must come after marriage22 . Although Lady Capulets behaviour up to III, v appears as if she does not bear love or care for anybody except herself, she seems to be fond of her daughter for she mourns her very deeply when Juliet appears to be dead in IV, v and in the end when Juliet is really dead. 2.4.3. Prince Escalus The Princes view of love is the most Elizabethan one. In the last act, the Prince asks Montague and Capulet to See what a scrouge is laid upon your hate, That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love. (V, iii, 291-292) By this sentence the whole world view of Elizabethan times is represented. The people living in that time had a very strong feeling that God ordered the universe in a specific way. When something evil, like the feud among the Capulets and Montagues, broke the laws of this order, that evil had to be checked.23 This means that to the Prince the love of Romeo and Juliet had to find such a bitter end because their fathers acted against the heavenly will to keep the peace. From his point of view there could have been no other way out, even the young peoples falling in love was planned by God to take vengeance for his disregarded laws. Hence the Princes view of love could be described as a religious one; when you fall in love that is part of Gods big plan and you can do nothing against it. 2.4.4. Paris Paris is the perfect Elizabethan suitor who woos not his future bride but his future parents-in-law. From Paris point of view he acts absolutely normal. He is in love with Juliet (although he doesnt seem to have told her about it as she remarks in III, v, 118-119), so he asks her father for her hand for marriage. With his gentleman-like behaviour, Paris wins the love of Capulet (who calls him son in III, iv, 15 and friend in III, v, 191) and especially that of Lady Capulet (whose enthusiasm about Paris makes her say about him that Veronas summer hath not such a flower ) but not Juliets love which can clearly be seen in IV, i, when they meet by accident in Friar Laurence cell. Paris, who probably knows that he is a good catch, being not only rich but also a kinsman to the king, is sure that Juliet loves him: Do not deny to him that you love me. (IV, i, 24) And: I am sure that you love me. (IV, i, 26) He wouldnt dream of it that it could be different. Since everything is settled between Capulet and Paris, the latter treats Juliet as if she (already) were his property when they meet at Friar Laurence cell (IV, i): Thy face is mine, and thou hast slanderd it. (IV, i, 35) Nevertheless Paris must really have been in love with Juliet because he mourns for her very deeply and wants to keep obsequies at her grave every night. He also wants Romeo to stop thy unhallowd toil (V, iii, 54) in front of the grave and when he dies he asks Romeo to lay him next to Juliet in the tomb. I suppose that by being buried next to her that should have been his wife Paris intends to stay at her side for eternity. So even if it had not been possible for him to get together with Juliet in life he could at least be together with her in death. All in all Paris view of love is a quite romantic one with respect to the Elizabethan age and the conditions of love and marriage which are linked with that era. 2.5. Romeos parents: A relationship full of love Although there is not much that could be said about Romeos parents and particularly about their views of love I would like to put down here what I read out of that little bit. After all, the Montagues seem to be much more close-knit and loving24 as Juliets family. 2.5.1. Montague The only time Montague talks about his relation to his wife is in the last act, when he tells the Prince that his wife died that night. He is very sad about that and asks What further woe conspires against mine age? (V, iii, 211) as if there could be no bigger grief in the whole world. I took this utterance as an indicator for the love he has felt for his wife. Montagues relation to his wife seems to be very different to that of the Capulet-couple. While in the Capulet household the father makes up plans all alone, the Montagues seem to talk about their problems with each other and make up decisions together: Could we but learn from whence his sorrows grow, We would as willingly give cure as know. (I, i, 153-154) Besides, Montague shows more respect to his wife, whom he entitles with madam (I, i, 158) when he is talking to her, than Capulet who addresses Lady Capulet only with wife all the time (e.g. in III, iv, 15; 32). Apart from that Montague shows himself a loving father who cares much about the welfare of his son. He is worried about Romeos behaviour while his son is in love with Rosaline and therefore asks his nephew Benvolio to get to know the cause of Romeos grievance. Here it is once more shown that the Montagues are somewhat nicer to each other than the Capulets Montague and his nephew Benvolio have a relationship of a totally different kind in comparison to that of Capulet and his nephew Tybalt. 2.5.2. Lady Montague Of Lady Montague we learn even less than of her husband. As one can take from her utterances in I, i she seems to be a peace-loving woman, who tries to stop her husband from fighting (I, i, 79) and who is very worried about her son, she is right glad he was not at this fray. (I, i, 115-116) As we learn from Montague in the last act Lady Montague dies of grief when Romeo is banished from Verona. This includes that she must have felt a deep love for her son. 2.6. Friar Laurence view of love: Violent delights have violent ends To Friar Laurence love is a serious thing. He gets angry when he learns from Romeo that the young man is no longer in love with Rosaline, for whom he cried many a tear, but with Capulets daughter Juliet. The Friar tells Romeo off saying that Young mens love then lies Not truly in their hearts but in their eyes. (II, iii, 63-64) He cannot understand that sudden change in his young friend who wailed so much over his unrequited love for Rosaline before. Nevertheless Friar Laurence promises to marry Romeo and Juliet to turn your households rancour to pure love (II, iii, 88). The Friar likes Juliet when he gets to know her later on and he wants to help the lovers to get happy. In his opinion the first step to achieve this is their marriage to prevent them from committing a sin by having sexual intercourse before being married. Their passion seems to be so deep that he dares not to leave them alone: Come, come with me and we will make short work For, by your leaves, you shall not stay alone Till holy church incorporate two in one. (II, iv, 35-37) Friar Laurence regards this passion as dangerous (These violent delights have violent ends ), according to him love shouldnt be a quick and overwhelming desire so he warns Romeo: The sweetest honey Is loathsome in his own deliciousness, And in the taste confounds the appetite. Therefore love moderately; long love doth so. Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow. (II, vi, 11- 15) Nevertheless, Friar Laurence shows a quite romantic view of love in III, iii where he scolds Romeo who offers to kill himself. His friend shall not do so because by killing himself, he would kill Juliet, too, who lives only for him: Wilt thou slay thyself? And slay thy lady that in thy life lives ? Thy dear love sworn but hollow perjury, Killing that love which thou hast vowd to cherish (III, iii, 116-129) Furthermore it is the Friar who works out a plan to get everything in order again after Romeos banishment and it is him, too, who sends Romeo to get thee to thy love as was decreed, Ascend her chamber hence, and comfort her. (III, iii, 146-147) When Juliet comes to ask for his help in order to rescue her from a marriage with Paris, the Friar makes the quick decision to give her a sleeping potion to make her appear dead for forty-two hours. In the meantime he wants to give note to Romeo who is supposed to come and take her to Mantua with him where she shall be rescued from this present shame (IV, i, 118). Friar Laurence knows about the risks of his plan but nevertheless decides to act upon it. Unfortunately the plan fails and Romeo, not knowing that his beloved Juliet is not really dead, stabs himself before the Friar gets to the monument. In the last act it turns out that Friar Laurence, who showed so much sympathy for the lovers and who tried hard to find a solution for their desperate situation, cannot understand the depth of their feelings just as Romeo accused him in III, ii: Thou canst not speak of what thou dost not feel (III, ii, 65) Realizing that his plan has failed and that Romeo is dead, Friar Laurence urges Juliet to leave the tomb where Thy husband in thy bosom there lies dead, And Paris, too. Come, Ill dispose of thee Among a sisterhood of holy nuns. (V, iii, 155-157) Although he should know that life is meaningless to Juliet after having lost her husband, and that she is probably not interested in spending the rest of her life in a nunnery, he is so afraid of being caught in the tomb that he finally leaves without her, leaving her to her fate. Although Friar Laurence held the opinion that violent delights have violent ends he tried to make the best out of Romeos and Juliets passion. In the end he does not seem to understand that their suicides were the lovers only solution to their desperate situation and were committed out of love instead of being a work of heaven as he calls it (V, iii, 260). 3. Conclusion: In how far do the views of love presented in the play reflect the attitude towards love the Elizabethan audience had? To an Elizabethan audience the most tragic thing about Romeo and Juliet was not so much their ill-starred romance but the way the lovers brought destruction upon themselves by violating the norms of the society in which they lived25. The lovers behaviour turns all norms upside down. Romeo and Juliet are the children of parents who live in a feud and normally there is a fight whenever two people from the different households meet. But between Romeo and Juliet this is different. Bewitched by the charm of looks (2nd Prologue) they fall in love with each other and misfortune takes its course. They withdraw more and more from the norms of society, they marry secretly and Juliet disregards her parents will. Moreover she gives her loyalty to Romeo over her family, even after hes killed her cousin26. Besides, the lovers understanding of their roles stands in strong contrast to that of the surrounding characters. Romeo as a man should normally be like Mercutio and Tybalt, always ready to fight and lose his live for the sake of the family honour. Instead he is suffering from his unrequited love for Rosaline, he is peaceful after the marriage with Juliet and doesnt want to fight which makes him womanish in Mercutios eyes. Romeo even cries in Friar Laurence cell which makes the Friar call him womanish (III, iii, 110 and 112), too. Juliet on the contrary appears very practical, preferring to find means to realize a love affair with Romeo instead of making flowery Petrarchan promises like Romeo does. In the end she kills herself with a dagger (which has a male connotation) whereas her lover takes poison (which has a female connotation). To an Elizabethan play-goer this is too much. Although an Elizabethan courtier would be familiar enough with the bewitching passion of love to feel sympathy for the couple, he would clearly see where duty lay27 and act on this instead of acting the way Romeo and Juliet do.