What is Love? - Homework Task

What is love?

So far in Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, we have been exposed to various representations of love. Write an extended response that explores these representations.

In your response you must demonstrate your ability to do the following things:

1. Use direct evidence
2. Reference your evidence (Act 3, Scene 1, 45-67)
3. Refer to the various positioning techniques in your discussion. E.g. Foreshadowing, language choices, use of Shakespearean sonnet, imagery, metaphor, simile, symbolism, motifs,etc.
4. Synthesise your evidence - the discussion of positioning techniques should help you here.
5. Can you suggest what is valued by certain characters with regards to love?

Make sure you proof-read and edit carefully.

Womens Expectations

What I found within the sheets was many horrifying things such as:

·         If were everything but a maid, she be called a whore, but if she was nothing but a maid, she is worth marrying.

·         At the age of seven or so, she may be married, nine she has a share of her husbands estate if widowed, etc.

·         When the maid is in the conversation of her two parents of which she has to marry someone, she isn’t to talk. At all.

·         Once married, they cannot be separated by law but can re marry if widowed.

·         A woman’s virginity is the main thing about her – otherwise no man would bother marrying her.

·         “Hippomenes, a great man of Athens, when he knew his daughter desoiled of one, he shut her up in a stable with a wild horse, kept meatless. For the horse, when he had suffered great hunger long and because he was of nature fierce, we waxed mad and all to-tare the young woman to feed himself with…” (Vives VII)

·         There was also a story about a woman whom was pregnant but not married and once she gave birth the father and brothers stabbed her and the mid wife still looked on.

As you can already see those times were terrible for women.

Homework on Maiden Expectations

On Blackboard, under the folder, "Exploring the world of Juliet and her Romeo" there are three documents that I would like you to read. These documents are:

* "Expectations of daughters in Elizabethan England" (this has been scanned as a PDF file and therefore you need to open both PDFs to read the entire document)

* "17th Century rules regarding marriage"

* "Marriage Customs"

As you read, make note of the most important/interesting/surprising points and post them on your blogs once you are finished.

This needs to be completed by Thursday please along with any class work that is incomplete by the end of today's lesson.

Lea Granich's (Juliet Capulet's) Diary Entry

Nick Whorsley = Romeo Montague

Lea Granich = Juliet Capulet

 

Dear Diary,

I don’t understand it, how can my parents be so overdramatic. He is a boy, just a boy, of which I love and they are not happy about it? For all I know, Parents are shown to do whatever would make their child HAPPY. I cannot live on without Nick Whorsley as I cannot see anyone else in his place. I know it might sound crazy but I want to marry him, I know it is so early but I’d be dammed if I was to have any other husband. Tonight we are meeting in my backyard, there is a bush where no one can see via the house. I hope he comes, for I want to be with him so bad. Oh, Diary… what do I do?

Love,

Lea Granich

Love Story by Taylor Swift Homework

1. Love Story by Taylor Swift is of a actual love story between the two characters of Romeo and Juliet and their forbidden love. It becomes lonely and heart breaking to Juliet as she ravels upon whether or not Romeo actually loves her and if he still wants to be with her. She waits and waits and most of the time he doesn’t come – she doesn’t know what to think, is he still in love with her or does he want to end it? The evidence to the plot is shown most in the quotation of stanza 9,

“Romeo save me, I’ve been feeling so alone

I keep waiting for you but you never come

Is this in my head, I don’t know what to think”.

Swift has produced a song/poem upon the love and hope of the well-known story of Romeo and Juliet written by William Shakespeare showing their illicit love.

 

2. The poem Love Story by Taylor Swift is titled “Love Story” because that is the main subject matter of the poem. It shows the happy ending of being a prince and princess longing for each other and eventually being together.

“I’ll be waiting, all there is left to do is runYou’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princessIt’s a love story, baby, just say yes”.

The love story has hope and strength as the distance makes them uncertain but as they all say, the more distance the more fond the heart is.

“I got tired of waiting, wondering if you were ever coming around

My faith in you was fading

When I met you on the outskirts of town”.

The reasonable title chosen by Swift fits the poem perfectly as it actually talks about a love story between the two characters of Romeo and Juliet a tragedy written by Shakespeare.

 

3.The relationship between Romeo and Juliet is a strong teenaged love, and possibly first love. Of which everyone knows how that feels and how it feels when you part. Romeo and Juliet are deeply in love with each other,

“Romeo, save me, they’re trying to tell me how to feel, This love is difficult, but it’s real,Don’t be afraid, we’ll make it out of this mess,It’s a love story, baby just say yes

 …

Marry me, Juliet, you’ll never have to be alone,I love you and that’s all I ever know”

They make it through, they have held their love for each other and they have made it through their forbidden love together .

 

4. The evidence shown within the poem by Taylor Swift that the two lovers have really made it and have manage to overcome the obstacles in their forbidden love. Shown in the quotation, their love is shown forbidden by Juliet’s father,

“And my daddy said stay away from JulietBut you were everything to me I was begging you please don’t go”

The father seems to be the main antagonist of the love story but in the end, Romeo finds his way through. He has asked her father for her hand whilst she waited, longing for Romeo to come. When out of the blue, he has proposed and they have been destined to live together forever.

“I talked to you dad, you’ll pick out a white dress, It’s a love story, baby, just say yes”.

It would be considered that the two lovers have went through the obstacles of a forbidden love together due to the evidence found within the poem by Swift.

 

5. The themes explored through the poem and the music clip shows the following themes:

·       Love at first sight

·         Hope

·         Joy

·         Passion

·         Heart break

·         Forbidden love

They are shown in many ways in the lyrics and the clip such as joy and love is shown when they run into each other’s arms and can finally be together. Love when they first meet at the party, the love at first sight catches them and lures them in. Patience and sadness is shown in the scene of when Juliet is waiting on the balcony, waiting for her Juliet and joy for when he finally comes. The themes are relatively clear in the love story in Taylor Swift’s poem and music video.

 

6. The love story within the song ends differently than William Shakespeare’s play. Shakespeare has originally written a tragedy of which both Romeo and Juliet die. It is seen by Romeo seeing Juliet’s fake dead body where she actually took a potion to stop her heart and for when Juliet wakes up and sees Romeo dead by a poison. Unable to live without him, she commits suicide by stabbing herself or in the film adaption, shoots herself. Whilst Taylor Swift has made a different approach, leaving a happy ending, which is the purpose to her decision as she would have wanted a love story not a tragedy story. Or else she would have had to change the title as it wouldn’t fit, she would have to change it to “tragic love story” or “the tragic love”, etc. The perspective is coming a teenaged girl’s point of view, ie Juliet. Most teenaged girls believe in love and they have a more emotional side to love than men, Swift would have wanted the teenaged girls to hear a happy ending. As most people I know, prefer that ending then the ending written by Shakespeare, although he longed for a dramatic ending.

Diary Entry Homework

One of the central themes in Romeo and Juliet revolves around relationships and love, but it also links to the influence of family members on such a relationship. You are to write a diary entry that explores the following scenario.

It is 2012 and a girl in her late teens has started dating someone who she believes is her true love. Unfortunately, her parents, family and friends don't approve of the relationship and are trying to force her to end it. Her parents have even gone so far as to say that they will disown her if she doesn't stop the relationship. In her diary she writes down her feelings about the whole situation. What does she write?

In your response, consider where in the world this girl lives, what her family situation is, what her social status is, what it is about her 'true love' that her family and friends dislike, etc.

Opening Lesson Homework

Love Story – Taylor Swift

 

We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes and the flashback starts
I'm standing there on a balcony in summer air
See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns
See you make your way through the crowd
And say hello, little did I know

That you were Romeo
You were throwing pebbles
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
And I was crying on the staircase
Begging you please don't go

And I said
Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes

So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes, escape this town for a little while

Oh, oh, oh

'Cause you were Romeo,
I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
But you were everything to me
I was begging you please don't go

And I said
Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes

Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel
This love is difficult, but it's real
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes

I got tired of waiting, wondering if you were ever coming around
My faith in you was fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town

And I said
Romeo save me, I've been feeling so alone
I keep waiting for you but you never come
Is this in my head, I don't know what to think
He knelt to the ground and he pulled out a ring
And said

Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone
I love you and that's all I really know
I talked to your dad, you'll pick out a white dress
It's a love story, baby, just say yes

Oh, oh, oh, oh
We were both young when I first saw you

 

Love Story Official Music Video Clip           http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlbB7qt6v_0

 

Discussion Questions:

1.     Outline the subject matter of the poem?

2.     Why is the poem entitled “Love Story”? Use evidence from the   lyrics to support the titles significance and relevance.

3.     Describe the relationship between the two characters.  Who are they?

4.     What evidence is there to suggest that these lovers have to overcome obstacles in their relationship?

5.     What themes and issues are explored in the lyrics and through the video clip?

6.     How does the “Love story” end for Romeo and Juliet in the song? Is this how it ends for the Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet? Why does Taylor Swift end her song this way? What perspective is she writing from and why would they want the story to end this way?