The question
How much of Romeo and Juliet is chosen by Romeo and Juliet?
Positions to consider
| Position | The argument | The objection |
|---|---|---|
| Character | They are impulsive, secretive, and fast; a slower pair survives | Thirteen and sixteen, in a city where adults settle disputes with swords |
| Structure | The feud, the arranged marriage, and the law make the ending nearly inevitable | The play gives them several exits they do not take |
| Accident | A quarantined messenger and forty minutes of timing | Then it is not a tragedy, it is bad luck |
| The adults | The Prologue blames the parents, and so does the Prince | Then why is the play named for the children? |
The evidence to bring
- The Prologue’s word “star-cross’d”, and whether the play means it.
- Capulet’s threats to Juliet in 3.5 — read them aloud and ask what choice she is being offered.
- The Friar’s plan, and every point at which telling the truth was available.
- Mercutio’s death, and whether Romeo could have walked away.
The age question
Juliet is thirteen. If the play makes her a person capable of choosing, what is it saying about her father? If it does not, what is it saying about the ending? You cannot have both, and the attempt to have both is where the best arguments in this room start.
Afterwards
Two paragraphs, taking a position, using two passages. That writing is the seed of The Literary Essay — bring it to the drafting period.
Curriculum connection
B1.6
analyse texts in terms of the information, ideas, issues, or themes they explore, examining how various aspects of the texts contribute to the presentation or development of these elements (e.g., explain how figures of speech in a text highlight the theme and help create a mood; determine how the setting in two short stories helps clarify each story’s main theme)
Link to original
A1.5
develop and explain interpretations of oral texts, including increasingly complex texts, using evidence from the text and the oral and visual cues used in it to support their interpretations (e.g., explain how the narrator’s tone in the voice-over influenced their interpretation of the visuals in a movie trailer; explain similarities and differences between the deliveries of a monologue in the stage and film productions of a play)
Link to original
B2.1
identify a variety of characteristics of literary, informational, and graphic text forms and explain how they help communicate meaning (e.g., explain the function of setting in a short story; explain the function of rhyme in a sonnet; explain the role of a refrain or repeated phrase in a ballad or story; explain the function of transition words in an opinion piece or argument; explain the role of a comparison and contrast structure in a persuasive essay or a book review; explain why some characters in a Shakespeare play speak mainly in verse and others mainly or only in prose)
Link to original