William Shakespeare s Romeo And Juliet - 1110 Words

In New York City in the 1950s, Tony, a former member of the Jets gang finds love with Maria, the younger sister of the powerful Bernardo who leads the Puerto Rican Sharks gang. Before they realized it, they had found themselves in a mess that leads to a massive fight between the rival gangs and ultimately ends with the death of Tony. The police arrive to arrest the killer and the gangs decide to make peace with each other (www.britannica.com). Sound familiar? The musical described is better known as West Side Story, one of the many adaptations that were based on one of Shakespeare s legendary plays: Romeo and Juliet. Themes such as love, commitment, hatred, and much more can be seen in both plays. Shakespeare’s greatest works have been†¦show more content†¦Here’s drink - I drink to thee,† (4.3.58). Juliet’s love for Romeo causes her to hurriedly gulp down the potion without a second thought as she ignores her worries. Whether or not she cared about her future, she does not think through the consequences of Romeo hearing about her death. From this context, Juliet makes the irrational decision of drinking a mysterious substance just for a chance to be with her love. Shakespeare wants the reader to understand this, and come to the conclusion that it’s better not to take love so passionately and tone it down a bit so that lovers can make rational and logical decisions for themselves. In addition, Juliet wakes up from her sleep when the potion wears off, and comes to find Romeo lying beside her. Emotionally dazed, she exclaims, â€Å"This (Juliet’s body) is thy [dagger’s] sheath / ... [so] let me die,† killing herself with the dagger (5.3.169-170). Juliet does not spend a moment on considering the possibilities for a life without Romeo as she is drowning in emotions for her dead love. With one pierce through her heart, she makes the reckless decision to end her life, purely out of intense love for her Romeo. If Juliet hadn’t been as extreme with her love with Romeo, she would have been more calm and rational and may not have even taken her own life as a result. Being too