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Romeo and Juliet, Star-Crossed and Crazy

After the first act of the timeless classic, I have a few thoughts.

First Impressions

I was surprised by how quickly Shakespeare turned the drama dial up to ludicrous amounts in even the first scene. I should not have been surprised by the master of drama crafting some in the first scene, but a sword fight was not what I expected. I find that when people

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think about the play, they often time associate it with an over the top and frankly sappy love story, but the two families going after each other with blood and hate running thick is something I expected to see in the Godfather, not from the quill of Shakespeare.

The fast introduction of the characters was a bit confusing, but the fight as well as this introduction helped to create a more chaotic atmosphere, which would later contrast Romeo’s depression. The text, being crafted by the famous Bard himself, is no doubt challenging, but I have found that the constant drama and pressure is enough to keep me willingly engaged. I was not off put by the text because I felt that some of the messages were still relevant today (maybe not the double suicide but anyway). The mix of a classic story, engaging scenes, and relevant messages was far enough to keep me going.

Love at First Sight

Romeo and Juliet is possibly the most famous love at first sight story out there, and for good reason. Romeo originally falls in love with Juliet because he has been rejected by his crush on Rosaline, and the beauty of Juilet captured him. Romeo’s sudden love is represented by the line,”O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright!”(Romeo and Juliet 1.5. 44)

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This love will build passion and suspense, all fueled by the love at first sight, and move the play along. The love at first sight will burn beyond reason and blind the two lovers for the remainder of the play.

Hate and Romeo

Throughout the beginning of the story, I have explored the connection between Romeo and his hate. The initial rejection from Rosaline fueled Romeo’s depression and hate of himself. This hate of himself, to a degree, mixed with the hate of his family rivalry has amplified Romeo’s love and lust for Juliet. Romeo’s hate run parallel to Juliet’s hate of her own families, this brings them together even more and drives a sense of rebellion between the two young lovers and their families.

Compare and Contrast: Zeffirelli and Luhrman

I watched both the Zeffirelli and Luhrman versions of the first meeting scenes and took the following observations.

In both the Zeffirelli and Luhrman versions of the timeless story of two desperately star crossed lovers, many key similarities are shared. For one, the music sets a slow, dreamlike sequence as both Romeo and Juliet move through the crowd to find each other. The crowd was also of the same crowed and blocking atmosphere in both scenes. Most importantly, drama and suspense built into the passionate kiss is shared between both leads.

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On the other hand, the scene do share some key difference as well. First, the modern setting of the Luhrman version (most notably the space suit) is a bright contrast from the old and somewhat traditional take of the other scene. The overall drama and passion of the Luhram scene is far more than the Zeffirelli scene, this is because of the more intense kiss and the interaction with Tibalt. Further, I predict that the same passion and excitement will continue to keep me on my toes in the coming acts.

Questions

Perhaps the most umm, pressing question I have is, how will the story end up in the deaths of our main characters? The prologue is clear that both the lovers will be taking their lives, but what will lead up to this? We shall see.

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Second, will Romeo ever bring up the fact that he was in love with Rosaline to the point of depression, and did a full 180 onto Juliet. I wonder if Romeo will think back on his past love over the four days that Romeo and Juliet will spend together.

 

Promise Me Dad #4

Facing the responsibilities of a job and your co-workers can be a challenge when dealing with a serious illness in the family. This situation is made harder when you’re the Vice President and the co-worker is one of the most powerful men in America

In my reading of the book today, Joe speaks more about Obama than his son Beau’s illness. But just because his work is distracting him from his issues, doesn’t mean the issues of his boss and his country can be forgotten as well.

Joe uses the skills and mentality he has developed with Beau and his time in government to give advice to Obama. The two talk about how important hope is, and how to give others hope, you must give it out yourself.

In politics, anger and frustration come with every new challenge or problem. When you work closely together on some of the worlds most complicated issues, like Joe and Obama, you’re bound to clash. This happens with Joe and Obama, but the unwavering respect they have for each other keeps them off Twitter and into a daily private meeting where they talk out issues, like men.

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The ideas of perseverance are incredibly present in the book. The dynamics of balancing sickness and political changes that can impact the world tend to weigh down on people. Joe talks about the sometimes hopeless nature of the people around him politically and his family, both which rely on him to persevere and keep the ship sailing.