Don't mix up the original with the modern movie version!

Romeo and Juliet is set in Italy in the city of Verona, a place famous, in Shakespeare’s time, for violence.
The fight which begins the play is part of an overarching feud between two wealthy families: the Montagues
and the Capulets. However, in the very first scene, Prince Escalus decrees that all fighting is banned on pain
of death.

Enter Romeo and his friend Benvolio, and we hear of Romeo’s passion for Rosaline, a young woman from the Capulet family. He and Benvolio plan to attend a masked ball at the house of Lord Capulet. Romeo wants to go because he hopes to see Rosaline, and Benvolio because he is sure that Romeo will find other beauties and get over his infatuation. 

Meanwhile young Juliet and her Nurse talk about love, and Juliet says that she doesn’t want to commit herself  to Paris, the suitor her parents have chosen for her. But she agrees to attend the ball that evening to at least see what he looks like.

At the ball Romeo and Juliet fall in love at first sight. Later that night Romeo comes to Lord Capulet’s orchard and sees Juliet in her balcony window. They declare their love, and Juliet challenges Romeo to really mean his love: If he truly does love her, she says, he will marry her the next day!

In the morning, Romeo and Juliet seek the help of Friar Lawrence, who wants to help the two families end their war. He agrees to marry them, and they marry secretly in his cell. They agree to meet again that night.

Meanwhile, Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin, enraged by Romeo’s crashing the Capulets’ ball, comes in search of Romeo to pick a fight. Romeo refuses to fight the man he now secretly knows to be his new cousin, and
Mercutio leaps in. Tybalt takes advantage when Romeo tries to stop the duel, and kills Mercutio under Romeo’s arm. Blind with rage, Romeo stabs Tybalt and kills him. Prince Escalus, in a moment of lenience,
chooses not to punish Romeo by death as decreed, but to banish him forever from Verona.

Now Romeo and Juliet have a terrible problem: They are married but can never live together in Verona.
Juliet is very upset, and her father, thinking that she is grieving for her cousin’s death, gives her a cheering
surprise—she is going to marry Paris in three days!

Juliet, horrified, goes to the Friar. He gives her a potion
that will put her to sleep for 42 hours. Presumed dead, she will be carried to the Capulet tomb; then the Friar will rescue her and take her to Mantua to be with banished Romeo and live happily ever after. All goes according to plan, except that the Friar sends a letter to Romeo that never arrives. All Romeo hears is that his beloved wife is dead. He obtains a poison from an apothecary and goes to drink it at his dead wife’s tomb.

There, he meets a grieving Paris whom he does not recognize, and kills him in his desperation.
Romeo then drinks down his poison and dies. Juliet wakens and finds her husband dead, and the Friar arrives and offers to take her to a convent, since she no longer has a husband. But then the Friar thinks he hears a noise and runs off, thinking he will be blamed for the tragedy. Juliet tries to kiss the poison from Romeo’s lips, then picks up his dagger and kills herself. The Prince and the Montague and the Capulet parents come in and they all declare that, since they are united in their grief, they will take a lesson from Romeo and Juliet, and the families will live in peace.



TWITTER VERSION OF THE STORY

Romeo: Is heartbroken -- crashing the Capulet party, hoping to see Rosaline.
Romeo: Had a nightmare and has a really bad feeling about this party –
Romeo: Just saw the hottest girl at the party, have 2 go talk 2 her.
Romeo: Noooo!
Romeo: Is climbing a wall.
Romeo: Is so smitten.
Romeo: Can’t wait til tomorrow!! Off to the Friar’s –
Romeo: Is making plans with the nurse.
Romeo: I DO!
Romeo: Is off to find his boys. What a good day.
Romeo: Is trying to break up a fight -- Uh oh -- You’re going down, Tybalt!
Romeo: Is fortunes fool. What will I tell Jules??
Romeo: Banished??? NOOOOO!
Romeo: Can’t get reception! Juliet??? R U OK?
Romeo: Sees Balthasar coming, I hope he brings good news!
Romeo: WHAT?! I defy you stars! Where is that Apothecary?
Romeo: Is drinking poison – let’s get this over with.

-Romeo is offline-
Juliet: OMG – only 2 more weeks til I’m 14! Mom wants me 2 marry Paris – ewww.
Juliet: Just had my first kiss! Must find out who he is…
Juliet: Noooo!
Juliet: Is wondering what’s in a name? Stupid parents.
Juliet: <3 <3 <3
Juliet: Where is the nurse????? I can’t wait anymore!!!
Juliet: Is sneaking out –sigh -- I DO!
Juliet: Is sooo happy… I can’t wait for my wedding night!
Juliet: Banished??? Romeo, how could this happen??
Juliet: Nope, that was the nightingale, not the lark. You’re not leaving yet.
Juliet: No!!… It was the lark – you’ve got to get out of here!
Juliet: Won’t marry Paris! I hate you mom and dad! ☹
Juliet: Hopes Romeo has reception in Mantua. R, if you can read this – I’m not really dead! LUV U!
Juliet: I’m suddenly feeling very sleepy…
Juliet: …I’m waking up – what the?? -- Oh, happy dagger!

What was Elizabethan beauty?

Background Information

Queen Elizabeth had an uncanny ability to use any situation to her political advantage and her image was no exception. She was very conscious of her personal appearance and knew that her actions and image together formed her identity, which in turn would become a symbol for the whole enterprise of England.

Her image was carefully engineered to impress and to convey wealth, authority and power, both at home and abroad. As her reign progressed, she also had to dress for the part of virginal goddess that she had become and transmit the nation's growing stature and confidence. Her wardrobe was full of gowns of rich fabrics adorned with jewels and elaborate surface detail, which were clearly imposing and speak volumes about wealth and status.

Elizabeth also demanded a sense of style from those around her and her courtiers spent vast sums of money on their wardrobes in order to catch her eye and impress her. Dress was a means of expressing social hierarchy and Elizabeth believed that one's dress should suit, but not exceed, one's rank. Elizabeth's appearance stressed her rank as head of state and church and 'pecking order’ was reinforced by legal restrictions:

Elizabethan beauty

The Renaissance ideal of beauty was fair hair, a pallid complexion, bright eyes and red lips. Elizabeth was tall and striking, with pale skin and light red-gold hair. She exaggerated these features, particularly as she aged, and other women sought to emulate them.

An alabaster complexion symbolized wealth and nobility (signalling that one did not have to labour in the sun), and women went to great lengths to achieve this look. The most popular white foundation, called ceruse, was made out of white lead and vinegar. Concoctions used to bleach freckles and treat blemishes often included ingredients such as sulphur, turpentine and mercury. These toxic ingredients took their toll, leaving the skin 'grey and shrivelled' as one contemporary commentator noted. To combat this, the skin was glazed with raw egg white to produce a smooth, marble-like surface.

False veins were often painted onto the skin to highlight its 'transparency' and vermilion (mercuric sulphide) was the most popular choice to colour lips red. High, narrow arched brows and a high hairline required much plucking, and eyes were brightened with drops of belladonna juice and lined with kohl (powdered antimony).

Elizabeth's curly red hair presented another challenge, with many recipes for dyeing and bleaching emerging as women tried to achieve the same look. Red wigs became a popular alternative, which Elizabeth also took to wearing. As Elizabeth aged, her legendary sweet tooth caught up with her, causing her teeth to decay. Her influence by this time was so all-pervasive that some women even went so far as to blacken theirs to mimic her appearance!

Key issues for improving grades

The specification states that answers should:

• be relevant – you don’t need to write everything you know about the text, only the things
that relate to the question

• be sufficiently detailed – it is better to give a lot of detail about a small part of the text than
trying to cover lots of different points

• be well structured – with a clear introduction which addresses the question and a clear
conclusion that returns to the question

• use effective vocabulary – including literary terms where relevant

• use well-chosen evidence/quotations to support points.

To gain a top grade, candidates should show an enthusiastic and critical personal response. The
best candidates write about the author’s methods and achievements, and will concentrate on
comment, not content. .

Impress the Examiner Vocabulary

Impress the Examiner Vocabulary

Frenetic (adjective)

Wild and excited

Ambivalent (adjective)

Having conflicting or unclear feelings

Emphatic (adjective)

Forceful and definite

Oxymoron (noun)

A rhetorical figure in which incongruous or contradictory terms are combined, as in a deafening silence and a mournful optimist

Masquerade (verb)

To disguise and pretend to be something else. E.g. opinions masquerade as facts.

Connotation

The idea or associations linked to a word . e.g Hollywood = glamour

Ambience (noun)

The general atmosphere of a place

Sombre (noun)

Depressing and dull

Macabre (adjective)

Sinister and frightening

Sibilance (noun)

The use of alliterative s sound to create a hissing sound

Ratify (noun)

To give approval / conform someone’s ideas

Unequivocal (adjective)

Plan and clear

A* analytical words - Don’t use “shows” use:

 A* analytical words - Don’t use “shows”  use:

Emphasises,                         contradicts,                reinforces,                 highlights,                 explores,                   examines,                questions,                satirises,                   negates,                   confirms,                      ratifies,                       suggests,            alludes to,                      insinuates,               ridicules                     exaggerates

Question 1 - reading practise

Read the news article from the link provided and answer the following in the comment box below.

China: The world's cleverest country?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17585201

What are the main ideas being expressed by the writer (support your response with textual reference and quotations)

Social and Historical context

Remember!

The Petrarchan Lover:

Suffers from unrequited love—the love is not returned or reciprocated,

loves from afar. Often the object of love doesn’t even know someone is

pining for her.

Idealizes—falls in love with an ideal, a vision of perfection, rather than a

human being with strengths AND weakness. Falls in love with an idea—an

idea of a person, the idea of love.

Idolizes—Turns the lover into an idol, an object of worship. Puts the lover

on a pedestal (she’s high above/he’s a lowly peon), worships her from afar,

compares her to a goddess or something holy.

This is not truly love. This is infatuation.

Infatuation—in love with the idea of love rather than a real person/ is in

love with love/ is in love with longing rather than having

Language—Devices

n  uses blazon to catalogue physical beauty and physical characteristics

(similes and metaphors)

n  uses conceit—exaggerated metaphors

n  uses elaborate, flowery, exaggerated, embellished, artificial language

Petrarchan love is not a sexual love.

Here are some links for you to look at when researching;
a. Features of Petrarchan poetry

http://www3.dbu.edu/mitchell/petrarch.htm


b. Femininity and ideal beauty during Elizabethan period.

http://unusualhistoricals.blogspot.co.uk/2007/11/standards-of-beauty-elizabethan-ideal.html

http://www.rmg.co.uk/explore/sea-and-ships/in-depth/elizabeth/the-queen's-court/body-and-dress/*/viewPage/4