Romeo and Juliet Remix

For this project, we were assigned a scene from Romeo and Juliet and had to create a remix of it, whether this meant painting an art piece, directing a play, or rewriting the script through a modern day lens.

Process:
The scene that I was assigned was Act 5, Scene 3, which was the last scene in Romeo and Juliet. My scene, particularly, was very long so I only had to choose a section to work with. Typically, I would choose to work with the tragic death scene in which Romeo and Juliet die, but I decided that I wanted to work with the part where Romeo kills Paris because of how controversial it is. In many movies of Romeo and Juliet, like the Baz Luhrmann and Zeffirelli versions, this section is cut out. Therefore, I wanted to analyze the contradictory nature of this killing scene and understand the importance of it, especially since we hadn't thoroughly examined it as a class. I, then, annotated the section, mostly marking down assonance, consonance, death imagery, oxymorons, water imagery, light/dark imagery, repetition, connections to other parts of the play, and the message. Below are some pictures of my annotations.

Now, that I finished annotating, I had to start brainstorming some ideas for this remix. My first idea was to compose a piece on the piano because I knew that I could play around with the key, pauses, speed, rhythm, etc., which would connect well with the play. But, I realised that for that reason, many people were compositing pieces of music. I wanted to challenge myself to do something more original so I toyed around with the concept of photography and Photoshop. Once again, I wrote down the effects that I could play with to relate the photo to the scene, but that was as far as I could get. I couldn't come up with a picture in my head for what I wanted the photo to look like, let alone come up with a solid plan.

Luckily, I watched Bohemian Rhapsody which lead me to the idea of incorporating Queen into my remix. I realised that much like how the passage that I had chosen stood out from the play, Queen stood out from the other musicians and was even fairly controversial. In addition, I knew that Queen had a wide range of music, from slow sad songs to upbeat fast ones, so I knew that I had enough material to work with. However, it took me a while to find a way to incorporate Queen into my remix. I bounced around a few ideas, starting with the plan of making a voice recording where I would summarize a few lines and then add in a couple of lyrics in a comedic way. But, I didn't really want to do comedy so I came up with the idea of incorporating lyrics from Queen into the actual script. After researching for a bit, I realised that the script didn't flow well so I scratched that idea. Finally, I went back to my initial idea of playing the piano and decided to combine the two.

Above is a screen shot of my initial plan, detailing all three of my ideas (piano composition, photography, and Queen).

This screen shot shows the work that I had done to execute my first Queen idea which was making a voice recording. Here, you can see that I have summarized a few paragraphs from the script, but haven't gotten very far.

This picture is of the lyrics that I noted down that I thought connected to the passage. These lines were for my second Queen idea which was incorporating lyrics into the actual script. As you can tell, I only got through five songs before coming up with my final idea. 

To carry out my final idea, I first listened to a ton of different Queen songs to get a better feel for the music. Then, I looked at the passage that I had annotated and divided it into smaller sections; some sections were monologues by single characters while others were short conversations revolving around the same topic. I, then, assigned a song to each section that either reflected the tone, mood, or literary devices in the passage. After that, I moved onto the second phase of this project which was the piano aspect. I found a website called MuseScore, which had a wide range of free piano pieces, to search up the songs that I had chosen. I scrolled through various versions of each song, as different composers interpreted the songs differently, and listened to them on the piano (the website had a mode where you could hear the pieces being played). Then, I selected a few bars from each song that best fit the section they were assigned to. After that, it was just a matter of printing the music and practicing the lines.

In this document, I wrote down the section of the passage I was using, the link to the piano piece I had found, the bars that I was playing, and the name of the song. In total there were 7 songs, but I realised that the song, "We Are the Champion" was too hard for me to learn in such a short span of time, even after printing an easier version of it afterwards. So, I ended up replacing it with a section of one of the other songs that I had learnt but ended up not using.

Finally, after learning all of the pieces, I recorded the lines that I had practiced using an app on my phone called Voice Memo. I made a new recording for each song so I strung the different lines together in iMovie. I also realised that I didn't need certain parts of pieces that I had recorded so I removed those and even rearranged a part to substitute the song that I couldn't play.

Below is my final product:


Here is my oral commentary explaining how my piano piece connects to the scene:

Act 3 Invitation to Create

For this Invitation to Create, I decided to find a modern song that had a similar concept to the passage that I was given, which was Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 100-115. The song that I chose was Be My Downfall by Del Amitri. Even though this song was released in 1992, meaning that it wasn't the most modern song that I could have picked, I still chose it because I thought that the concept of it aligned well with this passage.

Annotation of passage:

Lyrics of Be My Downfall:

Well the bus is pulling out

And I guess I'd better go

Before I make a grave mistake and let my feelings show

And twenty miles away 

She waits alone for me 

But when I try to picture her you're the one I see

And in another situation I could put up a fight

But you will be my downfall tonight

So the night is coming down 

Drowning us in blue

And it all points towards the things we know we shouldn't do

And as I look at you

And I fall under your spell

Well, I know I should be thinking of her lying there herself

And when faced with temptation you know a man should stand and fight

But you will be my downfall tonight

Be my downfall

Be my great regret

Be the one girl

That I'll never forget

Be my undoing

Be my slow road to ruin tonight

Well the bus is pulling out

And I'm grounded here with you

And I want to say the sweet things babe I've always wanted to

So tell me now the tail-lights have gone out of sight

Baby won't you be my downfall once again tonight

Literary Analysis Paragraph:

First, before I delve deeper into the specific lines in the song and passage, I want to point out the similar concepts between these two pieces of writing. The idea of the song above is that a guy is dating a girl but is in love with someone else, and in the end, he chooses to be with the person that he loves. The relation between this and Romeo and Juliet isn't too obvious, however, this becomes clearer when we look at the overall meaning from the excerpt of Romeo and Juliet. The message is that Juliet is battling with her emotions as she tries to choose between Romeo and Tybalt, however in the end, she chooses to side with Romeo. This demonstrates that conceptually, these two forms of art already share a common theme, even if the relationships between the characters are slightly different. Below, I will write about what is specifically common between the two arts. 

In Be My Downfall, the third line is, "Before I make a grave mistake and let my feelings show". The use of the word, "grave" is similar to the death imagery that is portrayed several times in the passage as Juliet uses the words, "slain", "kill", "murd'red", etc. In both these pieces, this morbid imagery is used to show the seriousness of the situation and how important these relationships are to the character. In addition, it foreshadows that there will be dire consequences if the main character's give in to love. This is further emphasised in the line in the song, "Be my slow road to ruin tonight.", which demonstrates how the main character giving into temptation is slowly corrupting who he is. The use of the word, "road" also symbolises that the consequences of the main character choosing his lover are permanent or long lasting, and will therefore hurt him in the future. Similarly, the last line of the passage is, "Like damed guilty deeds to sinners' minds:". Since, Christianity played an important role in Romeo and Juliet, the word "sinners'"and "damned" show how destructive Juliet's choice was and how this would impact her for the rest of her life. As Juliet weights these dark messages, her contrasting feelings are also shown in the passage. For instance, she uses the repetition of the words, "husband" and "cousin", to imply that she feels conflicted and that it is difficult for her to choose between her family and husband. This is similar to the repetition of the words, "fight" and "downfall" in the song, which represent the main character's contrasting feelings of fighting to stay loyal to his girlfriend or accepting that he would rather cheat and be with the person he loves. All in all, this modern song and the passage from Romeo and Juliet share many aspects ranging from the language used to the overall concepts, thus showing that even though Romeo and Juliet was written over four hundred years ago, it is still applicable to our world today. 

Act II Invitation to Create Personal Sonnet

Sonnet:

In the still universe, her thoughts were born,

Murderous angels banished to mankind.

She was a bleeding rose embraced by thorns,

Imprisoned in the lies of her own mind.

Lost fragments of light taped together,

Torn shadows dancing in her glazed eyes.

She tore apart her fairy godmother,

Because she lit her sky with happy lies.

Sweet tears of silence were an oasis,

Illusions empty of satanic rage.

Emotions were always her nemesis-

They screamed for Life in their ivory cage.

She howled to release her soul from Hell,

‘Till finally she bid her ghosts farewell.

To give a brief summary, this sonnet was about a protagonist who is essentially stuck in her mind which is her version of Hell. The sonnet talks about how happiness is an illusion which makes joy feel unreal or similar to a lie, therefore she doesn't trust her mind. In addition, it talks about how broken the protagonist is and how she'd rather be numb than feel what she is feeling right now.

Process:

The first thing that I did was write down the requirements for a sonnet since I wasn't very familiar with them. Then, I brainstormed some possible ideas by listing important events and the emotions that I associated with them, trying to write down a wide range of emotions so that I would have more options. After listing these ideas, I delved deeper into my two favourite ideas, one of which wasn't even on the list as I came up with it a little later on. Finally, I bolded the idea that I wanted to use for my sonnet. The picture below shows my plan.

After that, I didn't really know where to start so I searched up a few sonnet examples that I could use as mentor texts. I first found a popular Shakespeare sonnet but also wanted a more modern one, so I kept looking until I found a sonnet based on an Ariana Grande song. When I worked, I kept the first line of the Shakespearean sonnet at the top of my notebook so that I wouldn't forget the rhythm. Below are the sonnet examples that I used.

Modern Sonnet                                                      Shakespeare Sonnet

Now, I was ready to try writing my first line. This turned out to be much more frustrating than I anticipated as I would write down lines that I loved but was unable to use. After a few tries though, I realised that the constraint of an iambic pentameter was actually a good thing as the line that I ended with turned out to be my favourite one. I, then, moved on to writing my second line which surprisingly only took me a couple of tries. When writing these two lines, I had already planned out the words that I would use the end them so that it would be easier for me to write the third and fourth line, since they had to rhyme at the end. Therefore, it was also fairly easy for me to write the next few lines and soon I finished my verse. Below is a picture of the page I used to write this verse.  

Usually, I have a specific plan for when I write, however, for this piece I only had a brief idea. Therefore, the next page was just repeats of the same idea of fear phrased in different ways. When writing all of these lines, I marked where the stress was with a "u" or "/" to make it easier, but none of the lines that I drafted here were iambic pentameter. Therefore, I decided to come up with a more detailed plan. In the end though, I realised that I was forcing my initial idea of numbness into the sonnet when really my sonnet had morphed into a darker theme that was almost the opposite of what I had started with. When I realised this, it was much easier for me to move on. Below are the pictures of the work that I didn't end up using.

                              Unused Lines                                            Unused Detailed Plan

After opening up my mind to this new idea that the main character's mind wasn't actually her sanctuary and was the opposite of it, I suddenly got some ideas. I quickly wrote down the first two lines but then I realised that in my haste to jot my ideas down, I had forgotten that I needed to rhyme the last word. This didn't prove to be difficult for the second line, but I ended the first line with the word, "together". After using a rhyming website and testing out different lines, I was finally able to string together a meaningful line. In this verse, I repeated the word "lies" which I had used in the first verse to emphasise how the main character couldn't tell what was real and what was her imagination. I also used two similar words: "torn" and "tore", to emphasise how broken she was. Below is the drafting for the second verse of the sonnet.

My third verse was the hardest verse to write as I made the same mistake that I made earlier, as the word "oasis" isn't exactly easy to rhyme. When, I used the same rhyming website, I was happy to find the word "nemesis" but I soon found it challenging to end a line with it. I manoeuvred around this problem through trial and error. However, a bigger problem was that I wanted to write about how the main character was bursting with emotions, but I didn't know how to phrase this without using the sequence of one emotion per line, which I thought wouldn't be very interesting to read. I overcame this by flipping through my earlier drafts and remembering how I initially wanted the first line to be about silence. This sparked up a few ideas which is how I ended up with my final verse. The pictures below show how many times I had to rewrite this verse.

Lastly, I only had to write two more lines to finish my sonnet. I didn't know how I was supposed to end it but I knew that I wanted to reiterate the madness that the main character felt. Earlier, I had tried using the word "Hell" but didn't end up sticking with it. I decided to give it a shot since it was easy to find words to rhyme with it. After drafting this line a few times, I moved on to the last line, which proved to be more challenging in terms of making it an iambic pentameter. In the end though, I managed to come up with a conclusion that I was happy with. Below is a picture of the drafting I went through to finish this sonnet.

In the end, I was very happy with how my sonnet turned out even though it took a long time to write. I loved challenging myself with this new form of poetry and might try it again for my remix. This sonnet ended up being much more metaphorical than I thought that it would be, which is great as I want the lines to be left for interpretation, but my only worry is that people won't think that it is cohesive. In addition, this sonnet didn't turn out to be too personnel because I didn't really use a specific event but rather used emotions that I felt and intensified them. Overall though, I am pleased with the final product.

Balcony Scene Comparison

The Zefferelli version and the Royal Shakespeare Company version portrayed Romeo and Juliet in very different ways, whether this be the differences in the characters, the relationship, or the milieu. Below, I will explore and compare the differences between these two interpretations, and based off that, will decide which play was the most effective.

The portrayal of Romeo differed greatly between these two plays. In the Zefferelli version, Romeo was seen as more self confident with a higher self esteem. His personality appeared to be more out-going and enthusiastic. Whereas in the Royal Shakespeare Company version, Romeo seemed more doubtful of himself and much more nervous. He was more hesitant to approach Juliet which gave off the sense that he was either shy or deeply cared about what Juliet thought of him.

In addition, the portrayal of Juliet was also fairly contrasting. In the Zefferelli version, Juliet's wariness of Romeo quickly evolved into a more daring, care-free personality. Her emotions drastically changed during the span of the single conversation. However, in the Royal Shakespeare Company version, Juliet was seen as more responsible like she was thinking about the future, not just living in the present. Her demeanour was also calmer and less eager.

The milieu also varied greatly. The Zeffereli version included rawer, more passionate emotions while the Royal Shakespeare Company version was more comedic and told in a less serious, fun manner. The setting in the Zeffereli version was more visually realistic and was a depiction of what one would imagine the scene would look like if they just read the play. The Royal Shakespeare Company had a more minimalistic style to it like the focus was on the character's and their dialogue rather than the setting. Lastly, the costumes varied as in the Zeffereli version, Juliet wore a low cut more traditional dress and Romeo wore the garment that you would expect to see during the time that Shakespeare was alive. Whereas, the costuming in Royal Shakespeare Company version was more modern as Juliet wore a simple black dress and sneakers and Romeo wore a plain jacket and jeans.

Physical contact was also a big difference between these two plays. In the Zeffereli version, there was a lot of contact which shows that the director was trying to portray young love and passion. Or he might've been trying to show that Romeo's and Juliet's relationship was based off lust more than love. The Royal Shakespeare Company didn't have any physical contact which made it easier to follow, since the dialogue was the main focus. Therefore, the director may of wanted most of the attention to go to the actual story line and not be distracted by physical contact.

If you are watching Romeo and Juliet for the first time, then I believe that the first play would be the best choice since it is more connected to the play in the sense that the setting is very realistic and the costuming is as you would have imagined. In addition, the next scene shows the couple getting ready to be married so the urgency in the first play would be a great prelude into the next scene, while it may seem very sudden if you watched the second version of the play.

In conclusion, while the same script was used, both of the versions of the play varied greatly and neither one is better than the other. However, the Zeffereli version is more effective if you are looking to watch Romeo and Juliet for the first time.

Reflection: Rhyme, Rhythm, Hip Hop & Shakespeare

This week, I learnt more about the similarities between Shakespeare and rap by learning about the various sound devices used in both. Before these two classes, I hadn't known many of the sound devices that we were introduced to such as half rhyme, masculine rhyme, imperfect rhyme, end rhyme, feminine rhyme, and internal rhyme. In addition, I further learnt about the sound device iambic pentameter, and how it resembles a heart beat, as well as other patterns like trochees, spondees, dactyls, and anapests. All of these devices were new to me so it was interesting to learn them and understand their connection to Romeo and Juliet.

In the end, all of these new sound devices helped lead me to appreciate Shakespeare, as earlier, I hadn't really understood why Shakespeare was so famous since I never knew the many writing elements that he incorporated into his pieces. In addition, comparing Shakespeare to lyrics also helped me further appreciate his writings more since I love listening to music and understanding the deeper lyrics in the song. Comparing the sound devices in Shakespeare with those in hip hop helped me connect more to Romeo and Juliet as I earned a new found respect for the piece.

If I wanted to remix the rhyme or rhythm of Shakespeare for my summative, I could change the pattern of the words so that it was trochaic or dactylic, for instance. I could also rhyme different words like instead of using the device end rhyme, I could use more internal rhyme. I could also change the mood so that it was happier and more comical, like the Dr. Suess inspired version, through changing the pattern of the words. I could even possibly write a rap song inspired by Shakespearean words or to dial it back, I could write a poem.

Invitation To Create

Damn my stubbornness. Walking into the gym bejewelled with streamers and spotlights, I pretend that I’m a mirror of normalcy. Wearing combat boots, a black skater skirt, and a leather jacket to your prom tends to attract attention. You see, that’s the problem. I’m not egotistical enough to want fans dancing around me or paparazzi chasing my shadows, all I want is to not spend my night as a walking mannequin, which is apparently uncommon. Suddenly, I realise that if the spotlight’s on me, I shouldn’t merely stand under it, I should dance. I begin to spin across the dance floor to the beat of the music while silently laughing at the “sly” looks my classmates shoot me. I revel at their shocked expressions and occasionally blow a kiss to a random stranger just to spark myself some fire in this dull grey place. Even though, I’ve barely just entered the dance, boredom already creeps back into my pockets and all the hellos and hugs disappear into smoke. Happiness is fleeting, anyways. Sighing, I sink into the first plastic chair I can find. And of course, that’s when Romeo Montague walks in.

Dark brown hair and forest green eyes. The perfect combination. If only his personality was half as beautiful as his looks. He’s not some devil, although in his mind I’m probably a haunted angel in need of love, when in reality, he’s the lost soul who needs saving. Either way, despite my father’s whispers proclaiming the Montague's traitors and far more vile names, that has never been a factor in the way in which I view Romeo. After all, my old fashioned father stuck in his insane ways would be much more horrified if he learnt about my secret than if he learnt of my love affair with Romeo, not that there is much of an affair or love involved in our relationship. I lay out my options for avoiding Romeo: a) try to merge into the crowd, b) escape the dance without Romeo noticing, c) wait and do nothing. To be perfectly honest, the first and second options aren’t even plausible; there is absolutely no chance that in my dark traitorous outfit, I will blend into the whirlwind of candy pinks and oranges, and as for the second option, sandy eyed teachers guard the doors of the gym: an accurate representation of what this imprisoning school is like every day. I close my eyes and pray that this night is over.

“Hey, can I sit here?” I recognize Romeo’s voice and before I even open my eyes, against my better judgement, I nod my head.  

“Okay, I’m going to cut to the chase. Rosaline, I love you.”

I want to shove Romeo off his chair and knock some sense into his delusional mind.

“No, you don’t.”

He’s too lenient. He’s a rock bound to drag me down to the bottom of the ocean.

“I think that I know my feelings better than you do.”

His spirit is too wild. He’ll please until the day he dies.

“Romeo, we barely have a relationship. You don’t know me, how can you love me?”

He’s too good for this world, no one has shattered his rose-coloured lenses, and that’s why he’s going to fail.

“I know love when I feel it.”

He doesn’t understand that I don’t love him back. That I can’t love him back.

“Life isn’t a fairytale.”

And I’m not his princess.

“You have to give me a chance, give us a chance! We are destined to be together.”

I love someone else.

“I’m so sorry.”

I love…

“Please, Rosaline.”

… Juliet.

“Goodbye, Romeo.”

The rest of the night is a blur, and all I remember in the morning is this: I am free.

Process:
Before writing my fan fiction, I first decided to plan out how I was going to go about this project. I'm not great when it comes to spontaneously writing longer pieces so knowing myself, I knew that I needed to come up with a solid plan. In addition, I didn't want the characters, especially Rosaline, to be two-dimensional and also wanted a well structured piece of writing. The picture below shows my finalised plan. 

After completing my plan, I drafted my first paragraph. While, I did keep the main gist of this paragraph, the writing didn't flow very well and the dialogue was mostly useless.

Since I wasn't happy with how my first draft had turned out, I tried writing the first paragraph again but this time, I tried to add more depth into Rosaline and give her some more confidence so that she wouldn't be viewed with pity.

Now, I was pleased with my first paragraph so I decided to move on to writing my second paragraph, in which I would introduce Romeo. I decided that my writing needed some dialogue to seem more realistic so I created a conversation between Rosaline and Romeo. 

However, I didn't like the structure of the paragraph and thought that between dialogues, there were too many useless details. Therefore, I attempted to create an interesting conversation between the two characters. Another struggle for me was incorporating Rosaline's thoughts along with her dialogue, so I italicised Rosaline's thoughts after every line spoken to get through this conflict. 

After editing everything to make sure that it flowed well, I finally finished my fan fiction.

Perspective on Love and Marriage Romeo and Juliet

While I don't have a clear perspectives on love and marriage that completely aligns with the characters in Romeo and Juliet,  I do share some similar view points.

The first character that I align the most with is Mercutio. In Act I, scene IV, lines 27-28, Mercutio says, "If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down." I think that the meaning behind this line is that you shouldn't let love control you and influence all aspects of your life and should therefore have a balance, which is something that I strongly believe in. In addition, Mercutio seems to be implying that one should go with the flow when it comes to love and just like one shouldn't let love control them, one also shouldn't try to control love. I also like this concept because it gives the feeling that love is an ethereal uncontrollable force that if you lend enough power, can break your heart, which I find beautiful.

My feelings on love are also similar to those of Romeo since he is conflicted on the idea of true love which he expresses through the use of oxymorons in Act I, scene I, lines 168-175. I, too, don't exactly understand what true love is is, or even if it exists, and also have many questions regarding soulmates. However, my beliefs do not completely align with Romeo's since during these lines, Romeo appears to be head over heels in love with Rosaline and ready to do anything to win her heart. This is when my beliefs shared with Mercutio come in as I don't think that one should let love control them to the point that they almost can't live without it.

As for marriage, my perspective is the most similar to Lord Capulet's perspective since in Act I, scene II, lines 8-11, he says:
"My child is yet a stranger in the world,
She hath not seen the change of fourteen years.
Let two more summers wither in their pride
Ere we may think her ripe to be bride."
I think that the meaning behind these lines is that Capulet believes that marriage and love shouldn't happen too early as experience and time with one's future spouse are necessary to build a strong, healthy relationship, which I agree with it. My views are slightly conflicted here though because I also don't believe that you can put an age on love, however I think that sealing the relationship with marriage should only occur if one is 19 years old or older.

Lastly, my perspective differs the most from Benvolio's view since even in the simple line, "Be ruled by me, forget to think of her." (Act I, scene I, 220), he demonstrates that he believes that love can easily be forgotten and quickly replaced by someone else. This implies that he doesn't think that love is special or unique but is rather a bond that can one can quickly move past. I am opposed to this because while I don't have any experience with love, I like to believe that it is an important bond that is worth more than just a phase. Therefore, I share many similar view points with the characters in Romeo and Juliet, but don't disagree with everything everyone has to say.

Romeo and Juliet Shakespearean Insults #2

Grahams vs. Tewksburys

Graham: "Tis' unbelievable we were once friends for thou art a pernicious, iron-witten clotpole."

Tewksbury: "Nay, thou art the knavish, ill-breeding rabbit sucker! Twas' a privilege for thou to even talk to me."

Graham: "Thou just erased all remorse I felt for killing thy haungty, heavy-headed son, the resemblance was uncanny."

Tewksbury: "Thou roynish, eye-offending, canker-blossom! If thou hadst not stolen my cattle, perhaps I wouldn't of had to shoot thy shrill-gorged, lily-livered, rampallion cousins."

Graham: "Nay, thou snatched my cattle and land! Thou should be gracious I ceased firing so that thy clay-brained, onion-eyed wife could bury thy child and friend."

Tewksbury: "Listen thou brazen, empty-hearted miscreant, when thou art last man from thy family standing, with my own hands, I will kill thee."

Graham: "Thou art a distempered, ill-nurtured, raw-boned weak-hinged moldwarp and thou will be dead long before I will be."

Tewksbury: "Only time will tell, horn-mad, fat-kidneyed, muddy-mettled hedge-pig. Goodbye."

Romeo and Juliet Baz Lurhmann Movie Response #1

I think that Baz Luhrmann cleverly portrayed Romeo and Juliet because the more modernized version appeals to a younger audience, like myself. I have never read Romeo and Juliet or seen any plays of it so this movie was really my first impression of Romeo and Juliet. The movie has made me interested in learning more about Romeo and Juliet because I want to further understand the relationship between the Capulets and Montagues. I also want to learn more about what the world was like when Shakespeare wrote the piece and how people originally reacted to it. While I enjoyed the movie, some parts of it were confusing because there were so many characters. The writing could also be a little confusing at times. When watching the movie, I was the most surprised by how quickly Romeo and Juliet fell in love, and how quickly they acted upon it by getting married, which I found a bit unrealistic.

I chose to track the gendered expectations I saw in the movie. Starting from the beginning in the movie when the guys from the Montague and Capulet family were shooting at each other at the gas station, like it was the men’s duty to protect the family. This is again shown later when Tybalt kills Mercutio resulting in Romeo killing Tybalt, as if men have to secure the family name and are the only one’s able of seeking revenge. The expectations for females is to follow the male’s orders like when Juliet is expected to follow her Father’s will and marry Paris even though she doesn’t want to. Another example is how Juliet waits in her room for Romeo to come, rather than seeking him out herself, since the stereotype is that men save women.