conclusion for romeo and juliet essay on love

Love in Print in the Sixteenth Century pp 183–186 Cite as

Conclusion: Romeo + Juliet

• Ian Frederick Moulton  

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Part of the book series: Early Modern Cultural Studies ((EMCSS))

T he four books that form the focus of this study all demonstrate the extent to which culturally elite ideas about romantic love were spreading to a broader reading public throughout the sixteenth century. Conduct books, philosophical treatises, letter-writing manuals, and medical texts were all appearing in the vernacular, and their specialized knowledge was being made even more accessible through editorial apparatus such as indices, detailed tables of contents, and printed marginal annotations.

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On the play’s popularity on stage see William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet , The Oxford Shakespeare, ed. Jill. L. Levenson (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000), 69–70.

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The Capulets are one of the only households Shakespeare stages in which a child has both parents living. And Juliet’s mother and father are not necessarily a model of wedded bliss. See Sasha Roberts, William Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet (Plymouth, UK: Northcote House, 1998), 28–31.

Matteo Bandello, Novelle , ed. Luigi Russo and Ettore Mazzali (Milan: Rizzoli, 1990), 315: “… con particolar dolore dei Montecchi e Capelletti e general di tutta la città, furono fatte l’essequie con pompa gradissima; e volle il signore che in quello stesso avello gli amanti restarono sepolti. Il che fu cagione che tra i Montecchi e I Capelletti si fece la pace, ben che non molto dopo durassi.”

Plato, Symposium , ed. Kenneth Dover, Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1980), 204c.

Unless otherwise indicated, all references to the works of Plato are to The Collected Dialogues of Plato , ed. Edith Hamilton and Huntington Cairns (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1961).

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Moulton, I.F. (2014). Conclusion: Romeo + Juliet. In: Love in Print in the Sixteenth Century. Early Modern Cultural Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137405050_6

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Theme Of Love In Romeo And Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is set on a theme of love. Love is a central theme in the play, as Romeo and Juliet fall in love despite the ongoing feud between their families. This tragic story was written by William Shakespeare, and has been adapted numerous times for stage, film, and television.

In William Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet,” the theme of love is used as a major element to propel the plot forward. He portrays many different types of love and changes his depiction of this topic throughout the play in order to demonstrate the various aspects of affection.

Love is said to be a wonderful thing, and can have many different meanings, not just a feeling but an action. Love is something that can make you do crazy things, and in Romeo and Juliet’s case, it gets them both killed. Love is such a big theme in this story because Romeo and Juliet are two young lovers who are forced to keep their relationship a secret due to their feuding families, the Capulets and the Montagues.

Love makes Romeo and Juliet take risks and do things they normally wouldn’t do, like sneaking around and disobeying their parents. Even though they know the risks, they continue to see each other and eventually get married in secret. Love also leads to tragedy when Romeo kills Juliet’s cousin Tybalt in revenge for him killing Romeo’s friend Mercutio.

This leads to Romeo getting banished from Verona. Juliet fakes her own death in a plan to be reunited, but Romeo believes she is truly dead and kills himself. When Juliet finds Romeo’s corpse beside her, she kills herself as well. In the end, love causes the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, but it is also what brought them together in the first place. Love is a complex emotion that Shakespeare explores in depth through the characters of Romeo and Juliet.

In the first act of “Romeo and Juliet,” Shakespeare depicts the concept of love in a scene between Romeo and Benvolio, when he discusses his unrequited affection for Rosaline. Here, as Romeo employs oxymorons such as ‘o brawling love, o loving hate,’ it is clear how perplexed he is by his connection with Rosaline since she does not reciprocate his affection.

This oxymoron also foreshadows Romeo’s relationship with Juliet as it is full of conflict. This conflict is a result of the ongoing feud between the Montagues and Capulets, to which Romeo and Juliet belong. In Shakespeare’s day, there would have been great concern about young men and women being able to marry for love, rather than having their parents choose their husband or wife for them.

Love was not seen as something that could last forever, but more as a passing fancy. This is why Romeo and Juliet’s love is so special, because it does manage to conquer all odds and last forever, even though they both die.

The theme of love is also explored through the character of Mercutio. Mercutio is Romeo’s best friend and he does not believe in love, calling it a ‘sickness’ and a ‘notion.’ He thinks that Romeo is just infatuated with Rosaline and will soon get over her.

This is in stark contrast to Romeo, who is completely besotted with Juliet. Mercutio’s views on love are challenged when he meets Tybalt and they fight, leading to Mercutio’s death. Romeo is so distraught by his friend’s death that he kills Tybalt in revenge. This sets off a chain of events which leads to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.

The theme of love is central to “Romeo and Juliet” and Shakespeare explores it in many different ways. He shows that love can be confused and troublesome, as well as being powerful enough to conquer all. Love is a huge part of our lives today and was just as important in Shakespeare’s time. This is what makes “Romeo and Juliet” such an enduring play, because it speaks to us all about one of the most universal themes there is.

Romeo explains what love is and how he feels powerless in the grip of his emotions, “a sea fed with lovers’ tears,” as he repeats again and again. This shows how Romeo feels tormented by his passion, as well as all the other lovers who have shed tears over their love, and how this is contributing to the sea levels high by nourishing the sea with their tears.

Love is a torment to Romeo as he can no longer be with Juliet and so compares it to a prison in which he is stuck. Love has made Romeo upset and crazy, something which is repeated later on in the play when Romeo meets Tybalt and fights him, against his better judgment, leading to Mercutio’s death. Love has the ability to make people behave irrationally and do things they wouldn’t normally do.

William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as both the greatest writer in the English language, and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon”. His extant works, including collaborations, consist of approximately 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare’s most popular plays during his lifetime and along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Today, the title characters are regarded as archetypal young lovers. Romeo and Juliet belongs to a tradition of tragic romances stretching back to antiquity.

Its plot is based on an Italian tale translated into verse as The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet by Arthur Brooke in 1562 and retold in prose in Palace of Pleasure by William Painter in 1567. Shakespeare borrowed heavily from both but expanded the plot by developing a number of supporting characters, particularly Mercutio and Paris. Believed to have been written between 1591 and 1595, the play was first published in a quarto version in 1597.

The text of the first quarto version was of poor quality, however, and later editions corrected it. Shakespeare’s use of his poetic dramatic structure (especially effects such as switching between comedy and tragedy to heighten tension, his exploitation of off-stage action, and his use of sub-plot to embellish the story) has been praised as an early sign of his dramatic skill.

The play ascribes different poetic forms to different characters, sometimes changing the form as the character develops. Romeo, for example, grows more adept at the sonnet over the course of the play.

Romeo and Juliet is set on a theme of love. Love is a powerful emotion that can sometimes lead to tragedy. In Romeo and Juliet, love is the cause of much conflict between the two families and leads to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Love is a central theme in Romeo and Juliet and is portrayed in many different ways. Shakespeare uses language techniques to help convey this theme to the audience.

Some examples include oxymorons, metaphors and similes. Oxymorons are used to show the contrast between love and hate. Shakespeare uses metaphors to show how love can be both good and bad. Similes are used to show how love can be like a drug. Love is a complex emotion and Shakespeare uses these language techniques to help explored this theme in Romeo and Juliet.

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Romeo And Juliet Essay for Students and Children

500+ words essay on romeo and juliet.

Romeo and Juliet is the most famous love tragedy written by William Shakespeare. This is a story of love and fate. Furthermore, the basis of this tragic love story is the Old Italian tale translated into English in the sixteenth century. The story is about two young star-crossed lovers whose death results in reconcile between their feuding families. Moreover, Romeo and Juliet is among the most frequently performed plays by Shakespeare .

Lessons of Love from Romeo and Juliet

First of all, Romeo and Juliet teach us that love is blind. Romeo and Juliet belonged to two influential families. Furthermore, these two families were engaged in a big feud among themselves. However, against all odds, Romeo and Juliet find each other and fall in love. Most noteworthy, they are blind to the fact that they are from rival families. They strive to be together in spite of the threat of hate between their families.

Another important lesson is that love brings out the best in us. Most noteworthy, Romeo and Juliet were very different characters by the end of the story than in the beginning. Romeo was suffering from depression before he met Juliet. Furthermore, Juliet was an innocent timid girl. Juliet was forced into marriage against her will by her parents. After falling in love, the personalities of these characters changed in positive ways. Romeo becomes a deeply passionate lover and Juliet becomes a confident woman.

Life without love is certainly not worth living. Later in the story, Romeo learns that his beloved Juliet is dead. At this moment Romeo felt a heart-shattering moment. Romeo then gets extremely sad and drinks poison. However, Juliet was alive and wakes up to see Romeo dead. Juliet then immediately decides to kill herself due to this massive heartbreak. Hence, both lovers believed that life without love is not worth living.

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Legacy of Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays. Furthermore, the play was very popular even in Shakespeare’s lifetime. Scholar Gary Taylor believes it as the sixth most popular of Shakespeare’s plays. Moreover, Sir William Davenant of the Duke’s Company staged Romeo and Juliet in 1662. The earliest production of Romeo and Juliet was in North America on 23 March 1730.

There were professional performances of Romeo and Juliet in the mid-19th century. In 19th century America, probably the most elaborate productions of Romeo and Juliet took place. The first professional performance of the play in Japan seems to be George Crichton Miln’s company’s production in 1890. In the 20th century, Romeo and Juliet became the second most popular play behind Hamlet.

There have been at least 24 operas based on Romeo and Juliet. The best-known ballet version of this play is Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. Most noteworthy, Romeo and Juliet have a huge impact on literature. Romeo and Juliet made romance as a worthy topic for tragedy. Before Romeo and Juliet, romantic tragedy was certainly unthinkable.

Romeo and Juliet are probably the most popular romantic fictional characters. They have been an inspiration for lovers around the world for centuries. Most noteworthy, the story depicts the struggle of the couple against a patriarchal society. People will always consider Romeo and Juliet as archetypal young lovers.

Q1 State any one lesson of love from Romeo and Juliet?

A1 One lesson of love from Romeo and Juliet is that love brings out the best in us.

Q2 What makes Romeo and Juliet unique in literature?

A2 Romeo and Juliet made romance as a worthy topic for tragedy. This is what makes it unique.

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Forbidden Love in Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare Essay (Critical Writing)

Psychoanalysis often consists of different approaches, and the same topic or work can be seen from various perspectives. For example, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet tells the story of the titular characters who belong to rivaling households. This play explores the topic of forbidden love, as the main characters never get what they want due to their circumstances. The following text will review it from Jung’s, Freud’s, and Lacan’s theories.

Sigmund Freud’s perspective of the psyche is actively tied to sexual desire and the three aspects of one’s personality. These aspects are id, ego, and superego, and they have a significant effect on a person’s actions and motivations (Studious Guy, 2021). Romeo represents a classic example of one’s id prevailing over the other aspects, as he is rather impulsive and emotional. Juliet and Friar Laurence, on the other hand, have more fluctuating versions of these aspects. As soon as he first meets her, he forgets about his prior unrequited feelings for Rosaline and wants to be with the Capulet daughter. The young man triggers a conflict between her id, ego and superego, as she is aware of the rivalry; however, she desires to be with Romeo against all odds.

There is a very interesting similarity between Juliet and Friar Laurence, as both start experiencing the domination of their id over their superego and ego. Laurence is an even stronger example of that, as he poses as the mentor for the two youths; however, when he views an opportunity to use them as a way to help their families reconcile, the man agrees to preserve Romeo and Juliet’s bond and unite them with marriage (Shakespeare, 1597). At first, it seems that under the influence of their relationship, the young man becomes more rational, as he refuses to fight with Tybalt. Unfortunately, this is instantly disproven after Romeo murdering him as revenge, being banished and him ultimately taking his life, causing Juliet’s demise as well. Perhaps, if their superego had dominated, their lives would have taken a different turn, and Laurence’s goal would have been achieved without losses.

Carl Jung’s views are not as heavily reliant on sexual desires, as they are on one’s life force. He believed that the psyche’s main goal was achieving individuation, where one becomes independent from the collective unconscious, evolves into a mature and harmonious individual, and develops their true identity (GoodTherapy, 2018). The collective unconscious is formed with the help of symbols, patterns and situations related to archetypes. At the beginning of the story, Romeo represents a blend between the Rebel and the Lover, as he is irrational but appreciates love (Exploring Your Mind, 2020). Juliet seems uninterested in this concept before she meets him and is usually more rational, being the Sage. Friar Laurence is the classic example of the Caregiver, as he attempts to guide the youths through this situation.

Unfortunately, this relationship creates a conflict between the counterparts of their archetypes and deconstructs their Animus and Anima. For Juliet, her rationality and sensibility become her Persona, while in Romeo’s case it is his prioritization of thinking before acting (Studio Binder, 2022). Irrationality is completely atypical of Friar Laurence, as he attempts to protect the teenagers from their demise and fails under the influence of his wish to bring peace to the two rivalling families. Juliet becomes more impulsive, threatening to die by suicide in case she is married to Paris. Romeo attempts to conceal this side of his personality, as he tries to find peace between himself and his wife’s cousin. Alas, Romeo’s Persona is the first to collapse, as his Shadow prevails and ultimately results in Tybalt’s, his and Juliet’s death. Thus, they do not achieve individuation, as their lives and personality become disorganized, and meet an abrupt end.

Jacques Lacan’s views triggered discussions of one’s desire and its inattainability. While most people eventually find peace with this gap, the characters in the story do not. In the play, Romeo constantly seeks love for some unknown reason and there is always something standing in his way. Lacan believed that one’s desire is the other individual’s desire (Psychiatric Times, 2018). Whatever the two were seeking in love, whether it is stability, the ideal partner or the sensation that follows it, they never actually find it. This is because Romeo’s vengeful murder of Tybalt is followed by a chain of events that ultimately becomes their obstacle to achieving that unconscious desire. Unfortunately, the characters are not at peace with this loss, as the two eventually meet their untimely death as a result. Regarding Friar Laurence, it can be presumed that while his goal of making the families reconcile has been achieved, he never truly achieves his desire, just like the two teenagers.

In conclusion, the story of Romeo and Juliet receives different perceptions when viewed by the lens of Jung’s, Lacan’s and Freud’s theories. From Freud’s perspective, the characters’ problems can be perceived as the result of a conflict between their superego, id and ego. Romeo is the first one never to find harmony between the three aspects, while Juliet and Laurence develop a conflict with those moments due to his relationship with her. Jung’s beliefs are centered on the person becoming independent from the collective unconscious and evolving into a harmonious individual. This never happens to the three people, as the characters’ lives and personalities become disorganized and dishevelled under the influence of their circumstances. Finally, from Lacan’s perspective, desire is something that is unconscious and unattainable. While many people find peace with the gap presented by it, Romeo, Juliet and Laurence do not, which results in the death of the teenagers and the sorrow of the Friar.

Exploring Your Mind. (2020). The 12 jungian archetypes . Exploring your mind. Web.

GoodTherapy. (2018). Jungian psychotherapy . GoodTherapy – Find the Right Therapist. Web.

Psychiatric Times. (2018). Jacques Lacan: The best and least known psychoanalyst . Web.

StudioBinder. (2022). Jungian archetypes explained for writers . Web.

Studious Guy. (2021). Freud’s psychoanalytic theories explained . StudiousGuy – Your Study Buddy. Web.

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Guest Essay

What Began as a War on Theater Won’t End There

By James Shapiro

Mr. Shapiro is the author of the forthcoming “The Playbook: A Story of Theater, Democracy, and the Making of a Culture War.”

Productions of plays in America’s high schools have been increasingly under attack. In 2023, Anton Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” was rejected in Tennessee (since it deals with adultery); “August: Osage County,” the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tracy Letts, was canceled in Iowa after rehearsals had begun (the community was deemed not ready for it); and in Kansas, students were not even allowed to study, let alone stage, “The Laramie Project ,” a play by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project about the murder of a gay student, Matthew Shepard.

It should come as no surprise, then, that in the Educational Theater Association’s most recent survey, 85 percent of American theater teachers expressed concern about censorship . Even Shakespeare is at risk: In Florida, new laws led to the restriction of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” to grades 10 through 12 and “Romeo and Juliet” could not be taught in full to avoid falling afoul of legislation targeting “sexual conduct.” Kill off young people’s exposure to theater, and you kill off a generation of playgoers, along with the empathy and camaraderie (already in short supply) that are intrinsic to theater. According to the latest report from the National Endowment for the Arts , from 2017 to 2022 the percentage of Americans who went even once a year to see a nonmusical play dropped by roughly half, from about 10 percent to less than 5 percent.

What begins as a war on theater never ends there.

The current attacks on theater in American schools have their origins in a struggle that took place in the late 1930s, when America’s political leadership believed that the arts, no less than industry and agriculture, were vital to the health of the Republic and deserving of its financial support. There was still an implicit understanding that theater and democracy — twinborn in ancient Greece, spheres where competing visions of society could be aired and debated — were mutually dependent. Funded by Congress as part of a Works Progress Administration relief bill and established in 1935, the Federal Theater Project by 1939 had staged over 1,000 productions in 29 states, seen free or for a pittance by 30 million spectators, or roughly one in four Americans, two-thirds of whom had never seen a play before.

It brought children’s plays on touring trucks to kids in crowded cities. It staged works in Spanish, Yiddish and Italian to reach immigrants. It established what it called Negro units from Hartford, Conn., to Seattle to support Black actors and playwrights. It staged Christmas plays and classics by Shakespeare and Euripides and nurtured young playwrights and directors, including Arthur Miller and Orson Welles. It brought free theater to asylums, orphanages, hospitals, prisons and veterans’ homes. It revived playgoing in rural states where the movies had all but ended it. Ten million listeners a week tuned in to its radio broadcasts. It established ties with hundreds of educational, fraternal, civic and religious groups, strengthening communal bonds.

It turned out that Americans were hungry for plays about issues that mattered to their lives, topics largely shunned by Hollywood and the commercial stage. So they flocked to see new plays about substandard housing and the plight of struggling farmers. One of the most remarkable Federal Theater ventures was a stage version of Sinclair Lewis’s novel “It Can’t Happen Here ,” in which a fascist is elected president of the United States. It opened on the same day, Oct. 27, 1936, in 18 cities across the country, and by the time it closed, more than 379,000 Americans had seen it. The cost of these thousand or so productions to taxpayers was roughly the price of building a single battleship.

The program’s popularity contributed to its undoing. Many of those in Congress who had voted to fund the Federal Theater became frightened by its reach and impact, its interracial casting, its challenge to the status quo — frightened, too, perhaps, by the prospect of Americans across racial, economic and political divides sitting cheek by jowl in packed playhouses.

Three years after the creation of the Federal Theater, Congress authorized the establishment of what would become the House Un-American Activities Committee, chaired by Martin Dies of Texas. It was to supposed to spend seven months investigating the rise of Nazism, fascism and communism in America and submit a report. The ambitious Mr. Dies, desperate to have his committee’s life extended, instead focused much of his attention on a more vulnerable target: the Federal Theater, accusing it of disseminating offensive and communistic and therefore un-American values. In the course of waging and winning this battle, he assembled a right-wing playbook so pervasive that it now seems timeless. He succeeded wildly: All Federal Theater productions were abruptly terminated in 1939, and the House Un-American Activities Committee lasted until 1975. With a nascent national theater now destroyed, targeting theater in schools was the inevitable next step for his successors, who — whether cynical politicians or school board members eager to police what offends their sensibilities — have all stolen a page from the Dies playbook.

It’s hard to imagine what America would be like today had support for the Federal Theater continued and Mr. Dies’s committee not been renewed. Counterfactual history is best left to novelists. But a more vibrant theatrical culture extending across the land might well have led to a more informed citizenry and, by extension, a less divided and more equitable and resilient democracy. What happened instead was that Mr. Dies begat Joseph McCarthy, who begat Roy Cohn, who begat Donald Trump.

Some of those familiar with this history haven’t given up. Right now, artists are preparing projects that on July 27 will open simultaneously in 18 U.S. cities and towns, much as “It Can’t Happen Here” did in 1936 . Under the rubric of Arts for EveryBody, the initiative is bringing together performers, audiences, community leaders and local officials. It is a small start and a promising one. So, too, is legislation coming before Congress, the STAGE Act of 2024, that would provide badly needed support for endangered nonprofit theaters across the land. Passing it should be a no-brainer, but there’s a likelihood that the Dies playbook will be used to defeat it. Until those in power in this country pivot from suppressing theater to investing in it, it’s not just the arts but also democracy itself that remains vulnerable.

James Shapiro teaches English at Columbia University and is the author of the forthcoming “ The Playbook: A Story of Theater, Democracy, and the Making of a Culture War .”

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Romeo and Juliet — Conflict Shown in Romeo and Juliet

Conflict Shown in Romeo and Juliet

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Table of contents

Family feuds, societal expectations, individual choices, culmination of conflict.

• Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet.
• Greenblatt, Stephen. "Teaching Romeo and Juliet in the 21st century." Shakespeare Quarterly 60.2 (2009): 220-231.
• Hopkins, Lisa. "Conflicts in Romeo and Juliet." Scribbendi , 2019, https://www.scribendi.com/advice/conflicts_in_romeo_and_juliet.en.html.

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