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Romeo and Juliet: The language of true love

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Romeo and Juliet: The language of true love

SUBJECTS:  Arts, English

YEARS:  7–8, 9–10


Romeo and Juliet 2.2 Explainer


There are moments of extraordinary light and beauty amid the tragedy of 'Romeo and Juliet'.

Join James Evans and actor Damien Strouthos from Bell Shakespeare as they discuss Act 2.2.

Damien explains how Shakespeare's use of language reveals the intense passion, as well as frustration, experienced by Romeo and Juliet.


Things to think about

  1. 1.Imagine being completely in love with someone, and they with you, but you can't hold them; you can't have any physical contact. All you have are words to express your feelings. What would you say? Actor Damien Strouthos discusses the manner in which Shakespeare deals with this dilemma in Romeo and Juliet.
  2. 2.

    In what way does Shakespeare warn his audience at the beginning of the play that Romeo's and Juliet's passionate romance might have a tragic ending?

    According to Damien, how does Romeo's language change when he begins talking about Juliet rather than Rosaline?

  3. 3.

    Damien says that the scene is '… full of delicate but powerful images and it's all about the fact that they can't physically get to each other and all they have is their language … to connect with each other.' How would you select and organise words to convey two characters' love for one another while entertaining and inspiring an audience?

  4. 4.

    If you've not seen or heard Act 2, Scene 2 from Romeo and Juliet, make sure you do (you can find it on ABC Splash). What are your favourite lines? What words express the characters' love for one another most effectively?


Teachers

Visit Bell Shakespeare's website

Discover programs, workshops and more performances at one of Australia's great theatre companies.

Download a PDF with the full synopsis for each play.

Full plot summaries of Macbeth, Othello, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, The Tempest, and Romeo and Juliet.


Acknowledgements

Created by ABC Splash in collaboration with Bell Shakespeare.


Production Date: 2014


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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