TERM PAPER IDEAS

• VIEWS OF LOVE IN ROMEO AND JULIET

• True Love vs. False Love.

Compare Romeo's love for Rosaline with his love for Juliet. You could also compare the Montagues' love for Romeo with the Capulets' love for Juliet.

• Contrast Romeo and Juliet's Views of Life and Love with the Nurse's and

Mercutio's Views.

• Which is more truthful-the lovers' idealistic view of the world, or Mercutio and the Nurse's earthy view?

• Romantic Love in Romeo and Juliet.

What is the idea of Romantic love, and how does the story of Romeo and Juliet follow this pattern? How does the story deviate from the pattern?

• Love vs. Hate in Romeo and Juliet.

What events demonstrate the power of hatred? What demonstrates the power of love? Which wins in the end?

• Views of Sex in Romeo and Juliet.

How does Juliet view sex in Act III, Scene ii? How does the Nurse view sex? Mercutio? Friar Lawrence? Whose views do you agree with? Whose views do you think Shakespeare was most sympathetic to?

• WHAT CAUSES THE TRAGIC ENDING?

• The Role of the Feud in Romeo and Juliet.

Is the feud a serious thing? Who treats it seriously? Who doesn't? Does hatred keep it going, or fate? Why must Romeo and Juliet die to end it?

• Fate and Accidents.

What role does fate play in Romeo and Juliet? Are the lovers doomed from the start? What part do accidents and miscalculations play in the story?

• Providence and the Supernatural.

Is there a higher power in control of this tragedy, and who is working it all out for the best? Where are the repeated references to God and the supernatural? Is the end of the play a victory? Has a plan been worked out? Is order restored?

• The Seed of Destruction in Character.

How does Romeo's character lead to his death? Juliet's character? Who else's character adds to their downfall?

• Elizabethan View of Passion.

What was the Elizabethan view of passion? Is passion the sin that causes the tragedy? What kinds of passion do we see during the play? Who warns against passion? What images are used as illustrations of passion? Do the warnings come true?

• Capulet Family Structure.

What is the relationship between Juliet and her mother? Her father? How do her parents relate to each other? How do these relationships lead to the tragic ending?

• With Friends Like These...

How do Romeo and Juliet's friends, Mercutio, the Nurse, and Friar Lawrence, bring about their deaths?

• The Importance of Messages.

How often does the plot depend on messages? How do these messages go from the silly invitation to the Capulets' party, to the tragically missing letter from the Friar? How do we see messages garbled from the beginning?

• Unawareness.

What actions spring from unawareness of the situation? How does Mercutio act in ignorance? The Capulets? Paris? Prince Escalus?

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