Decoding Shakespeare’s
Romeo and Juliet
Josefino Rivera, Jr.
Survey
Romeo and Juliet
February 11-12, 2009
Prologue
Chorus
Two households both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents’ strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark’d love,
And the continuance of their parents’ rage,
Which, but their children’s end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours’ traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.
Patterns?
What did you notice…
…about the beat or rhythm?
…about the number of steps per line?
…about the rhyme?
Iambic Pentameter
Romeo and Juliet
Two house|holds both|alike|in dig|nity,
1
+
1
+ 1 + 1
+1 = 5
 Foot = group of syllables
 Pentameter = five feet
In fair | Veron | a where | we lay | our scene…
U /
U /
U /
U /
U
/
 Iamb = describes the # of syllables and how they
should be accented. In this case two syllables:
first unaccented, then accented
Europe
Verona, Italy
Verona
Juliet Capulet’s Home
Juliet’s Balcony
Why is Shakespeare so
complicated?
1.
2.
3.
4.
Vocabulary
Personal Pronouns
Conjugations
Syntax, or the arrangement of words
and phrases, are not in its usual
places.
Personal Pronouns
Subject
Object
Genitive
Possessive
(what’s doing
the action)
(what the action
is being done to)
(pronouns always
with object
following)
(pronoun that
replaces genitive +
object)
1st singular
I
Me
My/Mine
Mine
2nd singular
(informal)
Thou
Thee
Thy/Thine
Thine
3rd singular
He/she/it
Him/her/it
His/her/its
His/her/it
1st plural
We
Us
Our
Ours
2nd plural or
singular (formal)
Ye
You
Your
Yours
They
Them
Their
Theirs
3rd plural
Second Person Personal
Pronoun Examples
Shakespeare
Today
Subject:
Thou villain Capulet!
Subject:
You villain Capulet!
Object:
What shall I groan to tell thee?
Object:
What shall I groan to tell you?
Genitive:
Remember thy swashing blow!
Genitive:
Remember your swashing blow!
Possessive:
With more of thine
Possessive:
With more of yours
Your Turn
 Translate the following
Shakespearean phrases
into modern day
English:
 Thou art mad!
 I am happy for thee.
 That is thy weapon!
 That is thine!
 Translate the following
modern day phrases
into Shakespearean
English:
 You are lying!
 This is for you.
 Where is your
homework?
 Is that yours?
Conjugations
 Verb forms used after thou (2nd person singular,
informal) generally end in -st or -est
 to know: thou knowest
 to make: thou makest
 to love: thou lovest
 A few verbs have irregular thou forms:
 to be: thou art, thou wast
 to have: thou hast
 to do: thou dost
 shall: thou shalt
 will: thou wilt
 Your Turn: Go to any page in R&J and identify a
new verb conjugation and its infinitive
Shakespearean Syntax:
The Why
Shifts from “normal”
To create the rhythm he seeks
To use a line’s poetic rhythm to emphasize a
particular word
To give a character his or her own speech
patterns (regular)
To allow the character to speak in a special way
(incidental)
Shakespearean Syntax:
The How
Inversion
From: Subject+Verb
To: Verb+Subject
From: Subject+Verb+Object
To: Object+Subject+Verb
Parts of Speech
The dog bit the boy.
The = article
Dog = noun (the subject)
Bit = verb
Boy = noun (the object)
The boy bit the dog.
Very different meanings even though the
words are the same.
Shakespearean Syntax and the
Commutative Property
 Commutative Property: The word "commutative"
comes from "commute" or "move around," so the
Commutative Property is the one that refers to
moving stuff around.
 For addition, the rule is "a + b = b + a"; in numbers, this
means 2 + 3 = 3 + 2.
 For multiplication, the rule is "ab = ba"; in numbers, this
means 2×3 = 3×2.
 Shakespearean Syntax follows a similar property.
Subject+Verb Inversions
 Today: subject+verb
 Shakespeare: subject+verb OR verb+subject
From “He goes” OR “Goes he”
Benvolio:
Here were the servants of your adversary
And yours close fighting were I did approach:
I drew to part them: in the instant came
The fiery Tybalt, with his sword prepared (5)
Your turn:
Lady Montague:
O, where is Romeo? Saw you him to-day? (5)
Subject+Object Inversions
 Today: subject+verb+object
 Shakespeare: subject+verb+object OR
object+ subject+verb
From “I hit him” to “Him I hit”
Benvolio:
So early walking did I see your son.
Becomes
[did] I [saw ] your son walking [so] early.
Your Turn:
Benvolio:
Towards him I made.