Romeo and Juliet Test
1. the historical background notes, such as notes about the Elizabethan Era etc.
‘Romeo and Juliet’ was written around 1595 by William Shakespeare.
It was written in the Renaissance (1500-1660)
Elizabethan Revenge tragedy:
Act 1 – Exposition (setting the scene)
Act 2 – Rising Action (plot development)
Act 3 – Climax
Act 4 – Falling Action
Act 5
– Tragedy
2. Shakespeare facts such as the types of plays he wrote, their construction, the way their language and characters works (iambic pentameter, sonnet, fatal flaw)
In total Shakespeare wrote 38 tragedies, comedies and historical plays.
Rhyme scheme: abab(quatrain) cdcd(quatrain) efef(quatrain) gg(rhyming couplet)
Chorus:
- Gives background information
- Show the audience how to react
- Summary
- Comment on the themes
- Represent the general population
- Express the fear and/or secrets characters can’t express themselves
- Give information to the characters
Theme:
A theme in a work of literature is a universal truth explored through the story/ text
Examples of themes:
- War
- Love/ romance
- Faith
- Revenge
- Betrayal
- Death
- Man vs. society/ nature/ machine/ himself
3. The glossary of literary terms in your reader
Characterization
– the way an author reveals the personality of a character. Writers reveal a lot about their characters’ personalities by describing their appearance, way of talking, thoughts, and actions. Readers can also learn about a character through what other characters say about him or her and their reactions to that character.

Character foil – a character whose personality or behaviour is the opposite of another character in order to highlight that character. (Benvolio en Tybalt)
Conceit – a conceit is an extended, exaggerated comparison or metaphor between two unlike things.
Dramatic irony – we speak of dramatic irony when the audience knows something the characters do not. (Juliet being ‘dead’, Romeo fighting his cousin)
Foreshadowing – foreshadowing suggests, sometimes imperceptibly, certain plot developments that will come later in the story. (Juliet looking down at Romeo after they spent their night together and saying: ‘I see thee, now thou art so low, as one dead in the bottom of a tomb.’)
Iambic pentameter – the name given to a line of verse that consists of five iambs (an iamb being one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed one)
Malapropisms
– an inappropriateness of speech resulting from the use of one word for another which resembles it. (The nurse saying ‘confidence’ instead of
‘conference’)
Metaphor – when two unlike things are compared and the words “like” or “as” are
NOT used in the comparison.
Oxymoron’s – pairs of contradictory words (cold fire, burning water, loving hate)
Petrarchan lovers – someone who is in love with the idea of being in love
Shakespearean sonnet – sonnets constructed from three four-line stanzas
(quatrains) and a final couplet composed in iambic pentameter.
Soliloquy – a speech delivered while the speaker is alone, calculated to inform the audienc e of what is passing in the character’s mind. (Juliet in the balcony scene)
Tone – the author’s attitude towards the writing (his characters, the situation) and the readers. A work of writing can have more than one tone. An example of tone could be both serious and humorous. Tone is set by the setting, choice of vocabulary and other details.
Unrequited love – to love someone who does not love you back

4. The names of the characters and their relationships
The Capulet house:
- Lord Capulet – Juliet’s father
- Lady Capulet – Juliet’s mother
- Juliet – later marries to Romeo
Montague, has to marry to Paris
- Tybalt – Juliet’s cousin, killed by Romeo
- Nurse – Juliet’s nurse
- Peter – Nurse’s servant
- Sampson – servant, fights against
Abraham and Balthasar
- Gregory
– servant, fights against
The Montague house:
- Lord Montague
- Lady Montague
- Romeo
Capulet
– later marries to Juliet
- (Benvolio
- Balthasar
– Romeo’s father
– Romeo’s mother
– Romeo’s friend)
– Romeo’s servant, fights against Sampson and Gregory
- Abraham - servant, fights against
Sampson and Gregory
Abraham and Balthasar
Prince family:
- Prince Escalus
- Mercutio – relative of the Prince, friend of Romeo, killed by Tybalt
- Paris
– relative of the Prince
5. The chronological development of the plot
Others:
- Friar Lawrence – a Franciscan friar, gives Juliet the potion
- Friar John - Friar Lawrence’s friend
- Apothecary – gives Romeo the poison
Act 1:
Chorus) Outlines the story, sets the scene
1) Fight between the Capulets and Montagues, Prince threatens the death penalty.
Romeo is unhappy; he tells Benvolio he is in love with Rosaline
2) Capulet allows Paris to woo Juliet. Benvolio and Romeo think about going to the
Capulet party
3) Lady Capulet tells Juliet about Paris’ request to marry her.
4) Romeo tells Mercutio about his worrying dream
5) Romeo goes to the Capulet party, he meets Juliet and they learn they are form rival families
Act 2:
Chorus) Talks about the difficulties R&J have to overcome
1) Romeo leaves the party and hides form his friends
2) Balcony scene: R&J express their love, Juliet tells Romeo to send her a message about their marriage
3) Romeo goes to the Friar; he helps, because their marriage might end the feud.
4) Benvolio tells Mercutio that Romeo has been sent a challenge to a duel by Tybalt.
Romeo asks the nurse to tell Juliet about their marriage
5) The nurse tells Juliet about the marriage plans
6) The friar warns Romeo about his sudden love, but agrees to marry R&J
Act 3:
1) Tybalt kills Mercutio, Romeo kills Tybalt, and the Prince banishes Romeo
2) The nurse tells Juliet about the dead of Tybalt and the banishment of Romeo
3) Romeo is at the Friar and the nurse tells him Juliet wants to see him

4) Lord Capulet decides Juliet will marry to Paris in three days
5) Juliet makes Romeo leave, and then she hears about her marriage with Paris gets mad, and seeks help from the Friar
Act 4:
1) Juliet meets Paris at the Friar. She gets the potion and the Friar tells her he will inform Romeo
2) Juliet apologies and agrees to marry Paris
3) Juliet drinks the potion
4) Paris arrives for the wedding and Juliet is woken up
5) The nurse finds Juliet dead; the Friar makes plans for her funeral
Act 5:
1) Balthasar tells Romeo, Juliet is dead; Romeo buys the poison and goes to Verona
2) Friar Lawrence finds out Romeo doesn’t know about Juliet’s fake dead and goes to her tomb
3) At the tomb, Romeo kills Paris. Romeo kisses Juliet drinks the poison and dies.
Friar Lawrence arrives and finds Romeo dead; then Juliet wakes up and the Friar tries to explain the situation but flees when he hears people approaching. Juliet kisses Romeo and stabs herself. The Friar gets arrested; explains and Capulet and
Montague make peace.
6. The names of the places the play takes place
Verona – where everything takes place, the two houses are also there
Mantua – where act 5, scene 1 takes place, when Romeo is banished he goes here