Irony in Romeo and Juliet

     Irony is an outcome of an event that is not expected. Irony is a literary technique that is used a lot in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. In this play, the irony he used is not only enjoyable, but it also helps with the plot. In some cases, one ironic event led to another ironic event.

     One example of irony is in Act 1 Scene 2. The ironic event is between Capulet and the Serving man. Capulet gives the Serving man a list of names of people that are invited to his party. Capulet instructs the Serving man to tell the people on the list to come to his party. The irony is that Capulet doesn’t know that the Serving man is illiterate. The Serving man can’t read, so he can’t tell anyone on the list about the party. This ironic event actually leads to another ironic event.

      The event is in the same act and scene. The Serving man doesn’t know what to do. He has to give the list to someone who can read and have him or her read it to him. That is when Romeo and Benvolio stroll in. In desperate need of help, the Serving man gives them the list. The irony is that Romeo is a Montague, an enemy of the Capulets. This event also helps to progress the story. Romeo finds out that Rosaline, his one true love is going to attend that party. So he decides to crash the party in order to meet her. Irony is being used as a way to progress the story.

     Finally, one ironic event that is very important to the plot of the book is in Act 1 Scene 5. In this scene, Romeo falls in love with Juliet when he first sees her. The irony is that he came her to see his “true love” Rosaline, yet he fell in love with another girl. Also, Romeo says many times that Rosaline would be his only love, yet on line 60, he complete disregards his love for Rosaline. He says,” For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.” He’s saying that he has not seen true beauty before, until he saw Juliet. This is also an important event because this is where Romeo and Juliet’s relationship starts.

     This is not all the irony in this book. This book is rich with ironic events and ironic dialogue. Shakespeare uses this as a way to entertain his audience. People are interested to find out what happens because of theses events.

My Favorite Character in Romeo and Juliet

     In Romeo and Juliet, there is a numerous amount of characters, all of which vary in personality. You have Romeo, the emotionally charged lover, willing to do anything for the girl he loves. Then there are people like Sampson who are disgusting. In Romeo and Juliet, my favorite character would be Capulet because of his actions. He is a good father, and a good person that cares about his daughter.

      He shows concern for Juliet when Paris asks for Juliet’s hand in marriage. He shows his concern on line 13 of Act 1 Scene 2. He says “And too son marred are those so early made”. This line means girls who get married too soon grow up too soon. In the play, Juliet is only thirteen, so Capulet is worried about her. He doesn’t want her to get married because he thinks she’s too young.  He also doesn’t want her to grow up so fast.  Capulet is a caring and protective father.

      Capulet also has good morals. An example is when he is talking with Tybalt on lines 72 to 99. Tybalt points out that Romeo was at the party. Romeo is a Montague, the enemy of the Capulets. Instead of getting angry for Romeo being there, he gets angry at Tybalt for getting so upset. He says that Romeo is a dignified gentleman with a good reputation. He puts his hatred for the Montagues aside and allows Romeo to stay. Capulet shows that he is willing to allow someone from a family of people that he hates to his party out of respect. Capulet has morals that make him someone to look up to.

     Capulet is a character that anyone can look up to. He is a caring father and has morals that make him respectable. He is a shining star amongst the other characters in the play.  

Dear Friend

Dear Friend,

     From what I know, this will not be a good ending for Romeo and Juliet. After seeing how their families responded to seeing each other, you can tell that the there is some bad blood between them. They seem to be very volatile, drawing their weapons at the sight of each other.  They also seem to have personalities that seem rather disturbing. Sampson for one is very short tempered. If this wasn’t bad enough, he is a complete pervert, making sexual innuendos for a good chunk of his dialogue.

     I’m not having much trouble reading Shakespearean language because I have read another of his amazing plays. When I read Macbeth for the first time, I was fairly confused.  But after reading over and over again, I learned what it meant. If your having trouble I would recommend reading the passage over and over again.  You can also use a Shakespearean dictionary to understand something if you need more help.

     After seeing the reactions of the Capulets and the Montagues from just seeing each other, I can tell that Romeo and Juliet are going to have to overcome many obstacles. From the first scene you can tell that Romeo is deeply in love with this girl and that he wishes that he could have her. But there something that stops Romeo causing his depression because all he wants is this girl and he can’t have her.

Response on Sonnet 18

 SONNET 18

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? 


Thou art more lovely and more temperate: 


Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, 


And summer's lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, 


And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; 


And every fair from fair sometime declines, 


By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;


But thy eternal summer shall not fade


Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest; 


Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou growest: 


So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, 


So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

   

     Sonnet 18 is one of Shakespeare’s most famous sonnets. It is a sonnet dedicated to comparing a person that he loves to summer. As I read this sonnet, I was able to clearly comprehend what the meaning of the sonnet was.  I think that Shakespeare is trying to say that though she grows older and older, her beauty doesn’t change.

     The first example is from line 4 and 7.  I think that line four means that summer is too short. “Summer’s lease” mean summer’s span and “All too short a date” means too short. Line seven is saying that something that is beautiful can lose its beauty. What he means is that beauty from beauty sometimes declines. He is trying to say that the summer is too short and it loses its beauty.

     The other example is in lines 9 and 10. In line nine he is trying to say that her beauty will not be changed. You can tell by the word untrimmed. He is talking about her natural beauty will not be changed. Line ten is saying that she won’t lose her beauty. He uses the word summer to represent beauty, so he is saying that her beauty will last forever. He is saying that, unlike the summer, her beauty is eternal and will not fade away.

     This sonnet deserves to be his most memorable sonnet. I think Shakespeare wrote a wonderful sonnet that really shows his feelings towards this person. It may be write in old English, but the message is clear. The sonnet is not just trying to say that the person’s beauty will never fade; he is also trying to tell her that her beauty is a gift.

The Flower's Perfection

Your beauty is like that of a flower.

Your beauty blooms and blooms infinitely.

Tidings of beauty from you do shower.

Your beauty will grow continuously.

This flower’s color burst like the sun’s light.

Your blossoms bloom of beautiful colors.

Your beauty can even be seen at night.

Your beauty grows in infinite numbers.

You blossom joyfulness and happiness.

You show compassion and intelligence.

Your kindness and helpfulness is boundless.

Your personality is excellence.

Your beauty and who you are is perfect.

You are everything being done correct. 

My 3 Poems

What is a Poem?

A poem is made in the inner works of the mind.

A poem is can send messages far and beyond.

A poem is a thousand words spoken in less.

A poem can make a person shed tears or crack a smile.

A poem is a million things.

A poem is infinite

What if?

What if we have no say?

Would we be seen as ants, small and inferior?

Or would we be useless?

Will we be pitied and helped like a crying child?

Will our voice only exist in our mind?

Will we be treated like mindless beings?

Or will we nothing?

Poem on Art

Darkness has set in.

The dark has consumed the light.

The sun has set.

And now we are in the night.

There is the sanctuary of light.

Protecting you from the outside.

Here you are safe.

Just get inside.

The nighthawks guard the fortress.

The nighthawks are telescopes, seeing far and wide.

Just don’t disturb them.

That’s the law you must abide.

Nighthawk by Edward Hopper

     Edward Hopper was born in 1882. He was born in Nyack, New York. He got into artwork from a young age. During his youth, he spent a lot of time alone because he thought he looked funny. During his time alone, he read and drew a lot. After graduating from high school, his parents sent him to New York City to study art. Here, he learned an idea that would affect his artwork. He learned to find the beauty in everything. This inspired him to be a realist painter, painting real life things. After finishing art school, he made three trips to Paris, France to study painting. After finishing his studies in Paris, he returned to New York to get a job as an illustrator. He didn’t like his job because his bosses ordered him to illustrate. He still had to keep his job for money. During his free time, he kept on painting. Around this time, he sold his first piece of artwork called Sailing. After this artwork sold, he didn’t sell much, so he changed his form of artwork. He started doing etchings. During this time, he also married Josephine Nivison. He died in 1967 in New York City. (Venezia, Edward Hopper)
     My favorite piece that he produced was Nighthawk. It is an oil painting and it is very detailed. Edward Hopper was a realist painter, so he painted his restaurant at night. It is very detailed, including the name of the restaurant and other small details. The lighting outside of the restaurant is dark while the inside is very light and warm, creating contradicting light.
     I think that this contradiction of light was done on purpose to create a mood. He created a mood of mystery. The light seems to be concealing theses people from the outside. And the people inside seem serious. The man sitting down all by himself also helps to add this felling. In all, I think that Hopper is trying to say that the night is a mysterious time. The night holds secrets that aren’t meant for everyone. This one piece reminds me of another of his pieces called Automat. Automat is about a girl in the night by herself. They both provide the same feeling and focus on the night. Edward was a great painter and really showed the beauty in things.