Conflicts in Romeo and Juliet

   A large conflict for Juliet in the play is her need to obey her parents verses her love and need for Romeo. As the story begins we see Juliet as a dutiful daughter with high moral standers. As the play progresses though and Juliet meets Romeo she becomes more and more disobedient and disloyal to her family the Capulets. This conflict of love over family comes to a boiling point with Tybalt's death. Nurse tells Juliet "Tybalt is gone and Romeo banished. Romeo that killed him - he is banished." (3.2.75). When Nurse says this Juliet makes a pivotal decision and sides with Romeo, the man she loves, even though he murdered her cousin. This singular decision creates a chain reaction that causes Juliet to refuse to marry Paris when her father demands it, seek guidance from the friar as to how to be with Romeo, and to ultimately fake death to escape with him.
     On a less drastic level I am sure that every teen has fought with themselves as to whether they should obey there parents or to do something they feel is necessary. Rebellion is a natural occurrence with teenagers. It is the expression of the need to be independent and the idea that, as teens, we know what's best and won't get hurt. Of course this isn't true, as is expressed in the play Romeo and Juliet. In the end, because of one little mistake and a lot of over dramatic emotions, two very young people died. Because of adolescent ignorance this often happens in real life too.

Romeo and Juliet is everywhere

It may seem like a bit of a stretch but the way I see it most of the Disney princesses movies all connect to some the the main themes and motifs in Romeo and Juliet. Like in every good love story the two love stricken people have something or someone separating them. For Romeo and Juliet its their parents feud. For Pocahontas and John Smith its their cultural differences. For Ariel and Eric its the fact that she's a mermaid, and for Aladdin and Jasmin, Cinderella and her prince and Tiana and Naveen (in The Princess and The Frog) its social status. In all of these stories the the theme of forbidden love is prominent, and helps to form the entire plot. From what I've seen every romance is connected to Romeo and Juliet some how. That is why it has become such a classic, because it touches all of our lives somehow.

Pip's Quote

"Pause you who read this, and think for a moment of the long chain of iron or gold, of thorns or flowers, that would never have bound you, but for the formation of the first link on one memorable day."



    What Charles Dickens is trying to say with this quote is that there is a a series of decisions, or "chain" that make up our life, and often there is one situation that can affect the proses of all the other decisions following it in our lives. For Pip this is when he first meets Estella and Miss Havisham. After meeting them his entire outlook on his life changes. He goes from being happy in his small home with Joe and the forge and the marshes. To being ashamed of his home and friends and wanting to become a gentleman. This one occurrence shapes the entire plot of the novel. After just one meeting with Estella Pip has already begun to form his great expectation.
    Looking back at my life though I can't seem to find one individual occurrence that has affected my outlook on life. I suppose the biggest "link in my chain" would be the death of my little brother Ethan. Even though I never saw him alive, he died only minutes after his birth, it still felt like I had lost a close friend. At the age of six, nine months of expectancy can feel like an eternity and to me Ethan had been my brother since the moment I found out my mother was pregnant. Because of this his death made a big impact on my beliefs and the way I perceive myself. I definitely feel more of a burden with being an only child. Being the only child out of four to survive a rare genetic disorder that both of my parents carry causes me to think a lot about how my decisions affect them and how I have so much to live up to to make them proud. Ethan's death also makes me think a lot about the beauty and gift of life. I am so very lucky to be alive today.

(I'm sorry my picture is kind of small)

One of the main motifs in the second stage of Great Expectations, in my opinion, is disappointment. The first time this motif is brought up is when Pip first arrives in London. Pip is disappointed in the city because it is so solemn and filthy and corrupted. He describes it as being "rather ugly, crooked, narrow and dirty ". (Dickens 161)

Great Expectations: connections with picture

    As strange as it may sound I think that the character Harry Potter is very similar to Pip. Not only is Harry left with his only surviving relative petunia, who is a strict harsh woman much like Mrs. Joe. Harry also must live a very humble life in a cupboard under the stairs and then is suddenly sent into the dazzling world of magic. Pip is also given a new life when his benefactor helps him move to London.
    Pip and Harry also have many near death experiences that make them reflect on there decisions and their friendships. Both characters also have very strong friendships. Pip has Joe and Herbert, while Harry has Ron and Hermione. One individual evil is also present in each story. For Pip it's Compyson and for Harry its Voldemort.

Great Expectations Stage 2

        In the second stage of Great Expectations Pip seems to be a little lost. He's is living in a completely unfamiliar world and is unsure of his hopes and aspirations in life. This combined with his lack of experience in the aristocratic world creates a conflict that Pip isn't prepared to face. This conflict is becoming an adult. Since he is not prepared for this, Pip created a bubble of denial to protect him. This bubble keeps him from realizing how deep in debt he is, how unrealistic his love for Estella is and how cruel he is to Joe. His bubble can't last forever though, and when it's popped he is thrust into the unfair world that he must face later in the novel.
      This shroud that Pip sees the world through is unhealthy, and eventually comes back to haunt Pip when he realises how poorly his life has turned out. The theme that pervades this stage of Great Expectations is that life is a struggle and we must face our fears honestly and not lie to ourselves about the problems have.

Connecting With Romeo an Juliet

       In the first scene of the play Romeo and Juliet there is a fight between the Capulets and the Montagues. In this fight Benvolio  tries to separate the two house holds, but no one listens to him. Instead he is mocked and ridiculed. Later though, Prince arrives, when he tells the people to disperse they do. This conflict reminded me a lot of and school fight, where two kids get violent and another tries to intercept. This other student being Benvolio. Prince on the other hand is like a teacher. He is respected and demands the attention that Benvolio could not get. Like most children, the Capulets and Montagues listened to there "teacher" and stopped fighting. It seems like a very mundane example to be comparing with Shakespeare, but as I read the play I realise that its actually a very universal story that everyone can relate to.
     This makes the book an easy read for me. As I can easily understand the basics of the characters conversations. Especially after going over the previous nights reading in class. It seems to help to know what other people got out of a particular passage or to hear the dialogue actually being spoken. The annotations on the other hand are a little confusing. Even though I know exactly what I'm looking for I'm not sure how thorough I should be or why I'm even doing them. I can grasp the information without the annotations and I know from the conversations we had in class other people can too.