Romeo and Juliet - Comprehension Questions

Transcription

1 An Romeo and Juliet - Comprehension Questions Prologue 1) a) Define the term prologue. b) Why is a prologue at the beginning of a play so important? c) What important information does Shakespeare supply in his prologue? d) What are possible advantages and disadvantages of receiving this information at the beginning of the play? Justify. Act 1; Scene 1 2) Explain why the play opens with a street fight between the servants of the Capulets and the Montagues. 3) How does Romeo speak of love when he first appears? What attitude does he have? Act 1; Scene 2 4) How does Lord Capulet feel about the ongoing feud at this time of his life? 5) Why has Paris come to see Lord Capulet? 6) How old is Juliet? 7) What is Capulet s reply to Paris? 8) Why does Benvolio want Romeo to attend Capulet s party? Act 1; Scene 3 9) What is your impression of Juliet after reading this scene? 10) Now that you ve met Juliet, do you think she and Romeo will make a good pair? How do their attitudes about love compare? 11) How does Juliet feel about marriage? 12) Explain the expression man of wax. Act 1; Scene 4 13) What does Mercutio think of dreams? Find a passage to support your answer. 14) a) Define the term pun. b) Find a passage in the play where Shakespeare makes use of this device. (Hint: Romeo uses it when describing his soul.) 15) Find a passage that will foreshadow Romeo s untimely demise. 16) Find a passage that illustrates the Elizabethans believed that fate had control over people s lives.

2 Act 1; Scene 5 17) What lines indicate that Romeo was not in love with Rosaline? 18) Tybalt s anger at the presence of a Montague bears out the hot-tempered nature of his character. Give the line that reveals what action he would take. 19) What does Lord Capulet s acceptance of Romeo tell you about him? 20) Knowing what you do about Romeo and Juliet, how do you account for them falling in love so quickly? How much of a role does physical attraction play? On the entire act 21) a) What have I discovered so far? b) What do I want to know more about? c) What confuses me most is d) My impression of... is... e) I like/dislike... because... Act 2; Scene 1 22) What is the purpose of this brief scene? 23) How does Mercutio feel about the whole idea of romantic love? 24) Find an example that shows how Romeo s friends are unaware that he has fallen in love with Juliet. Act 2; Scene 2 25) a) Define the term soliloquy. b) Find at least one strong example of this in scene 2. 26) Comment on Shakespeare use of strong figurative language in the first 25 lines of the scene. Note specifically his use of imagery and figures of speech. Supply several examples to illustrate your point. 27) Do Romeo and Juliet express their feelings for each other as you might under similar circumstances? What similarities and/or differences do you notice? 28) Who brings up the idea of marriage first? Cite the line that proves this. 29) According to Romeo s last words in this scene, where do you think the next scene will take place? Act 2; Scene 3 30) Find a soliloquy in this scene. 31) Why does Friar Laurence think Romeo has sinned? 32) Explain what Friar Laurence meant by, Young men s love then lies / Not truly in their hearts but in their eyes.

3 33) Why did Friar Laurence agree to marry Romeo and Juliet? 34) What advice does the Friar give Romeo at the end of the scene? Act 2; Scene 4 35) What actions has Tybalt undertaken? 36) What does Romeo s silence about his love for Juliet in front of his friends reveal? 37) Comment on Shakespeare s use of puns as the men jokingly refer to the Nurse. 38) Find examples that show how Shakespeare was influenced by foreign languages used in his native England. 39) What instructions does Romeo give the Nurse? 40) Overall, what does the Nurse bring to this scene? Act 2; Scene 5 41) What creates the tremendous tension in this scene? Explain by giving two examples. 42) Finally at the end of the scene, what message does the Nurse give Juliet? Act 2; Scene 6 43) Find a line that expresses a feeling of foreboding. 44) What advice does the Friar give Romeo about love. Cite the lines. 45) How soon after meeting each other have Romeo and Juliet married? 46) The actual marriage ceremony is not shown in the play. Imagine Romeo and Juliet s actual wedding vows and write them down. You may choose to write them in Elizabethan English or in modern twenty-first century English. On the entire act 47) See question number ) Are you convinced that Romeo and Juliet are truly in love with each other? Justify. Act 3; Scene 1 49) Why is Tybalt looking to fight Romeo? 50) a) How does Romeo act toward Tybalt when he first sees him? b) What could possibly explain this behaviour? c) Why does Romeo s behaviour toward Tybalt anger Mercutio? 51) How is Mercutio stabbed? 52) To the very end, Mercutio retains his wit. Give an example of a pun that illustrates this. 53) Why does Romeo decide to fight Tybalt? 54) Why doesn t Prince Escalus have Romeo executed? 55) What line reveals Prince Escalus decision about Romeo?

4 Act 3; Scene 2 56) a) What is an epithalamium? b) Find an example of this in scene 2 and comment on its importance. 57) Reread the speech in which Juliet uses references pertaining to day and night. On your sheet, make two columns. List the references she makes to day on one side and the references to night on the other. Include in your lists the qualities that Juliet associates with each. Discuss the purpose of this contrast. 58) What is the Nurse s opinion of men in general? 59) Look up the word banished in the dictionary and list as many meanings as you can. Decide why Juliet keeps repeating the word. How many of your listed definitions might apply to Juliet s situation? 60) What symbol of her love does Juliet send Romeo? 61) a) Define dramatic irony. b) Give an example of this. Act 3; Scene 3 62) Find a passage in which Romeo states that he would prefer death over exile. 63) How does the news that Romeo has been banished affect Romeo and Juliet? Compare and contrast their separate reactions to this news. 64) What advice does the Friar give Romeo? Act 3; Scene 4 65) What plans does Lord Capulet make for Thursday? 66) Find an example of dramatic irony. 67) Explain how Lord Capulet s behaviour is inconsistent. Act 3; Scene 5 68) Find an example of foreboding in this scene. 69) How does Juliet mislead her mother? 70) In discussing their relationship, Romeo and Juliet again use night and day images. Why do they seem to prefer darkness over light? 71) a) What is a dawn song? b) Show that the dialogue in this scene is of this type. 72) How does Juliet react to the Nurse s advice to marry Paris? 73) a) What qualities make a good father? Describe the attributes found in a poor father. Record your thoughts on a t-chart. b) Prepare a second t-chart comparing Capulet s good and bad qualities. c) Compare the two and determine if Capulet is a good or bad father.

5 Act 4; Scene 1 74) Find an example of dramatic irony in this scene. 75) a) What solution does the friar offer Juliet? b) How does Juliet react to this idea? Act 4; Scenes 2 and 3 76) What could possibly explain Juliet s change of heart in this scene? Act 4; Scene 5 77) Give an example of the personification of death. 78) According to Capulet, who or what is to blame for Juliet s death? Act 5 79) a) What prevents Romeo from receiving the friar s message that Juliet is not really dead? b) How is this representative of one of the main themes of the play? Justify. 80) At one point in the scene, Romeo no longer wishes to have fate as the master of his life and declares that he is going to take charge of it himself. Cite the line in which he states this. 81) How is the ending of the story ironic?