Romeo and Juliet
An Inter-Disciplinary Mini-Unit
Level: High School
Purpose: To understand dramatic elements in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Overview: These lessons will focus on irony, Shakespeare’s language, and directorial influence in Romeo and Juliet.
Lessons One: Students will illustrate specific Shakespearean quotations from Romeo and Juliet through close analysis of the language. (Language Arts)
Lesson Two: Students will examine Shakespeare’s stage directions from the balcony scene and then will compare that scene from various filmed versions of Romeo and Juliet concentrating on the actors’ movement, tone of voice, and level of emotion. (Language Arts)
Lesson Three: Students will analyze the various types of irony found in Romeo and Juliet and will evaluate the effectiveness of each one. (Language Arts)
Lesson Four: Students will choose a short scene from Romeo and Juliet and will perform it for the class. (Language Arts)
Draw Me a Quotation
Lesson One
Objective:
Students will illustrate specific Shakespearean quotations from Romeo and Juliet through close analysis of the language.
Materials:
copy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
plain white paper
crayons, colored pencils, or markers
Procedure:
1. Have students choose an Act I or Act II quotation from the following list.
And but thou love me, let them find me here.
(Act II, sc ii)
These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which, as they kiss, consume.
(Act II, sc vi)
Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs
(Act I, sc i)
At my poor house look to behold this night
Earth-treading stars that make dark heaven light.
(Act I, sc ii)
The all-seeing sun
Ne’er saw her match since first the world begun.
(Act I, sc ii)
for my mind misgives
Some consequence, yet hanging in the stars
(Act I, sc iv)
O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright!
(Act I, sc v)
The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars
As daylight doth a lamp
(Act II, sc ii)
2. Students should first translate the quotation line by line into contemporary English on one side of the paper.
3. Then on the other side of the paper, have students illustrate the quotation.
What Exactly Does a Director Do?
Lesson Two
Objective:
Students will examine Shakespeare’s stage directions from the balcony scene and then will compare that scene from various filmed versions of Romeo and Juliet concentrating on the actors’ movement, tone of voice, and level of emotion.
Materials:
the balcony scene from various versions of Romeo and Juliet such as
the BBC version with Esther Rolle
Franco Zeferelli’s version with Olivia Hussey
the stage version with Alex Hyde-Pierce
the 1996 version with Leonardo DiCaprio
West Side Story
television versions if possible from: The Brady Bunch, Family Matters, Saved by the Bell, Step by Step
Procedure:
1. Have the students look at the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet Act II, scene ii. Make note of the stage directions written by Shakespeare. Discuss why he included these particular directions and why he did not include others.
2. Divide the students into groups. Have each student concentrate on a different aspect of the Romeo and Juliet Alive! viewing sheet.
3. Show the students one version of the balcony scene and have them focus on their aspect as they watch. After the film clip, allow the students to write down their observations. Then allow the groups to discuss what they have seen so that students can fill in the rest of their viewing sheet. Repeat this for each video clip.
4. When finished with all the clips, have the students evaluate the clips that they watched and in a journal entry decide their favorite, their least favorite, and the most accurate.
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Romeo and Juliet ALIVE! |
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Video Clip |
Movement |
Tone of Voice |
Interaction |
Mood |
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Verbal, Situational, or Dramatic
Lesson Three
Objective:
Students will analyze the various types of irony found in Romeo and Juliet and will evaluate the effectiveness of each one.
Materials:
copy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Procedure:
1. As a class define and discuss the three types of irony.
2. Have the students examine Romeo and Juliet and find various examples of the three types of irony.
3. Have students share their findings with the class or with small groups of students.
I’ll Be Your Romeo if You’ll Be My Juliet
Lesson Four
Objective:
Students will choose a short scene from Romeo and Juliet and will perform it for the class.
Materials:
copy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Procedure:
1. Have students work in pairs and choose a short scene or part of a scene from the play to perform in class.
2. Variations can be made to allow students to perform the scene in another time period, in rap, etc.
Assessment
Draw Me a Quotation
The students should be able to translate a quotation into today’s English and then illustrate it.
What Exactly Does a Director?
The students should be able to view different balcony scenes and analyze the role of the director in each.
Verbal, Situational, and Dramatic
The students should be able to analyze the irony found in Romeo and Juliet.
I’ll Be Your Romeo if You’ll Be My Juliet
The students should be able to perform a short scene from the play.