ROMEO & JULIET GCSE: Shakespeare made Easy
A Study of Romeo and Juliet through Exam Questions: at GCSE/ High School level
What you will learn
In this short course we will study Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet
We will study in preparation for High School/ GCSE exam questions
We will learn to develop answers from description to analysis
We will learn to write about alternative interpretations
We will develop confidence in handling exam questions
Why take this course?
1. Introduction to the Course: Romeo and Juliet is a play written by the English playwright William Shakespeare. It was published for the first time in 1597. It was written early in his career about the romance between two Italian young people from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Today, the title characters are regarded as archetypal young lovers.
2. What's the Story? Sketching the Narrative
3. Who are the Characters? Sketching the Main Characters
4. What are the Major Themes? Outlining ten major themes
5. What is the Structure of the Play? Outlining the Structure
6. Considering Themes: Love, Fate and Light
7. Exam Question: CONFLICT
8. TOPIC: Conflict in Romeo and Juliet
9. Exam Question: GENDER ROLES
10. Exam Question: JUSTICE
11. Exam Question: INTERFERENCE AND BLAME
12. TOPIC: The role of Friar Lawrence
13. A Final Word: How does the play end?:
The feuding families and the Prince meet at the tomb to find all three dead. Friar Laurence recounts the story of the two "star-cross'd lovers", fulfilling the curse that Mercutio swore. The families are reconciled by their children's deaths and agree to end their violent feud. The play ends with the Prince's elegy for the lovers: "For never was a story of more woe / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo."