Should Romeo And Juliet Be Taught In 8th Grade?

Why is Romeo and Juliet taught only in 9th grade? Why can’t it be taught in 8th grade? This is quite the controversial topic. Many believe that Romeo and Juliet is too vulgar and requires a maturer audience. They also believe that Shakespeare isn’t relevant anymore. Although many may disagree with that point. Some believe the 8th graders are at that point in life where they should read this and hopefully it opens their eyes to the real world before they actually enter a place where they are allowed a little more freedoms. Romeo and Juliet still holds lessons within it that should be taught before high school despite the quite vulgar scenes and the hard to interpret old english. Today in this essay I will be explaining the life lessons in Romeo and Juliet and why Romeo and Juliet can and should be taught at a younger age because of these life lessons/morals.
An example of this would be when Romeo made the rash and heedless decision out of indignation to kill Tybalt because of the death of his beloved friend Mercutio. This resulted in Romeo’s banishment that could have resulted in death but luckily they were lenient. This is a perfect example of making a rash decision because killing someone is no matter of normality. There could have been horrible punishments that could have been given for the crime. This should be taught before 9th grade because it is good to know about these things before you are sent to high school and you are given the freedom to make your own decisions. It can prevent people from ever making those regrettable and deplorable