One of the most popular literary classics that nearly everyone must have come across once in their lifetime is the story of Romeo and Juliet. Interpreted by the infamous playwright Shakespeare in the late 1500s, this play follows the tragic love which stirs between two teenagers of feuding families. Although Romeo and Juliet was first composed several centuries ago, it is one that seems to resurface itself time and time again. Whether in new works of literature or popular films, the initial ideas of this Shakespearian play continue to be prevalent today. What makes Romeo and Juliet seem so timeless are the reoccurring themes of young love, fate, and fortune, which have been and still are relative to most modern audiences. …show more content…
The plot, in its entirety, happens over the course of only five days, meaning that the lovers meet Sunday night, get married on Monday, and are joined in death on Wednesday. Upon parting for the first time, Romeo expresses his worries and says, “Is she a Capulet? O dear account! My life is my foe’s debt” (Rom. 1.5.131). In similarity, Juliet declares, “If he be married, my grave is like my wedding bed” (1.5.148). After just meeting and exchanging only a few words, Romeo and Juliet explain how they are willing to die for each other. This idea of the crazy, reckless love shared by young Romeo and Juliet is an aspect that is quite relative to premature romance today. In Irving Ribner’s “Then I Denie You Starres: A Reading of ‘Romeo and Juliet’”, the critic highlights that “The impetuosity, haste, and carelessness of the lovers are the universal attributes of youth” (Ribner 140). Love between two hormonal teens, whether in the middle ages or in modern society, is nonetheless impulsive, causing young people to make obscene