Romeo and Juliet

I'm bored of this play and bored of the many different versions and feel that it was not a true representation of Shakespeare's best work. I felt that Romeo in comparison to Shylock, Hamlet, Macbeth, Henry V and Richard III and many other Shakespeare's male characters was weak.

I'm not really into romantic stories, which this predominantly is though of course it being Shakespeare it does deserve a higher rating than most. This is one which was covered very intensely at High school, just as I'm sure it was for most people. We read the book, watched the Franco Zeffirelli version of the film, West Side Story and then read the book once more studying each and every line in detail before being tasked with acting out the book (I got the role of Tybalt). If that's not over-covering a book I'm not quite sure what is, though to be fair it was the subject of a good portion of the English Lit. marks at GCSE (the rest being an analysis of the works of then poet laureate Seamus Heaney). I do find the way Shakespeare made his tragedies to be quite ingenious, he started by telling everyone the ending yet still managed to make his audience eager to find out how the ending is reached. To me that demonstrates mastery of his art. As I said before the overall book I'm not too f... Read more

Send me the hate mail now- this play is overrated. . .it's not a BAD tragedy, but it's nowhere near Lear, Othello, MacBeth, or Hamlet- it's a couple of kids trying to f#ck and then whine about it. . .never thought this one was as good as the heavyweights. . .a decent play that has been overblown. . .besides, Romeo was a putz and Juliet was actually an interesting character. . .

I just re-read this play recently, and would have to agree with what CanadaSucks has to say about it. Not Shakespeare's best work by any means, but generations of dewy-eyed, love-sick teenagers have assuredly seen their own maudlin situation mirrored in the play's doomed young couple. Still, the soaring and majestic beauty of Shakespeare's words always work, even if the storyline doesn't.

So OVERATED.

A timeless love story about two teen-agers who secretly marry each other, despite the fact that they belong to two rival families. This work does a good job of illustrating the fact that sometimes teen-agers cannot differentiate between lust and love.

Romeo and Juliet is a good play. It portrays very intense young love, which is how young love is sometimes. It is both heartfelt and tragic, while at the same time there is a strong list of supporting characters (mercutio, tybalt, benvolio, and the nurse.)

timeless, poetic, and heartbreaking. the ultimate love story.

Ahh the classic school play. I like the whole love story/have to abandon the lover for fear of life theme. But the death really adds to it. It brings out the drama of sacrificing oneself for the one you love. But I think Romeo should have looked twice before he made himself croak. Oh well. A good play anyway.

Spectacularly beautiful play, with one of the most recognizable and universal stories of all, from Shakespeare's lyrical period (the period during which he write Midsummer Night's Dream, Richard II, and the sonnets--the period of his early maturity, prior to the composition of the great tragedies). For a sense of just how great an acheivement this play was you need to compare it with the work of some of his contemporaries (Marlowe, Greene, et al.) Though a notch below the works of Shakespeare's full maturity, I still love it and am moved each time I read or see the gorgeous thing.

I hate this F-ing book. It sucks ass.

To be honest, I always found it hard to sympathize with Romeo. He knows he's going to get in trouble trying to woo the daughter of his fathers greatest rival and yet he continues to push his luck and insists on marriage after knowing Juliet for a few days. However I suppose this is an accurate reflection of adolescence, feeling extreme emotions that you don't quite understand and making very rash decisions. Always ahead of his time on observing the human condition, Shakespeare ultimately shows that conflict, not any one individual, is the true evil in the play.

My great-grandmother bought me this book. I still can't stop reading it over and over again.

Although the plot is a bit ridiculous, there is no denying that Romeo and Juliet has some beautiful language in it. Mercutio's Queen Mab speech is a perfect example of imagery and metaphor at its finest. There are also some great characters in it like Juliet's nurse, Mercutio and Friar Lawrence. Although the plot is just a basic tragedy where everyone loses in the end, Shakespeare used some beautiful poetry and demonstrates the English language to near perfection.

This much-maligned work holds up with the world's greatest literature. Much better than most people think. It has probably been made trite by familiarity and too frequent - and poorly done - productions.

Top three bars in Buskhead: Buckhead Saloon (Great live music), Fado Fado (Intricate Irish Madhouse!), Park Bench (Great crowd,Amazing bartenders)!