Romeo and Juliet Essay

Oona Louch 808 Essay

In the story Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, every choice that is made affects them and others in some way or another. Whether the choice is big or little, whether they or someone else makes the choice, and whether the reason is right or wrong, and the outcome is good or bad. Each choice that is made in this story is connected. One choice is made, which leads to a situation where another choice is made, and then another, etc.

Some of the choices that have a very large impact on Romeo and Juliet’s lives are made not by them, but by their friends and family, and even their enemies. Like for example, when Mercutio decides to fight Tybalt, even though Tybalt had challenged them for a fight, he was really only interested in Romeo, therefore it was not like Tybalt was going to necessarily hurt Mercutio, or even Romeo, In that moment, considering the fact that Romeo denied the fight from the beginning, you can tell because in (3.1.33-36) Romeo says Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee Doth much excuse the appertaining rage To such a greeting. Villain am I none. Therefore, farewell. I see thou know’st me not” Romeo nor wanted to or planned to fight Tybalt. That was entirely Mercutio’s choice, which led to the choice Romeo made to later kill Tybalt. Romeo says, “He’s alive and victorious, and Mercutio’s dead? Enough with mercy and consideration. It’s time for rage to guide my actions. Now, Tybalt, you can call me “villain” the way you did before. Mercutio’s soul is floating right above our heads. He’s waiting for you to keep him company on the way up to heaven. Either you, or I, or both of us have to go with him.” (3.1.84-91). Romeo would not have killed Tyblat if Mercutio didn’t fight him and die, and then Romeo wouldn’t have been banished. And it doesn’t just stop there, a series of other choices made by them, and others lead to their choice to kill themselves. Many of the things that happen in their lives are because of choices they make too. Like, when Juliet decides to fake her death, that leads to Romeo hearing about this and actually killing himself and then Juliet killing herself because of Romeo’s choice to kill himself. If Romeo hadn’t decided to kill himself, then Juliet wouldn’t have killed herself, and they would maybe even be able to find a way to be together. Or even if Romeo had waited a little longer, he would find that Juliet was not actually dead and then so on and so on. Every single choice that is made is like a building block for the next choice to be made, by Romeo, Juliet, their parents, whoever.

Many of the decisions are small, or don’t seem to mean much in Romeo and Juliet. But they actually do. The small choice that Juliet makes to go to the party leads to her death. If she never went to the party then she probably would have never met Romeo, or fallen in love with him, etc. And even if the choice itself is small or isn’t something that Juliet wouldn’t think of as a challenging, life or death, this or that, decision, that one small choice led to another choice to go to the party, led to another, which eventually put her in a life or death situation.  And even the simplest choice of Romeo and Juliet choosing to look at each other changed their whole lives. Think about it, I’m sure there were plenty of people at the party they barely glanced at, the simple decision to turn their heads and look through the fish tank at each other caused them to fall in love. Especially considering the fact that the Friar says, “Young men’s love then lies Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes.” (2.3.67-68) He is referring to the fact that they have actually never even really met each other when they decide they are in love, it was more that they fell in love with what they saw, so if they had never seen each other they wouldn’t be in love at all. And of course, the complex decisions they make also change their lives.  The decision to kill themselves obviously affected them in the way that they are now dead in the story, but it also impacted others lives. It caused Lady Montague to kill herself, which made others very sad and depressed which changed their lives. Just because a choice the Montagues and Capulets make doesn’t seem to totally change their lives, doesn’t mean the choice they will have to make because of that previous choice won’t.

Some of the choices the Montague’s and Capulet’s make are for the right reason and some are for the wrong reason, but others are more complicated than that. For example: the choice the friar made to help Romeo with his wedding was right, and wrong at the same time. He says, “But come, young waverer, come, go with me, In one respect I’ll thy assistant be” (2.3.89-90) the friar is wise enough and has lived long enough of the fact that the outcome would most-likely hurt many in the end.  But it’s sort of complicated because he seems to care about Romeo and Juliet’s happiness as well. And anyone who does obviously wants to help them with the situation of being in love while their families hate each other. The nurse also helps Juliet sneak out to see Romeo often. She is disobeying lady Capulet by doing this, which is the wrong thing to do, but she is serving her daughter, Juliet, at the same time, and making her very happy which is more than her mom has ever done. Though I think many can agree with the fact that some choices are just pretty much the wrong choice. The friar says, “Take thou this vial, being then in bed, And this distillèd liquor drink thou off.” (4.1.96-97) He is giving Juliet a potion to make her unconscious for a while so that Paris will think she is dead for a few hours, and then by the time she wakes up the marriage will be off, and she will somehow supposedly be with Romeo. It’s not that his intensions were wrong that is just the wrong way to solve it. There are so many holes in this plan that it basically has no chance of working and there is no way he is not able to see that. This choice will clearly impact Romeo, considering that everyone will think she is dead, what makes him think Romeo won’t believe the same? And if Juliet is willing to go to extreme measures for Romeo then its pretty clear that Romeo will as well. The idea of helping was nice, but this was definitely not the correct way to do so.

You may not realize how much a choice can affect you and the people around you, but they do, a lot. It’s like the snowball affect. It starts off with one little decision, which leads to another, and soon enough you’re put in a situation where you are forced to deal with a huge problem that you don’t know how to deal with properly, and you have to make a decision all by your self to fix it. And just because your decision or someone else’s decision doesn’t directly impact you it probably will later on. That choice will lead to some else having to make a choice and so on, which will eventually come back to you and it will be your turn to decide. That’s how it is in Romeo and Juliet. They carelessly make choices which affect others and then they carelessly make choices until it affects them. It’s like a cycle that continues until one of them gets hurt. And in this case both Romeo and Juliet’s lives are sacrificed due to all the choices made a long the way. 

My Seventeenth Summer

My seventeenth summer is a book about a girl who is spending her summer pretty much doing her work when she meets a boy. the boy makes an effort to reach out to her and be friends. They end up kind of being on opposite ends of life, but actually having a lot in common. He's more popular and she's more focused on her work and family. I've just started reading it so i don't know much about it, but this is what i've learned so far.

I think one of the main messages is that if you do your work you will get rewarded. For example, almost every other girl is out on dates or at parties while she is home working, and she gets the boy that everyone wants. The other girls are working to get noticed by him, while she's working for herself, she gets noticed by him. If you work hard something good will come out of it. Two things good come out of it in this case. She gets a good friends, and she discovers herself. Instead of focusing on following everyone else, she is developing her own character. You never know who will like you for you, but it's better to make your own path then follow in everyone else's footsteps.

Another lesson is about being judgemental. Don't judge others by your past experiences. I'm barely into the book and theres already multiple examples of this.Like when they are on their first date, and he is talking about how pretty certain things are,   and she says something like, i didn't think boys noticed those things. First of all she is putting a label on him, even though it's true that he's a boy, she's making it seem like he's the type of person that acts like how she thinks boys are. At least she was open to the possibility that she could be wrong and she changed her opinion.

The most important lessons I've learned so far are that you need to focus on yourself more then what others are doing or what you think others want you to do. It's important for you to develop your character before you start doing things for others. And also that it's important to not be so set in your way of thinkings, always be open to changing it if you realize your wrong. You will be a much stronger person with both of these characteristics.

peace,love,and baby ducks

In the book "Peace,Love, and Baby Ducks" by Lauren Myracle, the main character Carly and her sister Anna experience their first year being together at high school. Carly is older, and Anna is just starting. They struggle from the beginning, but make it to the end. they have many issues with friends, new and old, family, boys, school, and themselves. They both change a lot, for the better and the worse.

Carly changes more than she thinks. She forms new opinions of her old friends, and her sister and her friends. And whether or not she realize it, they change the way she acts/thinks/feels. She also changes her opinion on her close friend, Rodger, who has had a crush on her for years. She finally accepts that and considers his feelings. She grows up a lot. she positively changes in a lot of ways because of mistakes. I think she becomes more accepting and less judgmental. She's all about not judging people for their appearance and other people's opinions, yet she judges the people who do. Or more the people that she thinks do. Anna also changes, aside form growing up. For the worse, she lets school shape her personality. She lets others influence her. For the better, she decides to turn that around before it got harder. She stops caring so much about the wrong things, and puts more effort and focus on the things that do, for her own good. IN the end they're their for each other and family/friends, which is all that matters.

Being at the same school was a challenge, because no matter what they do, they get compared, and they compare each other.They also judge each other. Carly starts grouping anna with the kinds of people she dislikes, which almost makes anna more like them. And Anna does the same, though the people she dislikes is the opposite of Carly. And they're both their own people,theyre different. Anna is better at some things, and carly is better at others. But their peers don't see that that does't make the other one better. and it puts a lot of pressure on them, and that hurts their relationship.

I think they also realize the root of their problem. Its them. They think it's their friends and family causing them to hurt each other. though they are involved, the girls decide to involve them. They realize that they need to stop blaming everyone else for their problems, and look at what they can change about themselves to make it better. they use the other people to hurt each other and express their feelings. For example, Anna kisses the guy Carly likes. I mean, that matters, but the real problem is what Anna was feeling that made her do that. Anna just did that to hurt Carly. The real problem is why she hurt her.

This book really just made me think about how people are only as good or bad as you make them out to be. It's other people's choice how they want to think about someone, and it's yours about how you want to. And you are only how you want to be. It's nobody else choice about who you are. Its your choice if you want to let what they say and think change you, but you're the one in charge. with that, if you don't like something in your life, change what your doing to make it better, don't worry about what others are doing. And i think thats what Carly is pretty much trying to do, and teach everybody, Just be yourself, don't worryy about the people who are there to tear you down.

Absolutely normal chaos by sharon creech

This book is actually pretty good. Its fun and really interesting. I'm never really bored with it, the plot and idea and timing definitely works well and is well planned out. So far, it's pretty much about a pretty typical teenage girl who grows up in a small town and a big family. She's experiencing love, real friendship, family, secrets, etc. for the first time. But you experience it only from her point of view, you read the journey entries she keeps throughout the summer.

I think it's interesting to see the story from just one characters point of view. You know everyone else, and see everything else through her eyes only. You don't know what actually happens in her life, and what she interprets/changes/enhances through her eyes. You don't actually know how other characters feel or think. You don't know whats real and fake, you sort of just have to go along with her ideas. She pretty much controls all your thoughts and opinions on other things and people, because of the way she feels. And that sort of reminds me of the essay i am currently working on. Its about self acceptance and just being your own person really, and it just makes me think that like I'm just basing my thoughts off of hers.

I also really like the character you see the world from in this book. Her name is Mary Lou. I'm not really sure what it is, she's just so realistic, but also sort of imaginative. Just the person she seems to be i like. even though she's just a character in a book, i admire her a lot. For the way she handles situations and how she acts. But also for how she seems to see things. I just feel like she see's the world in her own way. She's like that typical teenager, but also almost completely different. She has a very strong opinion but is also very understanding. She thought it was gross and weird how her best friend was all over a guy, but she still listened to it, and she stuck with her friend through all the fazes she went through. She's always there for the people who deserve it. And she seems to have a pretty good judgement of who that is for her. She's not all hung up on who she could be or what she could be doing, she's focused on herself, friends, and family. She just minds her own business when she should. Which works out better for everyone. Mary Lou is just a very good role model in my opinion.

Reading response: Bridge to terabithia

I am reading the book Bridge to Terabithia. I saw the movie a while ago, and liked it,  and i was interested in reading the book, because I had never had a chance before. I'm not very far in the book yet. I've just really read about Jess' family, and how he loves to run.

Jess gets up early every morning to run. He runs because he loves it. I think it's really great how much he cares about it. It seems to be the one thing he has. Their is nothing in it for him, except the happiness. He doesn't do it for money, fame, or anything else. Even if he isn't able to continue this hobby as he gets older, i think its good that he's taking advantage of the fact that he has spare time. And instead of being lazy, or doing stuff we would do these days like watch tv and use a computer/phone. It seems that Jess shares a special connection with running. He runs for hours on end. Again, for what? Just because it's what he wants. He doesn't let anything or anyone get in the way of it. Even though his family, especially his sister, always complains how dirty/sweaty he is afterwards, he doesn't let that affect him and his opinions. He stays strong on his beliefs no matter who supports him and what anyone says.

I think everybody could work on this trait a little. Everybody lets people bring them down. And everybody gets insecure because of what people think and say and feel. And these feelings get in the way of our happiness. They make us think twice about whether we should be doing the stuff we love to please ourselves, or if we should hold back to please others.

The courage to be yourself: Non fiction

The book The Courage to be Yourself is about real life teenagers. They tell their stories very honestly. Sometimes they're kind of mean, but i think that's what really gets the idea across. The stories are so real and interesting to read. They are all relatable in some way. They are also very believable. While reading them you can clearly see that it's the kid speaking, and their point of view. Plus it's not all edited  and stuff, it's straight from the kid.

One passage that I didn't like very much was called Gay on the Block, By Jeremiah Spears. It's about a guy who came out at an early age, and was judged for it by the kids on his block. I thought it was actually pretty good until I read the part about how the guys didn't bother him anymore, because he stayed clear of the street he lived on mostly. I just feel like he left a big issue unresolved. It just kind of seemed like he was taking the easy way out instead of working through what he was struggling with. And then when he said "I just need to satisfy myself", I don't really agree with that. I just feel like people always say that, but it's not really even true. You can't get through life on your own, and never be concerned about what people think of you. For example, your boss. You can't only be pleasing yourself with the work you do, you have to work to meet your bosses requirements.

Later on though, I started to like this passage. I started to see how maybe Jeremiah staying clear of the boys on his old block was his way of dealing with it. Maybe he went to therapy or wrote in a journal to get through the problems he experienced as a child. He just needed to move on, and focus on the more important things and people in life, instead of worrying about people who were un accepting and mean to him. Also, him only worrying about satisfying himself in this situation was probably best. It isn't worth it to compromise yourself for people who aren't worth it. Plus, he was honest. What happened happened. And he told the story truthfully, probably knowing that some people would dislike it and disagree with it.

The big overall lesson I learned is that what happens happens. You can dislike it and disagree, but you can't change it. And it's best if you dislike the truth, then like a lie. Life isn't perfect. And if you're telling a truthful story, it won't be either.

Becoming Naomi Leon

I just finished reading the book becoming Naomi Leon, by Pam munoz Ryan. I liked it a lot. It was fun and interesting to read. And it was very different from most books i've ever read. It's about a girl named Naomi Leon who struggles with a lot of things, like speaking up for example. But she's pretty much always made the best of living with her Gram and brother, Owen. Then her mom, Skyla, who has a drinking problem, and a new boyfriend, has revisited after leaving her kids with her ex husband's (the dad) mom for seven years. And after she kisses up for a while she reveals the real reason she's here; to take naomi, just naomi, to live with her. Naomi decides that she wants to meet her dad before going to court against her mom, and she is glad to have met him when she goes home and faces her future. Once naomi wins the argument in front of the judge, her mom leaves. Leaving Naomi almost thankful for the things she taught her.

I think this book is really about how some little things matter. But some really don't. It didn't matter when Skyla bought Naomi a bunch of clothes, Naomi still wanted to live in her home, not with Skyla. It didn't matter that Skyla was her real mom. She would never be her real family. certain things don't make an imprint on us. I think it's mostly because of the past and sacrifice.  It didn't matter that Skyla was her mom, because she wasn't there for Naomi like Gram and Owen always were. And it didn't matter that Naomi got a bunch of clothes, because it didn't really coast her mom anything.

I think it's pretty much the same for the good little things. It only matters where it comes from in you, and what you really sacrifice for it. It mattered when Skyla bought Owen a bike. Because She always treated Owen second best, and now her got the first best for once. Also, when she says Clyde (her boyfriend), spent good money on it, i think she really means she had to work for him to do buy it. It also mattered when Skyla knocked over Naomi's favorite soap carving. Because That's something that mattered to Naomi, but didn't matter to her mom, which it should've. It's not the fact that Skyla broke it, it's the fact that she didn't care, and never cared about it in the first place.

People often say the best things are little. But i thing that most little things that matter actually aren't all that little. It's more like the specific act may be simple, fast, or little, but the gesture is big. Like the bike was just a little present. But it wasn't to Owen. Because it meant his mom did care. It meant more that his mom loved him than that he had a bike. Because i think that all that disapproval Skyla gave Owen was actually directed towards herself, for leaving him when he was struggling so much and needed her. I think its the little things that go so much deeper. And they're special because it only matters like that for you, no one else in the world.