Romeo+and+Juliet

**Author:** William Shakespeare **First performed:** 1595 **Setting:** Verona Italy late 1500's. Tension fills the Verona streets as the play begins because of the continued feud between the Capulets and Monatgues.

**Key Literary Elements:** Figurative Language, Irony, Characterization. Themes: The destructive power of hatred, The senselessness of violence, the nature of fate, The individual versus society Romeo and Juliet Sparknotes

Sparknotes Video (A pretty complete illustrated summary that does NOT do the play justice. Without the beautiful language, what is the point??):