Romeo and Juliet Impact on Me

It has been awhile since I read Romeo and Juliet in middle school and high school. It was less interesting for me at the time. But know looking back and reading it again as an adult, it is a different and in my opinion a better experience of this story for me. I figured out and understand mostly what was going on in the story and especially now that I get to talk about the story with my fellow students. Last Wednesday in class, I noticed that the more I and my fellow classmates really looked deeper into what each of us thought, the more we all learned and understood the story. 

Now that I am reading this story again, I still don't really like the story much, plus the ways the story is written more like poetry, rather than a narrative way that I am used to. But I understand at this point in my life/age, this story was written in a time when English was spoken differently than today and I took something from experiencing reading this story again. I connected with what I learned and know about history and connected it to the time and place of where the story seems to take place. Though I don't know the year or country, the ways and traditions of that time were very different to how things are now. 

For example, marriages back than were more based on what the two families wanted from each other and the husband and wife were ways of showing that the two families agree and secure their agreements rather than actual love matches between the husband and wife. I must say, that if I did live in that time, I won't force that on anyone, nor would I let anyone force others to do the same, especially since people got married at very young ages, like in their teens if not younger. In the story, Romeo and Juliet, both main characters are like 12 years old, maybe a couple years older. they seem to have such inexperience with love. I remembered when Juliet said that she thought it was too quick to know if Romeo really did love her, and weather she loved him. Juliet said, "It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden, too like the lightning, which doth cease to be Ere one can say "It lightens."(Romeo and Juliet Act 2. sc. 2 page77 #125). It did seem to me that Romeo was forcing his love on her and she seemed overwhelmed. But in time we did seem to love each other.

 I wish they did managed to run away with each other, rather than die at the end. Sorry I this is a spoiler for anyone who doesn't know what happens at the end. This another reason why I don't like this story, nor a story that is a tragedy, whenever I do read a story, I certainly don't like sad endings. Also, although it did serve a purpose in the story, the feud between the families of Rome (Montague) and Juliet (Capulet) with no reason other than they hate each other. That is just foolish and unfortunately, many people both in the past and present tend to want to fight and emotionally feud between each other rather than stop, think, and decide to resolve whatever their grievances are in a peaceful and reasonable manner. But, Shakespeare's purpose of this story, like any story is to play on the audience’s emotions. I have to say, this story was one that did play with my emotions, angry for the two families and sadness for Romeo and Juliet.

All and all, even though I don’t like the story, I do appreciate how the story was written and the experience of reading it and discussing the story with my fellow classmates which makes it enjoyable for me. And I hope it makes it enjoyable for them as well. Romeo and Juliet certainly made an impact on me, my classmates, and anyone else that has seen or read the play/story, each one takes something from it. For me it is a greater appreciation and actual enjoyable experience talking about it with others.