Nov 20, 2008

Romeo and Juliet | The Capulet - Montague Feud

Essay examining the Capulet-Montague relationship and answering the question: Why are they at war? Discusses the role of civil authority and the confrontation between Tybalt and Benvolio.

In the Prologue to Romeo and Juliet, the Chorus tells us of an "ancient grudge" between two households of equal dignity that has broken out into a "new mutiny" that will cause blood to flow in the streets of Verona and will ultimately result in the deaths of the "star-cross'd lovers." The Chorus points to the heads of these two families as the source of the strife at hand, the rage of their parents causing the deaths of their children. We soon learn the surnames of the warring clans, Capulet and Montague, and both patriarchs (as well as their respective ladies) appear in the flesh in...