Romeo and Juliet is the archetype story for love in English
literature. The names alone imply romance in any other context.
Have you noticed
that many romance movies follow the format of this Shakespearian tragedy?
The Romeo-Juliet love affair occurred in a total of three days. Romeo
is an emotionally-charged character, driven by his deep desire to love. Although
he claims a love for Rosaline, he decides on sight that he loves Juliet and develops
a more “mature” love because she returns the affection. Once decided, Romeo
acts on feeling rather than logic to convince Juliet his dedication to her when
he enters the Capulet’s home and climbs up to her. After Romeo kills Tybalt,
there grows a tension between Juliet when she realizes the fault of her new husband,
but she decides to accept his flaw and they reunite.
I don’t know about you, but several movies with parallel
attributes came to my mind as I thought about this story: Titanic, Just like Heaven,
The Proposal, Hitch, The Prince and Me,
and Letters to Juliet. Shakespeare
made three the magic number for romance: three dates, three nights, or three
events before the characters fully decide they love the other more than
anything else.
That’s all of the movies I can connect on the top of my head, can
you think of any others that tie into the Shakespeare format?
-Hillary
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