For Monday, April 19, read the Introduction by J. A. Bryant (pp. lxiii-lxxviii) and Acts 1-3
Study Questions for Monday:

1.  Acts I and II begin with a chorus, which speaks in sonnet form.  Analyze the sonnets; how do they help to define your expectations as a reader?

2.  When Romeo and Juliet meet in Act 1, scene 5, their dialogue forms a sonnet (lines 95-108).  How does Shakespeare's use of the sonnet form at this point in the drama affect our understanding of the characters?

3.  How does Romeo's initial state of Petrarchan love-longing over Rosaline help to define his character?  How does the comparison and contrast between his love for Rosaline and his love for Juliet help to establish the audience's sense of him and of his relationship with Juliet?

4.  The play begins with a rough scene involving conflicts among the men of the two houses; throughout the play, much of the dramatic action and much of the language is laden with images of violence between men and men and between men and women.  How does this violent context affect our understanding of the young lovers?

5.  The language of the play is also heavily laden with images of death and mortality.  Are they ever put to positive use?

For Wednesday, April 21, read Acts 4-5.
Study Questions for Wednesday:

1.  Compare the role of Friar Lawrence to those of Don Pedro and the Friar in Much Ado.  Is he any different from either of them, or do his plans falter because he plays out his role in a tragedy, whereas they played theirs in a comedy?

2.  Juliet's nurse injects a heavy dose of sexuality into every scene she enters.  How does her representation of female sexuality affect Juliet's sexual identity?

3. Mercutio believes neither in love, nor in dreams, but mocks both.  What does he contribute to the play?

4.  Act 5, scene 3 is set in a graveyard and within the tomb of the Capulets.  How does setting affect the audience's experience in this scene?  How does Shakespeare use specific settings earlier in the play?

5.  Choose one speech of Romeo or Juliet and analyze the language closely, paying particular attention to the imagery and to the use of metaphors, similes, hyperboles, and other figures of speech.  To what extent is love a verbal entity in Romeo and Juliet?  Compare the idea of love in the sonnets, where Shakespeare gives life and substance to his love through the enduring monument of his poetry.