Comparing Treatment of Death During the Renaissance and in Shakespeare’

Treatment of Death During the Renaissance and in Shakespeares Romeo and JulietShakespeares Romeo and Juliet is arguably the near well known and well-read correspond in history. With its passionate and realistic treatment of universal themes of love, fate, war, and death, its non difficult to shoot the breeze why. However, most people dont envision that there are several versions of the play, each with their own unique additions and/or changes to the plot, dialogue, and characters. After thumbing through the texts located here on this website, you can see even at a glance the distinct differences between the versions of Romeo and Juliet. This screen will explore how people dealt with death during the Renaissance in linguistic context to Shakespeares Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (Lamentable Tragedie.) More specifically, I will show that the added monologue in act 4, shaft 5, regarding the convention of death, is consistent to the social and apparitional beliefs of the time peri od. Act IV, scene V of the Lamentable Tragedie is perhaps the most insightful scene dealing with the coping of death during the Renaissance. Previous to the scene Romeo has been banished for slaying Tybalt, and Juliets father has forced her to marry her betrothed Paris. In a desperate attempt to avoid the join and reunite Juliet with her love, the mendicant gives Juliet a sleeping elixir to stage her death. Convinced that a marriage to Paris would be worse than death, Juliet takes the deathly potion and falls into a coma-like sleep. At the beginning of the scene the house is stirring with excitement in preparation for the wedding and the nurse is sent to wake the sleeping Juliet. After a great deal calling and shaking, the nurse begins to suspect that something is wrong. Could her mistre... ...ents in such a manner, royalty reigned supreme during Shakespeares day and could do and speak as they motto fit. Finally, it is important to understand the historical context for which the characters were written. Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet was written for an earshot that had survived the destructive forces of the Black Death, and shared a different philosophy on death altogether. Works CitedHeitsch, Dorothea. Approaching Death by Writing Montaignes Essays and the Literature of Consolation. Literature and Medicine 19, Jan. 2000 pp 1-6.Huizinga, Johan. The Waning of the Middle Ages. London Edward Arnold, 1924.Spinrad, Pheobe. The call of Death on the Medieval and Renaissance English Stage. Columbus Ohio press out University Press, 1987.Wilcox, Helen. Women and Literature in Britain 1500-1700. New York Cambridge University Press, 1998.