Video: Introducing Juliet

﻿Hi, everyone. Welcome to lesson five in the Romeo and Juliet series. My name is Ms Mackay, and I'm going to be taking you through today's lesson again. Introducing Juliet. Now, before we meet Juliet's character and explore that a little bit together, I'd like to take a second to make sure that you've got everything you need for the lesson today. Do you have a pen and paper? Something to write on and something to write with. You're going to be taking lots of notes for the lesson. So do you make sure that you've got everything you need. Also take a second to make sure you're in a really good quiet space, no distractions. So you can really focus on the learning. Ready? Okay, let's go. So what's our big question for today? How does Shakespeare present Juliet when she is first introduced to the audience in Act 1, scene 3. The structure of the lesson today will be as follows, part one: Key vocab. Part two: Introducing character and context. Part three: Reading the text in detail and answering questions. Part four: Applying our learning in a short, extended task. Part five: Completing the review quiz. So part one: Key vocabulary. Today, like in the previous couple of lessons is going to be three key words. I'm going to define these words for you and explain how they can be used. Do make a note of those words either mentally or on your piece of paper, because you are going to be using them throughout the lesson and in the final task in part five. In this lesson, we'll be learning the words, demure, submissive, and chaste, all three adjectives and all three are going to be relevant to our key question about the presentation of Juliet. The first key word is demure. Demure is an adjective which means scene or acting in a way which is shy and modest, usually reserved and quiet. Take a look at the picture on the right hand side. This girl here has got her book in front of her face as if she's hiding behind it. She looks a little bit shy, like she doesn't really want to show her face or be confident. That's demure. Example in a sentence, women were expected to act in a demure manner during the Elizabethan period. More of that later. The second key word for today is submissive. Submissive as an adjective, which means to follow rules and orders without questioning them. In a sentence, she was quietly submissive within the group. Again, look at the picture on the right hand side, this person has got her mouth covered and she's doing a shh gesture, implying she's not going to speak out. She's not going to be bold, confident or outspoken. She's going to probably do what she's told. Features of submissive behaviour. Obeys the orders of those with more power and status, passive in behaviour making few personal decisions or taking little decisive action, being seen as weak and powerless and historically associated with the expectations of women in a patriarchal society. Patriarchal is a society run and led by men like the Elizabethan period. Our third adjective for today is chaste. Chaste is defined as showing no sexual action or desire considered to be innocent. In a sentence. Her behaviour as a young woman would have been considered to be chaste. Let's do a quick check. True or false. A submissive person is likely to lead a group and give instructions. Answers in three, two, one. That one's false. A submissive person is definitely likely to be more of a follower than a leader. Historically, submissive behaviour is usually associated with which gender? Men or women. Answers in three, two, one. It's women. In the Elizabethan period that we're going to look at when we look at Juliet's character, this is certainly the case. True or false. The term demure would effectively describe the behaviour of the characters in the prologue. Answers in three, two, and one. Definitely not. Remember the characters in the prologue are described as an a feud, there's fighting, conflict, violence, certainly not demure behaviour. Which of these would not be an example of demure behaviour? Option one, passionate debate with an enemy. Option two, quiet conversation. Option three, politely listening to a friend or relative. Option four, thoughtful reflection on a book. Which one? Three, two, one. It's option one. Passionate debate is certainly not demure. A person considered to be 'chaste' might also be considered to be... where's the gap? What would we fill it with? Option one, calm. Option two, intelligent. Option three, thoughtful. Or option four, innocent. Answers in three, two, one. It's option four, innocent. True or false: It's more likely for a young person to be described as 'chaste'. Answers in three, two, one. That one's true because being 'chaste' is related to being innocent and it's considered to be somebody who is not sexually active. We would be more expecting a young person than an older person to be described in this way. So part two, like last lesson is introducing context, but this time we're going to combine character and context together. As we introduced Juliet's character, we have to consider her within her Elizabethan world because that's why and how she was created by Shakespeare. So we have to learn a little bit about the Elizabethan world, particularly what that was like for young women like Juliet's. And then we're going to learn about her character within that context. So context first. Let's go. So reminder of, what is context? A way of thinking about context is by imagining the world outside the play, understanding context means understanding the ideas of the time. What do people think or believe in? How do they behave? What do they desire? What social rules did they follow? Once we understand that we can understand the world or the play much better. So our context is the Elizabethan context. When we look at Juliet's character, we're looking at her character within the world of the Elizabethans. A woman in Elizabethan England had little power and an extremely limited chance of getting an education. Women in the Elizabethan period were totally dependent on male relatives who control their lives and decisions. In the Elizabethan period, upper class women and ability possess very little right to choose their husband. Marriage was often arranged in order to secure wealth and reputation. Women were considered to be weak, requiring support and care. A woman's physical appearance and beauty was considered important as she was not encouraged to be outspoken, passionate or academically intelligent. Instead, women were expected to be submissive, demure and chaste. Strong religious feeling was an important part of everyday life and religious values included obedience of women. Women obeyed male authority figures as they're expected to obey God. All right. True or false: Women had a lot of control over their lives and decisions during the Elizabethan period. Answers in three, two, one. Absolutely not. They had very little control over small decisions or huge ones. True or false. Decisions about marriage focused on financial and class based opportunities rather than love. Answers in three, two, one. True. It was a bit of a business I'm afraid. True or false. Religious beliefs and attitudes reinforce the power of men in Elizabethan society. Answers in three, two, one. That one's true. Parents and men were as God, a woman would have to obey her father, her husband as if she were obeying God. Juliet, just like Romeo is an eponymous protagonist as she's a central character and her name appears in the title of the story. The audience's immediately aware that she's important and they will follow her journey through the story. Juliet is of course, one of the star crossed lovers mentioned in the prologue. In Act 1 scene 3, we meet Juliet for the first time. She hasn't appeared in the previous two scenes. Juliet is a member of the Capulet household and is therefore by birth the sworn enemy of Romeo, a Montague. Juliet is very young, indicates to be just 13 years old in the text. She's introduced alongside the character of the Nurse who looks after her as well as her mother. Reflecting her historical context she is clearly submissive to both these characters. Quick check. Juliet first appears in Act 1 scene 1. True or false. Three, two, one. Nope. False. Act 1 scene 3 is the first time we see Juliet onstage. Juliet is a member of the Montague household, true or false? Three, two, one. That one's false as well. Juliet is a Capulet. Romeo is a Montague. True or false. Juliet is 21 years old at the start of the play. Answers in three, two, one. That's false as well. Juliet is just 13 years old. So part three, but we read the text together. Now this is the first time Juliet has appeared on stage, it's Juliet's introduction. We're still in act 1. And we're going to continue to explore Act 1, this time, focusing on the introduction of Juliet's character specifically. Remember, in the previous scene we met and learned about the passionate infatuated character of Romeo and his anomalous social behaviour. In this following subsequent scene, a sense of contrast is created as we meet the very submissive Juliet. Okay. Act 1 scene 3 summary. In the previous scene, we learned that Lord Capulet is hosting a party for other nobles in Verona. We learn this party is an opportunity for Lord Capulet to introduce his daughter to Paris, a rich noble gentleman with a good reputation who wishes to marry her. At the beginning of act 1, scene 3 Lady Capulet is searching for her daughter who was getting ready for the party. We also meet the character of the Nurse who is Juliet's caregiver and has looked after her since she was a very small baby. Both women praise Paris, persuasively suggest to Juliet that he is a good match and will make her very happy. Juliet seems reserved and shy, rarely speaking in the scene and offering agreement when she does. So how does Shakespeare present Juliet when she's first introduced to the audience in Act 1, scene 3? In order to help you answer this question in Section 4, we're going to take a close look at some of the language that's used by Shakespeare to present Juliet's character. We'll also consider the methods that Shakespeare users and apply our three new key adjectives. I would suggest you're making notes because you will use these later in the lesson. So the start of the scene, we have Lady Capulet comes out and she says, "What lamb! What, ladybird! God forbid! Where's this girl? What, Juliet." Enter Juliet. Juliet, "How now? Who calls?" Nurse, "Your mother." Juliet, "Madam, I am here. What is your will?" Right from the start here we've got a real sense of Juliet's position within the Capulet household. She comes when she's called, "What Juliet." Enter Juliet. And she's very, very submissive. The first thing she says to her mother is, "What is your will? What is your wish or desire?" She's saying, "I'll do whatever you want." Now there's an interesting method used here in Lady Capulet first little bit of speech. She calls Juliet a lamb and a ladybird. You could suggest that Shakespeare is using symbolism here. Symbols to indicate meaning. Lamb, for instance, has connotations of being a small, weak symbol of innocence. So the fact that Lady Capulet refers to Juliet as a lamb, associates her with those qualities. Now Lady Capulet is discussing the potential marriage proposal of Paris. And she says to Juliet, "Have you thought of marriage?" Juliet replies, "No, not yet." And at that point, Lady Capulet says, "Well, think of marriage now, younger than you here in Verona, ladies of esteem are made already mothers. By my count, I was your mother much upon these years, you are now a maid thus then in brief, the Valiant Paris seeks you for his love." Here Lady Capulet is saying to Juliet is high time she becomes a wife herself. She says ladies of esteem of respect and admiration. That means other noble ladies are already mothers, they're married and they're having children. She's saying Juliet is still a maid, but shouldn't have to be for long because who's come after her? The Valiant Paris. Valiant means showing bravery and determination. It's a very complimentary way to describe her suitor. So this fits interesting. We've got a little dialogue between Lady Capulet and the Nurse. Lady Capulet: The Valiant Paris seeks you for his love. The nurse: A man, young lady! Lady, such a man as all the world- why, he's a man of wax. Lady Capulet: Verona's summer hath not such a flower. "Nay," says the Nurse. "He's a flower in faith, a very flower." Now what's interesting in this section is the lack of speech and Juliet. Her lack of speech here is definitely significant. The other two women make great long speeches and exchanges and Juliet speaks very little. I think that's a very good example of the fact that Juliet is submissive. She doesn't feel strong enough or powerful enough or passionate enough to give her opinion here, right at the end of the scene. Juliet says to her mother, "I'll look to like, if looking liking move, but no more deep will I indart mine eye than your consent gives strength to make it fly." This is Juliet's longest speech within the whole scene. And it's only a few lines, pretty significant. She's not talking very much. What she does say is also important. She says, "I'm going to look around and see what's I like, but I won't throw myself into something unless you give me permission, unless you agree." She's basically saying, I will do what you will. The key method here to present Juliet's character would probably be the verb choices. The reference to flying suggests you only going to be powerful and confident if given permission by her parents. She's not strong on her own. She's a demure submissive young lady waiting to be told what to do. Okay. True or false. Juliet is a confident, strong minded character at the beginning of the play. Answers in three, two, one. False. Actually it's the complete opposite. She doesn't get her confidence until a little bit later. True or false. The Nurse and Lady Capulet both believe that Juliet should marry Paris. Three, two, one. That one's true. He's very Valiant after all. Which of these statements about Juliet are not true based on this scene? Option one, Juliet is quiet and doesn't speak often. Option two, Juliet is submissive to her mother's wishes. Option three, Juliet is respectful to her mother. Option four, Juliet secretly shows passion and desire. Which of those is not true? Three, two, one. It's option four. She might feel passion, but she doesn't show it. Not at all. Which two things does Lady Capulet compare Juliet to? Option one, Ladybird. Option two, lizard. Option three, a lamb and option four, lion. Point to two in three, two, one. The lamb and the ladybird. The two smallest weakest creatures. Juliet seems to agree to a parent's wishes for her to accept Paris. True or false. Three, two, one. That's true. She's being very submissive. She's accepting what they say. She doesn't seem to have a lot of the mind of her own. True or false. Juliet's innocence is emphasised in this scene. Answers in three, two, one. Definitely true. She seems very innocent and very chaste, very young. Okay. So now we've met Juliet's character, sort of, she was very quiet, but she was there. So we're going to talk about her character a little bit in some extended writing. Just like in the previous lessons, I'm going to give you a short writing task where you answer the big question for the lesson today. You're going to use all the key words and all the key details that we've just gone over. So hopefully it will be a really good way of you bringing together all of that learning into one really nice, clear, and coherent response. After you've written yours, I'm going to show you mine so that you can compare the two and you can add and clarify and make sure it's really, really nice piece of work. Let's get started. Okay. So here's your task for today. How does Shakespeare present Juliet's character when she's first introduced? You're going to write a short response to the question above, and you're going to spend at least 10 minutes writing this. You should include the definition of the key adjectives to describe Juliet. Those key adjectives are submissive, demure and chaste. You should also include some textual details revealed an Act 1, the bit you were just looked at together. And then some examples of the methods that Shakespeare uses. This could be symbolism as I've demonstrated in the keyword list. If that's enough for you to get started, pause the video now and have a go. Then resume once you're finished. If you'd like to have some sentence starters to help you structure this, hold on, they're on the next slide. Here's some sentence frames to help you. In Act 1, Juliet is initially presented as ... Juliet shows her through ... when Juliet ... The use of symbolism and the reference to ... emphasises that ... Overall, Juliet appears ... Have a go at writing response out these sentence frames and the keyword list on the right. Press pause now and resume when you're finished. Here's an example of what you might've written. This goes across two slides. Juliet is clearly presented as a typical, traditional Elizabethan girl when she is introduced in Act 1, scene 3. From the start, Juliet demonstrates how submissive obedience to other characters, listening carefully and thoughtfully to her mother and her Nurse and speaking very little. Her lack of speech is clear throughout the scene, emphasising her lack of power and control over her own life, despite the fact that there are big decisions being made and discussed. Lady Capulet refers to her daughter as a 'lamb' in the opening of the scene. Shakespeare is clearly using symbolism here to suggest Juliet's chaste innocence as she is compared to a weak defences animal. Her demure behaviour is emphasised throughout by her respectful responses and considerate listening to elders. Overall, Juliet seems quiet and somewhat powerless trapped within Elizabethan restrictions. Compare my answer to yours. Maybe pause, take a moment to clarify any of your writing or add or steal any sentences that I've used and pop them into your own answer. That's it for today then, you've completed your answer to the big question, hopefully compared it with mine. And now the last thing there is to do is the review quiz. As usual, the review quiz is five questions and it's questioning you on all of the key content from the lesson today. Make sure you watch the end of the video and then click onto the quiz. The quiz will give you feedback. So if you get a question wrong or a question right, you get a little bit of feedback on that, which hopefully will help you really consolidate and understand and check any misconceptions you might still have. Thank you so much for joining me today. I hope you've enjoyed learning about Juliet's character. Remember next lesson is when the lovers meet. So I'll see you then, that very exciting Act 1, scene 5. Have a lovely rest of your day. I'd love to see what you've done today in the lesson. So if you want to, you can share your work Oak National. If you've got to do this, please ask your parent or carer to share your work on Twitter, tagging @OakNational and #LearnwithOak alongside it. Looking forward to seeing all of those tweets.

Exit Quiz: Introducing Juliet

Completed: Introducing Juliet

In this lesson, we will explore the characterisation of Juliet. We will explore her first appearance on stage and consider the methods used by Shakespeare to present her to the audience.

English

Introducing Juliet

Video

Final Quiz

Lesson Complete