Day 3 - Act 4 scene 5 and Writing Thesis Statements Romeo & Juliet - Week 4 Day 3 - Act 4 scene 5 and Writing Thesis Statements

Agenda Warm Up Discussion - Homework reading & Questions Read Act 4 scene 5 Thesis statements Homework

Warm Up Turn & Talk: In your groups, discuss the homework questions. Do you agree about what choices Juliet should make? What predictions do you have about what will happen next, knowing that the play does not have a happy ending?

Class Discussion Turn & Talk → Discuss as a class Scenes 2, 3, and 4 in Act 4 are very short. How does this help move the action of the play forward? Look at Juliet’s soliloquy on page 193. This is a very long speech. What are the main points of what she is saying? Why do you think she has this speech before she drinks the potion? Why is it important to see Juliet’s parents having a moment without her in scene 4?

Reading Time! Time to finish Act 4! We need: Stage Directions First Musician Nurse Second Musician Lady Capulet Third Musician Lord Capulet Peter Friar Lawrence Paris

Switching Gears...

Objective Write a clear and concise thesis statement answering an essential question about Romeo & Juliet

Thesis Statements What is a thesis statement? Thesis statement: A thesis statement is a summary of the main idea of your essay. It may be explanatory, argumentative, or analytical. The thesis statement should tell the reader what the MAIN IDEA of the essay is. A thesis statement should be specific A thesis statement usually appears at the end of your introductory paragraph

Student Examples Alice Nguyen Mr. Levine Honors World Literature The negatively charged always wants to stick with its positive counterpart, because such is the way that opposites attract. Opposites attract as is their innate tendency, as if it is nature’s secret proposition to place them side by side in pursuance of nothing other than beauty: beauty in the way their interaction fulfills and transcends what they used to be. This art of juxtaposition has been consummated by no other but Shakespeare, specifically in his famous play Romeo and Juliet. The characters’ actions, causes and consequences of their decisions, and the assignment of roles in the play are all founded upon the principle that matters belonging to one end of the spectrum exist only in theory, and that efforts to assign distinct labels would result in leaving out a part of their identity. In the play, opposites are formed with oxymorons and paradoxes that illustrate how nothing is purely good or evil, which is shown in the role of Friar Lawrence and the things he says in one of his soliloquies, the nature of Romeo and Juliet’s destined love in relation to their family feuds, and the overarching theme of illusions and double values as manifested in Juliet’s speech when she receives news of Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s banishment. The virtuous springs from the condemned, turns into disgrace and tragedy when misapplied, hides itself in vile disguise, and vice versa.

Student Examples Chi Pham Mr. Levine World Literature Honors Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is a very well-known play in the history of art and literature of human race. In the play, the death of Romeo and Juliet is foreshadowed right from the beginning and also throughout every scenes. Yet why did the audiences, and also the readers still enjoy figuring out what happens to the main characters that leads to their pitiful death? This is because Shakespeare’s most-famous piece is also known for dramatic irony that creates all of the frustration and anxiety for ones who’re enjoying the play. That is when the audiences know something that the characters don’t but powerlessly, we can do nothing about that. In Act 1 and Act 5 of the play Romeo and Juliet, dramatic irony plays an essential role in making the tragedy these two “star-crossed lovers” happens, and it also helps the audiences acknowledge the impatience, along with a little bit of capriciousness and impulsion of the young lover Romeo.

Your Assignment: With the rest of class, and over the weekend, you must write a thesis statement answering one of the following questions - Handout: Thesis Statement Essay Topics

Homework! Read Act 5 scene 1 and 2 (211 - 219) Work on your thesis statements! We will be using these thesis statements during our first class next week to craft the opening paragraph to an essay, and finding quotes to support your ideas. Now would be a good time to review your annotations!!