1. Connecting Romeo and Juliet and Today’s Teens By: Abby Streu

2. Introduction In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, there are many examples of suicide and depression in the play’s teenagers. In real life, there are so many stories and facts that prove that teenagers are exposed to violence. These themes combine together, connecting the two very different generations.

3. Theme and Proof of Existence Chapter 1

4. Description of Theme The theme that stands out the most in Romeo and Juliet is obviously “Depression and Suicide”. It’s what makes the story so interesting and intriguing. The whole ending is depression because the two most famous characters literature has ever heard of commit suicide.

5. This theme shows how teens (even then) felt a passion so deep that they couldn’t bear to live without their one true soul mate. It also showed how hatred between families can drive a wedge between a mere child’s emotions and lead them to their doom.

6. The theme of Romeo and Juliet “Suicide and Depression” suggest that there is in fact a resemblance between the emotions of modern and medieval teenagers because still today teenagers commit suicide. They commit suicide for the same reasons. They include love, hate, and emptiness.

7.  Thou detestable maw, thou womb of death, gorged with the dearest morsel of the earth (Montague, 840).  Romeo is depressed because he thinks Juliet is dead. His words lead us to believe that there is a deep pain digging inside of him because of her death. Proof

8.  There is thy gold-worse poison to men's souls doing more murder in this loathsome world (Montague, 838).  Romeo is thinking suicidal thoughts as he buys a poison from the Apothacary to use to kill himself after he sees Juliet’s body one more time and dies by her side.

9.  O happy dagger! This is thy sheath; there rust, and let me die (Capulet, 844).  This is as blunt as it gets for suicide examples. Juliet's famous last words state how she's going to commit suicide basically as she does it. Commenting on her suicide in seconds before it happens is about as evidential as it can be to prove there was teenage depression and suicide in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

10. Research Question and Examples of Teenage Violence in Real Life Chapter 2

11. Research Question How does the theme of suicide and depression in Romeo and Juliet connect to the real world’s topic of teenage violence?

12. Topic A major topic of the modern world is teenage violence. Are teenagers exposed to too much violence? Are they themselves performing violent acts because they are exposed to too much violence? These questions are huge questions that we ask ourselves when a teenager does something violent, or something violent occurs to them.

13. Research Philadelphia Attacks: Climate of Violence Stifles City Schools 15-year-old Teshada was attacked on 1/22/2010 during an algebra test, while the teacher was present who couldn't stop the kids in time from hurting the freshman, or from seeing who the teens were. By June of that school year, the number violent attacks was up to 4,541 attacks in that one year (that means an average of 25 students and staff members attacked per day).

14. Philadelphia Attacks: Climate of Violence Stifles City Schools Teshada's attacked at school (which left her wounded) was the 2,095 of the school year in that one high school. A school security camera caught the 2,096 attack occurring a few minutes later.

15. Montana School Shooting: Failing Grade Linked to Shooting of School Teacher 14-year-old Kristofer Hans shot Henrietta Smith, a substitute for LaVonne Simonfy (French teacher), on December 5, 1986. He wanted to shoot the teacher for failing him.

16. Montana School Shooting: Failing Grade Linked to Shooting of School Teacher After shooting the substitute, he ran out of the school, while shooting and injuring the Associate Principal and two other students. He then ran a mile back to his own home, where he was arrested.

17. Chicago Violence: In Violent Chicago, ‘It’s Tough to Be a Kid’ Derrion Albert was going to bus stop (close by Christian Fenger Academy High School) and was beaten to death by 4 teenagers (who used their fists and a plank). The teenagers are being charged with murder.

18. Chicago Violence: In Violent Chicago, ‘It’s Tough to Be a Kid’ Locals feel that the problem is larger than what the police can handle. A lot of the issues are the poverty, drugs, media, etc. From January of 2009 to September of 2009, 40 teenagers have been killed from violent attacks from other teenagers. 298 students have been shot in that school district since September 2008.

19. Research Connections Chapter 3

20. Research Connecting To Romeo and Juliet Explanation: This quote connects to Romeo and Juliet because in the play, the Capulets and Montagues get into random fights whenever they see each other for no reason besides the fact that the families hate each other. In this quote, it shows that Chicago teens are getting into fights randomly for no reason besides the fact that they either hate the individual or life. In chaos captured in a cellphone video, one teenager swung a plank, knocking Albert down. Ot hers hit him as he struggled to get away (Lydersen and Slevin, 1).

21. Explanation: This quote connects to Romeo and Juliet because it shows that teens can be provoked at simple things and cause violence. In this case, the kid shot his French teacher’s substitute because of an ‘F’. In Romeo and Juliet, and example is Romeo killing Tybalt because Tybalt killed his best friend. A teenager intended to kill his french teacher because he was failing, but instead shot to death her substitute according to classmates (New York Times, 1).

22. This quote was said by a teacher who experienced having her student attacked in her class. It shows how a lot of times, trusted adults such as teachers are powerless when it comes to violence that teenagers cause. This is like Romeo and Juliet too. The Lady and Lord Capulet, and Lady and Lord Montague basically let their family members and servants run around trying to kill the other family and their servants. It was like a tornado. They went one way, then they went the other way (Keller, 1).

23. Research and American Teenagers Today My research connects to teenagers today because in Romeo and Juliet, the teens are just as violent as they are today. People keep saying the generations are getting worse. That’s somewhat true. Seriously, though, what parents let their teens run around trying to stab each other?

24. Who promotes this violence that teens are going through and dealing out? Is it TV, radio, drugs? But that doesn’t explain Romeo and Juliet ’s era. They didn’t have TV, radio, and the same drugs to influence them. Maybe it’s something mentally wrong with teenagers that reoccurs with every generation. That connects my research to teens today.

25. Conclusion Chapter 4

26. Romeo and Juliet provides a great example of suicide and depression in teenagers. Real life examples of teenage violence connect to this also. They show that teenagers that are exposed to violence can become depressed and commit suicide or commit acts of violence on their own.