The Importance of Time Periods in Romeo and Juliet Essay Example

When reading the Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet the time in this story often goes unnoticed. But it plays a huge role in more than how they dress and speak. Not only that but also how they interact with one other, and their roles in the patriarchal society which they came from. The character most affected by this time is women. Specifically, young women like Juliet have expectations set on them and need to be docile and obedient. But how Juliet tries to go against the Patriarchal society she's in. And is even similar to the British monarch which was a strong, independent, yet feminine woman at the time. This shows the importance of the time in Romeo and Juliet moreover Juliet and how she has to interact with people of higher social status and her role at the time as well.

To begin with, Juliet is seen as weaker for being a female and is forced to be obedient, and has no opinion or say when it comes to what a male figure says. Furthermore, what was the Patriarchal society like back in the Elizabethan era? “The male head of the family was in control and the women had no say their only purpose in life was to become dutiful wives.” (Youtube) This proves women had to act in a very specific way at the time and this influenced Shakespeare's writing and characters. That is why Juliet is expected to be this “perfect” child because it was awaited by every adolescent girl at the time. Then the males need to be strong and never be weak or back away from fights; furthermore, that is why there was so much conflict. Considering this, it 

may explain why the feud always kept going because no man wanted to be seen as weak.  There have also been instances in which Juliet didn’t follow these “roles” and tried to go against them. By becoming more mature and making her own decisions in life, so she can try and do anything to get to it. “For example, when Juliet dodges her father's attempt to force her to marry Paris in an attempt to stay with the man she has feelings for, she is successfully challenging the patriarchal order in a way that would not have been possible at an earlier time. “ (New World Encyclopedia contributors) Here is a great example of Juliet trying to go against the Patriarchal society at the time. Since she is being the opposite of what she's asked to be. And instead of being obedient, quiet, and agreeing she trying to make her voice heard. And saying “no” challenges this and that's why her parents feel the need to lash out at her because this isn't something expected from her. Not only does Juliet challenge the Patriarchal society and how it's meant to work but also learns about the other characters and how they play a role in life too. 

How are the characters surrounding Juliet also forced to act a certain way due to gender and time? The family feud is a great example of this because it's the two men that are mostly fighting. And they possibly might not wanna back down because they don't want to be feminine for being soft.  “Instead, male pride has given the feud longevity with no side willing to back down.” (Youtube) The reason they keep fighting is that they are boastful and want to be the greater man. But sadly this feud doesn’t just affect them and risk’s the whole family including Romeo and Juliet. If the feud had been given up and they didn’t feel like they had to act so tough. Juliet wouldn’t need to hide her love for Romeo and they could’ve been together in peace. Women are so lowly respected at this time that even the lower classes can argue women are weaker 

and make fun of men who act in any way similar to women. “‘Tis true; and therefore women, being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall.” (Shakespeare 184)

In the Elizabethan era as previously stated women are meant to be more obedient to men. And therefore men have permission to do anything they want since women are lower class and it was seen as manly to be the dominant one and not the women making choices. This affects Juliet because as we know she is forced to listen to Capulet and be obedient. This is where the development comes in because she chooses not to listen to him. So as a result he almost threatens her to keep her afraid and almost to put her in her place. Nonetheless, some women also go against those roles they have of being docile and submissive. 

Shakespeare was inspired by the British monarch and women are known by the men they marry. The way Juliet acts maybe because Shakespeare was inspired by Elizabeth the First and how she acted. So you may see hints of her characteristics in Juliet and also the nurse could be an example as well. Then we also know Juliet or any woman doesn't have their own identity. “There is no independent identity for Juliet. Her current status is attached to her father and her marriage will see a swift transition from daughter to wife.” (youtube) When we look at the Capulet and Montague’s wives we see they are called by their husband's last name. And that is because their status and whole importance are based on them. This goes back to how men were the most powerful therefore women had to marry high society men. To be able to mean something which is why Juliet was pressured to get married to Paris. Since it would then make her related to the Prince. Elizabeth the first also could be an inspiration for how Juliet is and other women in the story. Although not all traits are similar since it is a tragedy so she couldn’t become powerful but characteristically Juliet was strong. “Elizabeth I was a monarch at this time, and was both a strong, powerful and independent woman, but also upheld traditional gender roles and chastity and purity.” This explains that Juliet still has the traditional traits of a woman like being pure and having a softer side to her. She also sometimes may cling to others for help but she is also very driven. We see this when she stands up to her dad which is something she hasn’t done before. But she did it because she had a goal and she wanted to try her best to reach it even though she had to get treated poorly by her parents. 

Thus, the period plays an important role in this story and affects Juliet the most due to all the pressure. As we know she needs to be very feminine and docile in the patriarchal society. But Juliet throughout the acts changed from those forced gender roles. And developed into a person with opinions as well as making decisions. When she tried to say “No” to her father when marrying Paris that was the key point of her development. Since we know that Juliet didn’t want that, therefore, stood up for herself in some type of way. So in sum, Juliet did mature and was changing character throughout the act. Hence, I think she would’ve never developed into her person hadn’t she met Romeo.