The Concept Of Humanity In Romeo And Juliet

Improved Essays
The idea of what it takes to be a human being has long been researched and discussed, and yet, there is no single conclusion about human nature. What it takes to be a human can be explained by certain behaviors that come naturally among all persons. Some basic human traits are the ability to communicate with others, have feelings and perform simple tasks such as eating and sleeping. In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, he conveys his perception of humanity through his characters, specifically the protagonists Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare effectively depicts the nature of young adults as they tend to become more rebellious against their parents and make impulsive decisions. Although he does explore many aspects of humanity such …show more content…
Shakespeare and Melville interpret what it means to be a human in different ways through their main characters and their actions, and both authors similarly conclude that human nature is distinct for every person and it relies on the past and present events that each person goes through.

In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare characterizes Juliet as a young beautiful woman, reaching the beginning stages of adolescence. Because she is the only daughter in the Capulet family, her parents want what is best for her, or so they think. Since the Montagues and Capulets have a long-time feud, Juliet knows to have nothing to do with the Montagues, no matter the circumstance, even if love is involved. Love is not a problem for Juliet, however, since she is only thirteen. Juliet’s parents are so paranoid of her ever falling in love for a Montague that in order to avoid any type of relationships with the Montagues, Juliet’s parents set her up with a man to marry, a non-Montague. This arrangement is only one of the many ways that explains how protective and fearful the Capulets are of interacting with a Montague. As soon as Juliet meets Romeo, a Montague, she immediately disregards her family’s orders and ends up
…show more content…
The narrator in the story is a boss at a law firm who employs a rather odd employee, named Bartleby. Bartleby is not what most bosses would call a “great employee.” He just sits at his desk, very quiet and solemn, and when he is asked to perform a simple task, he simply replies, “I would prefer not to.” Instead of firing him, the narrator just leaves Bartleby alone, trying to figure out why he is the way he is. It is not until the very last line in the story that the narrator reaches a conclusion about why Bartleby acts that way, and why humans act the way that they do. The narrator states, “Ah, Bartleby! Ah, Humanity!” This statement may seem vague in its meaning, but here, the narrator has come to the conclusion that everyone is different in the way they act and perform day-to-day activities, and how we act is merely based on past experiences. Bartleby used to work at a Dead Letter Office. Just the title of the job sounds morbid, although all he did there was sort out misplaced letters. It is not explained as to what happened at the Dead Letter Office to make Bartleby act in this way, and maybe it was not his previous work environment that affected him. As the story progresses, the narrator begins to develop sympathy for Bartleby, even though he has no idea why he is disrespectful and unreliable at work. Melville shows how it is human nature to be sympathetic and feel pity towards

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    After meeting each other, the attraction between Romeo and Juliet continually draws them together. However, they must be careful when and where they get together. When Romeo meets Juliet in the Capulet’s orchard, Juliet warns, “... the place death, considering who thou art, / If any of my kinsmen find thee here” (2.2.80-81). Due to the Capulet and Montague feud, the family members reject any peace or communication between each other.…

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sammy and Bartleby, although both going against authority and thus portraying the cowboy image, have very different views of the American workplace. This is in part due to their bosses reactions to them and their actions. In “Bartleby, The Scrivener” the boss, who is also the narrator, is rather passive and does not force Bartleby to leave once he will no longer work. When Bartleby begins to say “‘I would prefer not to,’” (Melville 2239) the narrator does nothing more than ask why.…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    (Carver 39). In “Bartleby the Scrivener”, the Lawyer had acted cheaply in his past and now viewed Bartleby as a way that he could “cheaply purchase a delicious self-approval” (Melville, 5). He did not extend his kindness and “charitable” ways to others unless he believed he could gain something in return- in this case, an easy ticket into heaven. The Lawyer constantly placed business first, and only helped people depending on their usefulness, not because of the goodness of his character. He creates Bartleby into a charity case by viewing him as a pitiable creature that needed his help and he believed that this would “eventually prove a sweet morsel for [his] conscience” (Melville…

    • 633 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Bartleby, the narrator, is man who denies the normal and defies even the most common aspects of daily, city dwelling life. The narrator goes through a myriad of emotions before deciding, ultimately that Bartleby repulses him even though he (the narrator) pities him (Bartleby). The narrator begins the passage talking of Bartleby’s idiosyncrasies, he never spoke unless spoken to, he didn’t drink coffee, tea or alcohol, and he stared out the window at a blank brick wall for indiscriminate amounts of time. He didn’t seem to have any family or any home town, but the narrator muses that still he held himself with a “certain unconscious air of pallid—how shall I call it?—of pallid haughtiness, say, or rather an austere reserve about him, which had…

    • 531 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Due to prejudice, the town of Verona in William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is torn apart. Romeo and Juliet, the children of counter houses, are prone to tragedy after they fall in love. The lovers of conflicting houses eventually accept that their love will never have either of their family’s blessings, the two seeing no other option than to be together in death. Shakespeare's use of foreshadowing helps convey the theme of prejudice in this tragedy.…

    • 894 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The tragic love story written by William Shakespeare, known as Romeo and Juliet, (which is the tale of two emotional teenagers that are bound by their families’ ancient grudge), they’re influenced by their families which cause them to make horrible decisions which inevitably lead to their deaths. Both Romeo and Juliet were under influence by their family, and friends, just like we are today. However, the Capulets’ negative impact is what caused Juliet 's upbringing, and overall self destruction or demise. Compared to the impact Romeo’s family had on him, Juliet was neglected of parental love and support, and was essentially blackmailed by her father. On the other hand, she was still trying to find a solution to her Romeo problems without any…

    • 1214 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    A Bad Family Relationship “A plague a’ both your houses” (3.1.85). Mercutio is saying that both Montague and the Capulets house are cursed. It is a bad family relationship because Mercutio curses both houses which tells you he dislikes his family. The families were falling apart when everyone was dying like Mercutio and Tybalt as they fought Montague against Capulet. In order to have a bad family relationship, people must not care for the family no more.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Extended Response - Shakespeare INTRO William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream are plays that share similar ideologies and representations despite them being a tragedy and a comedy respectively. The similarities are predominantly that of the father daughter relationship, as well as love, marriage and rebellion. Romeo and Juliet is a story about star crossed lovers whose families are feuding, with a plot line that focuses on Juliet and her father Capulet.…

    • 795 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    William Shakespeare, a man, used Juliet, a woman, to defy gender norms by making her more masculine. Juliet and Romeo are two people who fall in love, despite their family feud. They get married, but Romeo gets banished from their town. They only get to spend one night together before Romeo has to leave, and he has to leave by daybreak. In the end, they kill themselves.…

    • 836 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Romeo and Juliet is by far the most famous love story in English stories. Love in the story, is the most dominant theme. William Shakespeare has an interesting view toward philosophy about young love. In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare's persona about young love consists of the forcefulness of love, love as a cause of violence, and fickle love or as we call it, puppy love.…

    • 714 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet depicts the lives of two lovers and the events of their lives as they hide their love from their parents. Although written centuries ago, it is still relevant in today’s society. The characters Romeo and Juliet are similar to today's adolescents. Their personalities, attitudes, and emotions mimic those of teenagers today. But their range of emotions and issues are relatable to people of any age, gender or background.…

    • 711 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    His strange behavior became more evident after he passively resisted the request of his boss, which basically entailed that he proofread documents he himself had copied for any errors. Bartleby behaviors from then on were passive resistance, he was passive in the way he communicated and resisted to do work that was expected of him and went on to control the office for sometime with his imbalance behaviors. He was able to control the lawyer his employer in many instances. He stops working altogether and stops living by the normal expectations of society. His behaviors eventually runs the lawyer and his business out of the building because Bartley refused to…

    • 888 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Shakespeare’s utilization of this motif enables him to convey the moral of how an individual's age, regardless of how old or how young, does not define their intelligence. William Shakespeare develops the motif of youth versus age in varying instances throughout the exposition into the rising action of the plot in his acclaimed play, Romeo and Juliet. In doing so, the writer ultimately wishes to communicate his message of age not determining an individual's wisdom to the reader. In the midst of delving into the subject of marriage, the author has Lady Capulet and Juliet state, “LADY CAPULET: You know my daughter is at a marriageable age… JULIET: I’ll look to like him if looks can make like him.…

    • 812 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up, kids typically hear that their parents know best and that they should always listen to their elders. However, not all grown ups are the embodiment of a good role model. Sometimes, adults do not have the best interest of their children in mind. In Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, the adults in the play should have been role models for Romeo and Juliet, but they turned out to be poor adult figures. These adults are Lord and Lady Capulet, the Nurse, and Friar Lawrence.…

    • 430 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Hatred And Violence In Romeo And Juliet

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited

    Since the Montague and Capulet families are enmities, Juliet is devastated when she realizes her love for Romeo cannot endure. She expresses her grief to the nurse while saying, “My only love sprung from my only hate!... Than I must love a loathed enemy.” (Act I Scene V Line 138-141). Juliet apprehends that her parents would forbid her to marry Romeo because he is the son of their worst enemy.…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    • 1 Works Cited
    Improved Essays

Related Topics