Adapted from a lesson by T. Richards, BC Canada.
Found as lesson 5, under lessons at http://www.geocities.com/trichard_ca/ (12 Feb. 2008).

“Wisely and Slow. They Stumble That Run Fast.” Time structure in Romeo and Juliet

Students will demonstrate their understanding of the chronology of the play by creating a calendar of Romeo and Juliet’s week.

Pen, paper, script of Romeo and Juliet

Middle school to high school

Create a Monday-Friday calendar for the dates July 6-10. Now, imagine you are fifteen years old, and the only child in a very wealthy family. Write your planned activities for the week, including lots of personal details.

1. Explain to students that the calendar they have created is what Romeo and Juliet thought would be happening the week that the events in the play took place.

2. Knowing that Lord Capulet sets Juliet’s wedding to Paris for Wednesday we can determine what day the rest of the major events in the play occur on. Discuss the major events of the play and determine where they fall in a timetable. It may look like this:

Sunday:
Capulet and Montague servants fight in the streets.
Capulets host a feast.
Romeo and Juliet meet and fall in love.

Monday:
Friar Lawrence marries Romeo and Juliet.
Tybalt kills Mercutio.
Romeo kills Tybalt.
The prince banishes Romeo.
Lord Capulet arranges Juliet and Paris’s wedding for Thursday.
Romeo and Juliet spend one night together.

Tuesday:
Romeo flees to Mantua.
Juliet learns of her arranged engagement to Paris.
Friar Lawrence gives Juliet the potion.
Lord Capulet moves the wedding up to Wednesday.
Juliet drinks the potion.

Wednesday:
Paris arrives for the wedding.
Juliet is found dead.
Friar Lawrence attempts to send the letter to Romeo.

Thursday:
Romeo learns of Juliet’s death and buys poison.
Romeo returns to Verona.
Friar Lawrence learns Romeo never got his letter.
Romeo kills Paris and poisons himself.
Juliet stabs herself.

Early Friday:
The families find the bodies.
The families make peace.

3. Discuss the implication of this timeline on the play. What is the turning point of the play? (Mercutio’s death) How does Shakespeare build tension and suspense in the flow of action? (Beginning with Juliet’s fight with her parents all the scenes move quickly. They are broken up by entrances and exits, such as Paris’s entrance into Juliet’s bedroom or the dialogue with the apothecary.)

4. Have students complete a writing assignment (a paragraph or more) discussing which event on the time line they would change in order to rescue the lovers. This can be written as a first person narrative of how the character changed events, an additional scene with dialogue in modern or Elizabethan language, or an expository paper explaining what they chose to change and why and how they changed it. Every paper should be carefully thought out and offer textual support from the script.

Conclusion: Have students revise their calendar, as Romeo or Juliet would have done to indicate what really happened during the week. They can use single words, pictures, and short sentences. They should reflect the darkening mood of the week.

Assessment occurs throughout this lesson as students:
Complete the assignment of creating their own calendars.
Participate in the discussion of major events/timing in Romeo and Juliet
Participate in the discussion of the implications of the timeline.
Revise their original calendar.
Complete their writing assignment.

Use a normal rubric for grading the writing assignment.