When you read a love story, what qualities in the story really attract you? What makes the love story great?
“Romeo and Juliet” by Frank Dicksee – http://www.odysseetheater.com/romeojulia/romeojulia.htm. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons – http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DickseeRomeoandJuliet.jpg#mediaviewer/
Romeo and Juliet is a play by William Shakespeare and is about two feuding families. But one night Romeo and his cousin sneaks into a party given by Juliet’s family, and cupid’s arrow is true.
The moment Romeo sees her, he is in love. When she meets him, the attraction is mutual. They don’t even know each other’s last names. When they find out, it distresses them but they are already working on how to get around that obstacle.
Let’s look at the qualities of this romance.
1. They are both young and learning about love. There is a sense of wonder.
2. They kiss without knowing each other’s last name. They are mysterious to each other, which makes it more enticing.
3. There is an excitement in knowing that you love someone who is forbidden, who should be an enemy.
4. This is also a tale of first love. First everything, which makes it riveting.
5. Will they be together forever? While in Romeo and Juliet, their love ends tragically, the idea of someone making it work has inspired endless writers to find a way for the lovers.
Many movies have been inspired by the Romeo and Juliet theme. While not all end in tragedy, these stories focus on the unbridled passion of youth fighting to stay together.
Warm Bodies – a zombie and human fall in love
Twilight series – a vampire and human fall in love
West Side Story – instead of two opposing families, you have two feuding gangs in New York’s Upper West Side
Dirty Dancing – two different classes of people, and a young woman disobeying her father
Titanic – also involves the differences between classes and the survival of forbidden love
The Notebook – the intensity of young love and the obstacles put in their way
Can you think of other books or movies that use the Romeo and Juliet theme?
Next Thursday: More on what makes a love story great!
-Susan
Susan Hanniford Crowley, Amazon Kindle Bestselling Author of Vampire Romance
www.susanhannifordcrowley.com
Where love burns eternal and whispers in the dark!
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