Why do we have to learn about Romeo and Juliet?

Question:

Why do we have to learn about Romeo and Juliet?

This isn't a tradegy of love, it's a tradegy of lust!

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Shakespeare lived at atime when English was rapidly changing, and he influenced this change. He coined several words.

He also ifnluenced the development of the play.

R&J is a good story, incorporating many substories. It's about human nature and how our actions can often have unintended effects on others. If all your teacher teaches is the plot, you will have missed a lot.

As for the love/lust issue, look at it humorously: Juliet was recently madly in love with someone else! Now she falls madly in love with Romeo. She's fickle!

If it is properly taught, you can learn much about life and get some ideas for how to live (or not live) yours (and I don't mean just not to kill yourself over some chick). Look for the underlying themes and try not to get tripped up too much by the archaic language.

Just some trivia: Shakespeare was a contemporary of the founders of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America (the fort of John Smith of Pocahontas fame). He also lived during the translation of the King James Bible. (I find boring things become more interesting when I can tie them to other events.)