Shakespeare is remembered as a legendary play writer. Most of his works are defined as tragic plays which results in the untimely death of the main characters. The main characters in his plays meet their “tragic” death through breaking the norms of the society, “Vienna and Verona”. Fornication and adultery are sexual crimes that trigger mixed reactions in a society, some debates on the person who ought to be punished, the lady or the man or both? However, what causes a greater storm is the acceptable form of punishment for the offenders. While some societies have “friendly” punishments, others punish the sex offenders through “death sentences”.
At the end of the book Romeo and Juliet, Friar Laurence tells the whole story of “stars cross’d lovers”. In addition to that, the reader is left with prince elegy description for the lovers “for never before was a story more woe/ than this of Juliet and her Romeo”
In most cases, the sentences are intended to serve as a warning to the rest of community members. Shakespeare through his work (Measure for Measure and Romeo and Juliet) draws the antagonism that emerges out of love or matters revolving around sex and how each results to grave consequences (Shakespeare,1954 pg 17). In his two plays the Measures for Measure and Romeo and Juliet, both the main and minor characters finds themselves in serious allegations revolving around sex. Angelio says “thou shall fear death” his statement in a public gathering sends cold shivers to Claudio.
The two plays acts as a measure of promiscuity, prostitution and premarital sexual affairs and the society reaction to such matters. The punishment for either of the acts is death; death is used to instill law and morality through fear. It is interesting to note that some characters in both plays equate sex to death while other term sex as synonym for death! This intends to draw a picture of the harsh punishments issued to any sex offender as well as instill fear among the people.
In addition to that, many characters such as Romeo in the play “Romeo and Juliet” are exiled from the society while Claudio in the play” Measure for Measure” is sentenced to death by the city ruler, Angelio. Generally, the two plays revolve around mercy, truth and justice in a relationship and matters dealing with sex before or outside marriage. As the play Measure for Measure opens up, we are introduced both to Isabella, Isabella is the main character who is drawn to be a “chaste and very virtuous lady who dreams to be a nun”. Isabella is scared of any matters that revolve around sex, she declines sleeping with Angelio.
She terms it as loosing eternal life to save earthly life of her brother, Claudio. She faces a hard time when her brother Claudio is sentenced to death by Angelio for engaging in unlawful sex-fornication. Although Claudio was formally engaged to the girl, the two engages in sex before marriage leading to Claudio’s death sentence. Likewise, in the play Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is sentenced to death for fatally wounding Mercutio. Mercutio death though accidental revolves around Juliet, Romeo and Tybalt. It is interesting to note that Shakespeare draws the society as one that only punishes the men. At no point is a woman sentenced to death for being an accomplice to sexual activities committed by the man.
In the play Measure for Measure, Lucio is drawn as a man who likes the company of whores, bawds and pimps. Lucio also falls under the zeal of Angelo-ruler of the city. A closer look in the play Romeo and Juliet reveals that Romeo is initially in love with Rosaline. It is in a plan to meet Rosaline that Romeo meets Juliet; their meeting acts as a sign to the beginning of their troubles. Tybalt is outraged by Romeo and plans to kill him but he is stopped by Juliet’s Father. Tybalt keep the grudge against Romeo, later in the play when Romeo tries to settle the conflict between Tybalt and Mercutio, the latter is fatally wounded. Romeo had crushed a party with an aim of seeing Rosaline. On the other, Tybalt appears to have been interested in winning Juliet’s love. However, Tybalt loses Juliet to Romeo which creates great hatred in Tybalt, he hatch a plan to kill Romeo. Romeo intercepts to stop the fight which leaves Mercutio dead. Romeo confronts Tybalt and “slays” him
The play Romeo and Juliet revolve around two young stars lost in a love zeal-Romeo and Juliet. The two lovers’ death acts as the ultimate union for their fighting families. When Romeo is exiled from Verona, Juliet takes a drug that would lender her lifeless for some hours. Her aim is to escape from the already planned marriage, she intend to either wait or go searching for his exiled lover Romeo. However, Romeo gets the wrong message and believes that her lover is dead. When Romeo learns of her lover’s death he buys poison at the apothecary and kills himself. Upon waking up from her long sleep, Juliet learns about Romeo’s death. She takes Romeo’s dagger and stabs herself to death. Their death can be attributed to the great level of affection they had for each other.
However, before meeting the fateful tragedy, Romeo had confronted Paris. When their arguments heat up Romeo kills Paris, Romeo’s acts of murder are fuelled by the rage of being separated with her love. It is interesting to note that although the two families did not get along well, Juliet’s father is against Tybalt idea of killing Romeo. “The families bond is sealed by the deaths of Romeo and Juliet”, that brings the fighting families together.
Juliet had initially been compelled to marry Paris but she delayed the wedding. Although Juliet initially accepts to marry Capulet to count Paris who threatens to disown her, she later declines to marry Paris. Likewise, Angelio who plays the role of the ruler of the city in the play Measure for Measure engages in a sexual encounter with Mariana which leads to his death sentence by the duke. When Isabella pledges with Angelio to pardon his brother, the ruler asks for sexual favors in return he would free Claudio.
Being a chaste woman, Isabella is opposed to the idea and hatch a plan together with Mariana in which Mariana takes her place in bed. When the city’s duke learns of the affair she sentences Angelio to death too! The above affair is commonly referred to as the bed trick, Angelio tries to trick Isabella but Mariana tricks him instead! In the play Romeo and Juliet, Friar Laurence tells the whole story of “star cross’d lovers”. As the play winds up, the reader is left with prince elegy for the lovers “for never was a story more woe/ than this of Juliet and her Romeo”
In the play Measure for Measure, Mistress Overdone runs a thriving brothel in Vienna; some of her workers include Pomper the clown. As the play unfolds, we find a group of solders expressing their love and hate on Vienna streets. The solders are frequent visitors to mistress Overdone brothel. When they arrive at the brothel, mistress Overdone tells them that one of the yonder impregnated madam Julieta (Shakespeare,1954,pg 45). She commands the solders to find the yonder and chop his head off! The Yonder’s death is attributed to his sexual activities at the brothel.
In the play Measure or Measure, Isabella is drawn to have an irrational terror of sex. However, some argues that there lies some hypocrisy in her virtuous nature-she compelled a fellow woman to pull the bed trick. The Vienna sex laws are drawn as being harsh and done out of malice. The custodian of the laws (Angelio) also engages in immoral sexual activities. Nevertheless, there are some characters in the play though having committed the said crimes declines to be sentenced. In the play Romeo and Juliet, Romeo opts to run away rather than being sentenced to death.
On the other hand, Barnadine in the play measure for measure openly declines to be sentenced. In addition to that, he reveals the immorality and hypocrisy of both the duke and Angelio. In conclusion, it is evident that engaging in sexual affairs before marriage or outside wedlock results to great consequences. However, there is some irony or malice in the application of this law especially in Vienna-Measure for Measure. Although the Duke puts so much effort to punish Claudio, Barnadine and other individuals who engage in sexual activities, he fails to wipe out the thriving brothel in Vienna (Shakespeare,1954,pg 36).
Shakespeare ridicules the efforts of both the Duke and Angelio by presenting solders as frequent visitors to the brothel. In a normal setting, the solders ought to be engaging in activities that aim at wiping out immorality.
Nevertheless, it is evident that prostitution, premarital sex and other sexual affairs have serious consequences both in Vienna and Verona. The deaths of many characters or death sentenced are wholly based on sexual matters. Claudio and Angelio acts as highlights of this harsh law in the play measure for measure. On the other hand, Romeo and Juliet act as highlights of this statement in the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ in both plays, sex acts as a synonym to death, sex I death in Vienna and Verona!
Work cited
Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet. Champaign, Ill.: Project Gutenberg. Print.
Shakespeare, William, and Davis P Harding. Measure For Measure. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1954. Print.
