17th Century Rules of Marriage Activity

This site contains a brief overview of the rules of marriage for 17th Century England. Reading through this document will assist you with the activity posted directly following this link.

http://www.folger.edu/documents/marriagenew.pdf

This provides the basis for the Rules of Marriage Activity. I suggest you open it in a separate tab so that you can continually refer back to it as you progress through the questions/tasks.

http://www.folger.edu/documents/17thCenturyRulesnew1.pdf

The play Romeo and Juliet often raises questions amongst readers about marriage in Shakespeare's day. This activity allows you to examine a primary source from 1604 to help you gain a better understanding of the rules of marriage in the early seventeenth century, and to apply that knowledge to the play in several ways. This is a follow on from the information found on the Rules of Marriage document that is hyperlinked before this activity.

This activity will take one to two class periods.

What To Do:
1. Make sure you have completed a careful reading of the play.

2. Open the website that is hyperlinked here.

3. Look at the key below which shows you how to read the document (i.e. how to translate the various letters):

v = u

u = v

i = j

f = s

vv = w

Read it silently for a moment, then read it together in your small group/pair.

4. Have a brief brainstorming session for 10–15 minutes about what you think Lord Capulet and Friar Lawrence would think about the document, based upon their behavior in the play.

5. In your small groups/pair with you will be focusing on Lord Capulet and Friar Lawrence. You need to find the relevant details in the document that relate to their character's ideas about marriage. Then, prepare a statement that demonstrates your understanding of the document as well as the characters' feelings about it.

6. As a group/pair you will present your statement.

7. For homework, you need to choose one of the characters (not Lord Capulet or Friar Lawrence) and write a one page paper that expresses the character's more general opinions about marriage. Be sure that you refer to the text of the play to provide evidence for their beliefs. This paper could be written as a letter to the editor, a letter to a parent or child, or a more formal essay. Be creative: the one rule is that the written piece must refer to the play as well as to the document you have just examined.

Reflection Activity: How Did It Go?

1. Did you enjoy and understand the primary source document? Explain your answer.


2. Did the members of your group/pair have varied opinions about the text and its meanings? How did you work around these differing interpretations?


3. Do you think you were effective in expressing the different views the different characters would have about marriage? Explain why/why not?


4. Do you think your statements reflected an understanding of the text? Explain your answer.


5. Do you think your responses demonstrated your understanding of the character's motivations? Explain your answer.