Is Romeo and Juliet really about love?Love and lust are very different

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Is Romeo and Juliet really about love?Love and lust are very different in today’s world and still was hundreds of years ago. Love is something that should be cultivated between two people and grow over time. Lust is built on the foundation of looks and sexual desire. Both of these emotions can leave the heart with a warm feeling or a feeling of ambition. A great a piece of literature to illustrate this difference between love and lust is Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. The relationship between love and lust in Romeo and Juliet is seen through the whole novel. Thousands of people over the years have read Romeo and Juliet and thought of the young couple as ¨young lovers¨, but is this feeling they have toward each other actually love? If you read deeper into the novel and and take the time to annotate you see the affection they share is merely lust. An example of their lust is in act five lines 1-35. In this scene Romeo and Juliet share their honeymoon night before Romeo has to runaway to Mantua. Yes, many married couples share a honeymoon the night of their marriage, but most couples do not get married in only days of meeting each other, like the young couple of Romeo and Juliet did. From the technique of Shakespeare in this novel it seems he is trying to imply it was only lust. Seeing how they met, fell in love in less then a hour, and got married the next day. Not only is their choices hinting at lust but also the way Romeo and Juliet speak to each other. In act one lines 116-118 Romeo says “ Then love not while my prayer’s effect I take. Thus from my lips, by thine my sin is purged. ( kisses her.)” Romeo says this only after an hour of Juliet, not to mention the day before he was feeling emotions toward Rosaline. This line stated only supports Romeo and Juliet are “lust lovers” seeing as how he falls for her in moments and wants to kiss as soon as he sees her. The characters of Romeo and Juliet view lust very differently from one another. The characters throughout the novel refer to lust as funny, unsettling, violent, and unholy. For example in act one lines 17-25 Sampson says, “ ‘Tis true; and therefore women, being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall. Therefore push I will Montague’s men from the wall and thrust his maids to the wall.” Gregory then says, “ The quarrel is between our masters and us their men.” Sampson replies with, “ ‘Tis all one. I will show myself a tyrant. When I have fought with the men, I will be cruel with the maids: I will cut off their heads.” These lines portray Sampson idea on lust as violent. He is boasting about his ability to overpower women. Another example of how different characters interact with lust is in act one, scene three, lines 46-54. In these lines the Nurse says, “ Yea,” “quoth he,” “ dost thou fall upon thy face? Thou wilt fall backward when thou hast more wit, Wilt thou not, Jule?” “ And, by my holidam, The pretty wretch left crying, and said” “Ay.” “To see now how a jest shall come about! I warrant, an I should live a thousand years, I never should forget it.” “ Wilt thou not, Jule?” “quoth he,” “And, pretty fool, it stined, and said,” “ Ay.” To quiet Juliet after her fall, the Nurse’s husband makes a crude joke, asking the baby whether she’ll fall on her back when she’s older. Although at age three Juliet doesn’t understand the question, she stops crying and innocently answers, “Yes.” the Nurse finds this story hilarious showing she finds the dirty joke/ lustful humor funny.