Essay/Term paper: Similarities of two famous tales of love

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Culture

Similarities of Two Famous Tales of Love


In one of the most famous love stories of this century, many elements
from anotherfamous tale of love were borrowed. In many instances, Westside Story
mirrored Shakespeare'sRomeo And Juliet. Many similarities were noted from the
characterization to the plot structure.However, they differed as well.
In Westside Story, some characters shared personalities with those of
Romeo And Juliet.The families of the Capulets and Montagues were well
represented by two gangs, the Sharks andthe Jets. Both being ineffective rulers,
officer Krumpke and the Prince struggle to keep peace if their cities both to no
avail and warned," If you disturb our streets again, your lives shall pay
theforfeit of peace."( ) . Due to their differing backgrounds,
Tony being affiliated with the Jets and Maria with the Sharks, Tony and Maria
partook in forbidden love much like Romeo and Juliet. Much like Tybalt, Bernado
disapproved of their love and was quick to fight with anymember of the Jets or
Tony. However, Anita, Bernardo's girlfriend, approved of their love because she
just wanted to see Maria happy like the Nurse. Overwhelmed by all the fighting,
Baby John was much like Tybalt's peace keeping foil character, Mercutio. Lastly,
Doc tried to help Tony and stop all the insanity around him like Friar Laurence.
In both stories, comic relief occurred to keep the audience interested,
but the two plays usually differed in their approaches to comedy. In Romeo And
Juliet, Mercutio amused the audience with his actions and soliloquies. Westside
Story didn't have a character like Mercutio, so it used a combination of their
dance and characters for comic relief. The Jets performed a humorous song that
mocked Officer Krumpke. Also, to enliven the audience, The Jets always picked
on Anybodys, a scruffy looking girl who always tried to get in the gang.
Depsite those different approaches for comedy, Westside Story immitated
Mercutio and other Montagues' scene with the Nurse, taunting her and exclaimimg,
" ...hide her face; for her fan's the fairer of the two " ( ), when
Anita went to Doc's,and they mocked her saying so this what a P.R. woman looks
like and tossing her around.
The settings from these plays did not differ much at all. Tony and
Maria had to hide their love from their families to avoid being separated.
Bernardo and Anita already arranged a marriage between Maria and Chino like that
of Juliet and Paris's arranged marriage. The Jets and Sharks frequently rumbled
to prove who was the best gang in the Westside like the Capulets and Montagues
fought to prove who was the best family in Verona, as expressed by the opening
prologue," Two housesolds, both alike in dignity... from ancient grudge to break
to new mutiny" ( ) . At the conclusion, both delivered the same
message that the tragedy was everyone's fault not just one person.
The plots and scenes for these two plays were uncannily alike. Like
Romeo and Juliet, Tony and Maria met at a dance and it was love a first sight
for both. Their love lifes were a secret because of the warring between the
gangs like that of the hostile Montagues and Capulets. Romeo And Juliet's
famous balcony scene was mimed by Tony and Maria's fire escape scene. After the
loss of their dearest friends, Romeo and Tony both killed someone from their
lover's family. After hearing of her brother Bernardo's death, Maria still
wanted to stay with Tony like Juliet, even if it meant leaving her whole life
behind and fleeing with him. However, the endings differed a bit. First, Chino,
the Paris character, murdered Tony to avenge Bernardo's death. Rather than
killing herself, Maria wept and gave a lecture much like the Prince's "All are
punished !"( ), saying it wasn't Chino who killed Tony it was
everyone because everyone was filled with hate.
Thus, the characters, plot, humor, and setting of Westside Story
originated from one Shakespeare's most prolific plays, Romeo And Juliet . The
similarities of these two famous tales of love made Westside Story showed that a
love story from ages ago could reappear and be successful in the 20th century.