Hello everyone, it's lovely to see you here today.

My name's Dr.

Clayton and I'm here to guide you through your learning journey today.

Today's lesson's called Exploring Romeo's Unrequited Love for Rosaline in "Romeo and Juliet." Now, when you think about the idea of love in "Romeo and Juliet," your first nod normally obviously goes to Romeo and Juliet themselves, but exploring how Romeo feels about his first love in the play, Rosaline, is very revealing in terms of how Romeo sees the concept of love.

So if you're ready, grab your pen, laptop, whatever you using for this lesson, and let's get started.

So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to explain how Romeo's attitude towards love is presented in Act 1, Scene 1 of "Romeo and Juliet." So we have five words today we're going to be using as our keywords.

They're identified in bold throughout the learning material.

And I'll try to put that too as well so that it can be used in context.

So first word is unrequited, which is where a feeling, especially love, is not returned.

This applies to Romeo and Rosaline because Romeo tells that Rosaline does not feel the same way about him.

Our second keyword objectification, which means the actor or instance treating a person as an object or a thing.

We're going to analyse the language that Romeo used about Rosaline.

A think about how we might interpret it as Romeo talking about Rosaline as if she's an object, rather than a person.

Our third keyword is melancholy, which means sadness that lasts for a long period of time.

Because of Romeo's unrequited love for Rosaline, Shakespeare presents this feeling melancholy, feeling sad.

Our fourth keyword is lust, which means intense desire for something, particularly sexual desire.

We're going to think about whether we might see Romeo's feelings for Rosaline as lust rather than love.

Our final keyword is oxymoron, which means two words of phrase used together that have or seem to have opposite meanings.

We're going to be analysing Romeo's use of oxymorons and think, well, what that might reveal to us about his feelings towards love and his feelings towards Rosaline.

So I'll just give you a moment to write down those keywords and their definitions.

So pause the video, write them down now.

Fantastic, let's get started with the lesson.

So we have three learning cycles in our lesson today.

For our first learning cycle, we're going to look at how Romeo is feeling and Act 1, Scene 1, by analysing both what others say about him, what he himself says.

We're going to think about what that might tell us about the relationship between Romeo and the idea of love.

For our second learning cycle, we're going to look at the specific language that Romeo uses when he is talking about Rosaline, and think about how Shakespeare represents Romeo's love for Rosaline through that language.

For our third learning cycle, we're going to analyse Romeo's use for oxymorons in Act 1, Scene 1 and what that might tell us about not only Romeo's feelings for Rosaline, but also how it might foreshadow the tragic ending of "Romeo and Juliet." So let's just start by giving ourselves a little bit of context before we start looking at the language of Act 1, Scene 1.

So in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," Romeo begins the play in love with Rosaline.

In Act 1, Scene 1, there's a brawl, so a fight, between the Montagues and the Capulets.

However, Romeo is not present.

Rather than being at the fight, Romeo begins to play offstage thinking about his unrequited love for Rosaline.

So Romeo begins to play separate from the other characters, thinking about how his feelings for Rosaline aren't returned.

This already indicates to us that Romeo prioritises love over everything else.

Now, as I said, Romeo begins to play offstage and separated from the other characters.

We first hear about him rather than from him himself.

The first thing we hear about Romeo is from Benvolio when he says, "So early walking that I see your son.

Towards him I made, but he was 'ware of me.

And stole into the covert of the wood." So let's just talk about the meaning of a couple of those words.

Now, "stole" means to move quietly, and "covert" means not openly acknowledging something.

So covert mission is a secret mission, or covert can also mean a dense group of trees.

So Benvolio saying he saw Romeo moving quietly and secretly into a dense group of trees.

So what I'd like you to start off by thinking about is what impression of Romeo does this give you? What might it suggest about his character? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Now as the other people, Izzy says, "The idea of someone moving quietly into a thick group of trees, suggest someone who's trying to hide from the world.

someone who's isolated themselves and feeling melancholic." So someone's isolating themselves and feeling sadness." Now let's think about Romeo's first actual lines in the play.

I always think it's so important to consider what someone's opening lines are because it reveals so much about how Shakespeare wants us as the audience to see them.

So Romeo's first two lines in the play are, "Is the day so young? Ay me, sad hours seem long? Was that my father that went hence so fast?" Now what I'd like you to focus on here, it's about the Romeo's first two lines of questions.

I'd like to think about what that might reveal about his emotional state.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Let's talk through some of the things you might have said.

Now, if we see a character asking a lot of questions that might suggest they're not feeling sure of themselves, so perhaps Romeo's showing a sense of uncertainty.

We also might see Romeo's questions suggesting he's feeling off balance.

He doesn't feel sure of his place in the world around him or what's happening around him.

So now for a quick check for understanding, what I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false? When we first meet Romeo, he's feeling melancholic.

So he's feeling sad.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

The correct answer is true.

Now I'd like to tell me why it's true.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

And they might have said that Romeo is avoiding the company of others and his use of questions implies he's feeling uncertain and unsure about something.

So very well done if you've got those right.

So now let's think specifically about how Romeo presents himself in love.

When talking about his unrequited love, Romeo says, "I have lost myself.

I'm not here.

This is not Romeo.

He's some other where." I love this line.

I think it's so simple, but sums up so well that feeling of losing that sense of self, 'cause you're so lost in your emotions and your obsession for someone else.

For me, this is why Shakespeare is so enduring.

He can summarise emotions so simply and beautifully in a way that would make sense to people hundreds of years ago, but also make sense to people today.

So what I'd like you to think about is what does this suggest about how Romeo sees love? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now as Izzy says, "Romeo is saying he's lost himself.

It's just that Romeo sees love as something that's integral to his identity.

If his love is not returned, he's nobody." Now we've heard that Romeo feels he's not himself, he's lost.

And that might suggest to us that Romeo feels incredibly strongly about Rosaline.

What I think is fascinating though is there are 50 lines between Romeo's first line and his first mention of Rosaline.

So instead of talking about Rosaline, Romeo first tells Benvolio about what love feels like and how he feels within this love.

So what I'd like you to think about is what might that tell us about Romeo and love? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back, everyone's fantastic ideas there.

Now as other people, Lucas says, "I think that Romeo cares more about the feeling of being in love rather than the person you're supposed to be in love with." Now this is something that happen to people.

They love addictive feeling of being in love rather than loving the actual person they're with.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false that Shakespeare suggests Romeo feels as if love is unimportant.

Pause the video, make a selection now.

Now, the correct answer is false.

Now I'd like to tell me why it's false.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, and they might have said that by saying that Romeo is not himself without love, Shakespeare implies that love is integral to Romeo's identity.

So very well done if you've got those right.

Fantastic work so far, everyone.

Now the first task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is think about the following ideas.

So Romeo appears melancholic, uncertain and unsure.

Romeo is not Romeo without love.

And Romeo talks about the feeling of being in love rather than talking of Rosaline.

And I'd like you to answer the question, what do you think Shakespeare's saying about Romeo and love? I'd like to write a few sentences to explain your ideas.

So pause the video, answer the question now.

Welcome back everyone, some amazing work there.

What I'd like you to do now, is think about Izzy's ideas and think about how well they align with your ideas.

So Izzy said, "I think Shakespeare is suggesting that Romeo sees the idea of love as all consuming.

His entire identity is wrapped up in the idea of being in love and he is not Romeo without it.

By isolating Romeo, Shakespeare implies that nothing else matters to him more than the feeling of being in love.

Furthermore, by having the delay between mentioning Rosaline herself, Shakespeare may be suggesting that for Romeo, the feeling of being a love is more important than the object of his affections." So pause the video, think about how well Izzy's ideas align with your ideas.

Welcome back everyone.

Now we're going to move on to the language that Romeo used to talk about Rosaline, and what that might reveal about his feelings for her.

Amazing work everyone.

We're now into the second learning cycle.

We're going to analyse Romeo's language towards Rosaline, and how Shakespeare represents his love for her.

Now, as with the character's first line, the first thing a character says about another can also be very revealing in terms of how they feel to towards that character.

In terms of Romeo and Rosaline, the first thing we hear about Rosaline is that she's fair, which means she's beautiful.

Romeo then repeatedly calls Rosaline a beauty throughout his conversation with Benvolio.

So what I'd like you to think about is what might this tell us about Romeo's feelings towards Rosaline? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, there's fantastic ideas there.

As Lucas says, "I think it's just that Romeo's love for Rosaline is more lust than love because it's based on her physical appearance." So it's just that Romeo feels an intense desire for Rosaline, particularly sexual desire because of his focus on how she looks rather than who she is as a person.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to tell me, is what are the implications of Romeo repeatedly using in the word beauty in relation to Rosaline.

Does it, A, demonstrate that she's beautiful.

B, imply he cares for her looks above all else, or C, it's just that Romeo sees beauty as more than skin deep.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now obviously Romeo repeating beauty, just that Rosaline is indeed beautiful.

We need to think about what that's telling us about Romeo's feelings for Rosaline.

It's just he cares for her looks above all else.

So very well done if you got that right.

Now as well as being a beauty, Romeo also refers to Rosaline as a treasure.

What I'd like you to think about is what are the connotations of treasure? So what ideas or feelings do we get from the idea of calling someone a treasure? What might the significance be? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Let's talk through some of the things you might have said.

Now, calling someone a treasure might give us the idea of a prize, which could imply that Romeo sees Rosaline as something to be won.

This, along with the fact that treasure is a physical object might lead us to think that Romeo's objectifying Rosaline by suggesting she's merely an object with no feelings of her own.

Furthermore, people hunt for treasure.

It's something that's desired and sought after, which could suggest that Romeo enjoys the pursuit of Rosaline more than Rosaline herself.

So now for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is tell me which interpretation of the word treasure do you think is most relevant to Romeo's feelings for Rosaline? Is it A, Romeo is suggesting to Benvolio that Rosaline is rich, or B, Romeo could be implying he sees Rosaline as a prize.

So pause the video, make a selection now.

Welcome back everyone.

The correct answer is B.

Romeo could be implying he sees Rosaline as a prize.

Now I'd like to tell me why that's the most relevant.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Now, while treasure is equated with richness, Romeo is saying that Rosaline is treasure rather than her having treasure, so therefore suggesting he sees Rosaline as a prize.

So very well done if you got those right.

Now, something I think is really important to consider.

It's about the threats conversation with Benvolio, Romeo never mentions Rosaline's name.

We only know her name is Rosaline from other characters.

Furthermore, we never hear from Rosaline herself.

She has no lines in the play and she's never on stage.

So what I'd like you to do is say what is the significance of this might be? So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some amazing ideas there.

Let's talk through some of the things you might have said.

Now, potentially the fact that Romeo never says Rosaline's name could suggest he doesn't really care about her.

It could reinforce the idea that Romeo enjoys the feeling of being in love and the pursuit of Rosaline rather than Rosaline herself.

We also might suggest that Rosaline's lack of voice, suggest she doesn't have importance.

Just as Romeo talked about his own feelings before mentioning her, it's just that his feelings are prioritised over her.

So now for a quick check for understanding, what I'd like you to do is tell me whether the following statement is true or false.

So is it true or false that Romeo failing to mention Rosaline's name is arguably an unimportant detail? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

The correct answer is false.

Now I'd like to tell me why it's false.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

They might have said, "By not saying her name, Shakespeare implies that Romeo cares more for the feeling of being in love rather than Rosaline herself." So very well done if you got those right.

Fantastic work everyone.

We're not at the second task of the lesson.

So what I'd like you to do is write an analytical paragraph to answer the question, "How does Shakespeare present Romeo's love for Rosaline?" And you might consider the following factors.

That Romeo's depiction of Rosaline focuses on her physical appearance.

Romeo refers to Rosaline as a treasure, and Romeo never refers to Rosaline by name, merely as she.

So pause the video, write your paragraph now.

Welcome back everyone, some amazing work there.

So what I'd like you to do now is think about Lucas's analytical paragraph, and think about how it could be extended by think about the lack of reference to Rosaline's name.

So Lucas said, "By first referring to Rosaline is fair, and then repeatedly calling her a beauty, Shakespeare implies that Romeo's love for Rosaline is surface deep.

He gets more for her looks than her as a person.

This is enhanced by the comparison to treasure as it objectifies Rosaline as says she's something valuable to be pursued rather than a human being." So pause the video, think about how we might extend Lucas's answer.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

They might have said perhaps Lucas could add.

"Furthermore, the lack of reference to her name perhaps further implies she herself is unimportant.

That Romeo enjoys the pursuit of her rather than actually loving her as a person." So now we're going to move on to the third learning cycle.

We're going to analyse Romeo's use of oxymorons.

Fantastic work everyone.

We're now to the third learning cycle where we're going to consider Romeo's oxymorons, and what they might suggest about, not only Romeo's love for Rosaline, but also what he might push out about his love for Juliet.

So let's start by defining an oxymoron and identifying them.

So Romeo's depiction for his love for Rosaline is full of oxymorons.

an oxymoron is two words or phrases used together that have or seem to have opposite meanings.

So Romeo says, "Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate, O anything of nothing first create! O heavy lightness, serious vanity, misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms, feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, still-waking sleep that is not what it is." So what I'd like you to do is identify where Romeos use oxymorons in his speech.

So pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

Here are the oxymorons.

We have brawling love, loving hate, heavy lightness, serious vanity, feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, and still-waking sleep.

All of these phrases have words of the opposite meaning.

For example, brawling means to fight, which is the opposite of love, and love and hate are well known opposites.

So now let's focus on what those oxymorons might mean in terms of Romeo's love for Rosaline.

So Romeo use the following oxymorons.

"O brawling love, O loving hate." "O heavy lightness, serious vanity." "Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health." So what I'd like to think about is what might the use of these oxymorons, so words with opposite meanings, suggest about Romeo's love for Rosaline.

Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Now let's think about what you might have said.

So you might have thought that Romeos use oxymorons reveals as love for Rosaline is unrequited.

So it's not returned.

We think of being in love as meaning you're aligned with someone else.

You find your soulmate.

And using words with opposite meanings doesn't suggest ideas of alignment or being in sync with someone.

You also might have thought it's just that Romeo sees love as conflicting, 'cause conflicting means something incompatible or contradictory, and that's exactly what oxymorons are.

You also might have thought, it's just that Romeo and Rosaline aren't meant to be together.

They're opposites that don't fit.

Now, "O brawling love, O loving hate" is possibly the most famous oxymoron from Romeo's speech.

And I just wanna focus on it for a few minutes.

And think about what it might reveal about the nature of love in the play.

So I'd like to start off by thinking about what are the connotations of brawling and hate? So what ideas or feelings do we get from those words? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

They might have said that both words are violent, angry connotations.

To brawl is to fight and to hate is to have strong dislike for something else.

So what I'd like to think about now is what might these violent connotations that are associated with love foreshadow? So what might these violent connotations suggest about the future and love? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone.

They might have said that perhaps it might foreshadow the inescapable connection between violence and love within "Romeo and Juliet." Now, let's see if we're can extend those ideas further.

I'd like to look again at "O brawling love, O loving hate," and think about where love is positioned in relation to the violent words.

What significance might that have? Pause the video, take a few moments to consider.

Welcome back everyone, some great ideas there.

Now as Lucas says, "Love is placed in between the violent words.

So perhaps it represents that love is trapped within the violence and it cannot escape." So now for a quick check for understanding.

So what might the use of oxymorons suggest about Romeo's love for Rosaline? Is it A, the use of oxymorons could imply their love is fated.

B, the use of oxymorons could suggest they're not meant to be together.

Or C, the use of oxymorons may hint that Romeo cares more for himself than Rosaline.

So pause the video, make your selection now.

Welcome back everyone.

Now an oxymoron is use of two words with opposite meanings.

So that could suggest that Romeo and Rosaline are not meant to be together.

So very well done if you got that right.

Amazing work everyone.

Now to the final task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is discuss which interpretation of Romeo's oxymoron, "O brawling love, O loving hate" do you find the most convincing? Is it, that it represents Romeo's unrequited love for Rosaline? So is unreturned love for Rosaline, or, that it foreshadows the violent end to Romeo's love for Juliet? So pause the video, think of which interpretation you find the most convincing.

Welcome back everyone, some fantastic discussions there.

What I'd like you to know is think about Lucas and Izzy's ideas, and think about whose ideas align more closely with yours.

So Lucas said, "I think oxymorons represent Romeo's unrequited love for Rosaline.

They suggest something incompatible and something conflicting." And Izzy said, "I think the oxymorons foreshadow Romeo and Juliet's fate.

It's just that love and violence are inseparable." So pause the video, think about whose ideas align more closely with your ideas.

Welcome back everyone.

Now, as I said earlier, looking at Romeo and how he is when he's in love with Rosaline, it's very revealing.

It's just that Romeo sees love as integral to a sense of self, as well as offering us a comparison.

Should his love for Juliet is real love.

You all did amazingly well today, everyone.

Here's a summary of what we covered.

At the beginning of "Romeo and Juliet" Romeo is in love with Rosaline, but it's unrequited.

Romeo is melancholic at the beginning of the play, he's isolating himself and feeling uncertain.

Romeo's depiction of Rosaline implies his love for her is more lust than love.

The oxymorons within Romeo's speech could represent his unrequited love for Rosaline.

The oxymorons could also foreshadow the inescapable connection between love and violence within "Romeo and Juliet." I really hope you enjoyed the lesson, everyone.

I hope to see you for another lesson soon.

Goodbye.