Exploring love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of 'Romeo and Juliet'
I can explain how Shakespeare presents the concepts of love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of ‘Romeo and Juliet’.
Exploring love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of 'Romeo and Juliet'
I can explain how Shakespeare presents the concepts of love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of ‘Romeo and Juliet’.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- The climax of Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is Act 3, Scene 1.
- Arguably, the climactic Act 3, Scene 1 conveys the central role of violence and honour in society.
- Romeo’s language in Act 3, Scene 1 implies that expressing love and emotions makes men weak.
- Mercutio curses the Montagues and Capulets - this could show how someone else controls their lives.
- Romeo acknowledges that fate is controlling his life and his actions in Act 3, Scene 1.
Keywords
Fate - the development of events outside a person's control, regarded as predetermined by a supernatural power
Tragedy - a play dealing with tragic events and often ends with a death
Climax - the most intense, exciting, or important point of something
Antagonistic - showing or feeling active opposition or hostility towards someone or something
Hamartia - a fatal flaw leading to the downfall of a tragic hero or heroine
Common misconception
Romeo is often said to be 'in love with love' and this is consistent throughout the play.
In Act 3, Scene 1, Romeo expresses negative feelings towards the concept of being in love.
To help you plan your year 10 english lesson on: Exploring love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of 'Romeo and Juliet', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 10 english lesson on: Exploring love, masculinity and fate in Act 3, Scene 1 of 'Romeo and Juliet', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 english lessons from the Romeo and Juliet: exploring the role of love and fate unit, dive into the full secondary english curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
Equipment
You may wish to have a copy of Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' for this lesson.
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
- Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
- Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
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