I foud out that there are many similarities between these two pieces and while doing a little research I found out that I was not the only one who saw this. First, the most noticeable thing of all, their initials. R and J. In one hand we have Romeo and Juliet, and on the other hand we have Rose and Jack. Pure coincidence? I don´t really think so.
Going a bit deeper into the plot, both, the play and the movie are based on Aristotle´s structure of a tragedy and follow the same pattern of separation which will end in a disaster for the main characters.
"The aim of tragedy, Aristotle writes, is to bring about a "catharsis" of the spectators — to arouse in them sensations of pity and fear, and to purge them of these emotions so that they leave the theater feeling cleansed and uplifted, with a heightened understanding of the ways of gods and men. This catharsis is brought about by witnessing some disastrous and moving change in the fortunes of the drama's protagonist."(http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/a/agamemnon-the-choephori-and-the-eumenides/critical-essay/aristotle-on-tragedy )
In the case of Rome and Juliet, we already know that both characters die, Romeo decides to drink the most powerful poison ever created after seeing Juliet "supposedly dead" and then she does the same after seeing Romeo dying in her arms.
In Titanic we have something very similar. After the ship collides with the iceberg and they are all screaming for help, we already know that we have to prepare ourselves for something very dramatic. In this movie only the male character dies but it is equally painful because they cannot stay together; Rose survived but she lost the love of her life so it becomes a tragedy afterwards too.
Other similarities I was able to notice were for example that in Titanic , both main characters belong to very different lifestyles and soiety; including family, peers and friends who believe they should not be together. In the case of Romeo and Juliet, the Capulet´s and the Montague´s have been enemies for a long time and they are not supposed to fraternize with any member of the other house.
In the case of the female characters, Rose and Juliet are forced to marry someone they don´t want to but that is accepted by their families so they cannot freely love the person they want to; a forbidden love which cannot be possible.
In the case of the male characters both sacrifice themselves for their beloved one. For Romeo, he killed himself because he wanted to be with Juliet at any cost and in the case of Jack, he gives his live to let Rose survive.
Now it´s time for you to think about what they have in common. Can you find any other similarity or are they completely different for you? Let´s make the exercise :D
Juliet's nurse vs. Molly Brown, maybe? Both of them are not what it's expected by society, Molly is looked down on (happens sort of the same with the nurse), both of them always go straight to the point (making mistakes, of course) and in more simple terms, have you noticed how similar the way they speak is? Also, both of them are the last people Juliet and Rose REALLY trust. I had never paid attention to this, to be honest. Btw, I still think Rose was a jerk for not sharing that piece of wood, door or whatever it was.
ResponderEliminarHahaha, I also think that they would have perfectly fit on that piece of wood, but maybe it was part of their destiny to be appart. Destiny, fate or whatever has its misterious way of doing things and at the same time this part follows the pattern of Aristotle´s theory of tragedy. We have to admit that in the future neither Romeo and Juliet nor Rose and Jack would have succeeded as a couple ( or maybe that is the way I see it) because reality doesn´t work in that way.
EliminarHi Samantha!
ResponderEliminarI have to admit that I have watched Titanic more than thirty times, and none of them I thought about it as related to Romeo and Juliet. But now that I have read your reflection, the resemblance is obvious!
That only makes me think of how many movies have this "Romeo and Juliet" idea hidden. As you proposed, you only need to make the exercise to discover that the similarities are present in most of them. Even in our Chilean soup operas share this idea in which the differences between the lovers (either economical, or related to their beliefs and traditions) force them risk it everything for their love (I am not going to mention any of it, but I'm sure you have already thought about some). It is interesting how Shakespearean ideas are still included on what we watch and read without us knowing about it. (From now on, I am going to pay attention to every romantic movie and book I watch/read to see how much of Shakespeare I can find) :D