Strife and Love
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“There’s something about love that builds up and is creative. There is something about hate that tears down and is destructive. So love your enemies.”, a quote by Reverend Martin Luther King, from a book of his sermons, A Knock at Midnight. These words create an idea known as a paradox, a seemingly ridiculous or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when explained may prove to be correct or true. Paradoxes themselves occur throughout Shakespeare’s works, especially Romeo and Juliet, as well as the Taming of the Shrew, and lead to very difficult meanings when not read carefully. Of course, the focus is on the paradox of love vs. hate, and how it is expressed in two plays of Shakespeare, in many literary devices, mainly oxymorons and puns, in Romeo and Juliet, the love and hate between the Montagues and Capulets, as well as the deaths of the star-crossed lovers, and their families’ unity, then in Taming of the Shrew, the relationship of Kate and Petruchio. In short, the paradox of love vs. hate will be explained through these stories, and how it defines as being an “undeniable fact of life.
Brian Le
Ms. Crawford
Honors English I
13 November 2015
Loving Hate, Hating Love: A Puzzling Paradox
Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “There’s something about love that builds up and is creative. There is something about hate that tears down and is destructive. So love your enemies.,”, (a quote by Reverend Martin Luther King, from a book of his sermons, A Knock at Midnight). These words create an idea known as a paradox,; a seemingly ridiculous or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when explained may prove to be correct or true. Paradoxes themselves occur throughout William Shakespeare’s works, especially Romeo and Juliet, andas well as Tthe Taming of the Shrew, and lead to very difficult meanings when not read carefully. Of course, the focus is on the paradox of love vs. hate, and how it is expressed in two plays of Shakespeare, in many literary devices, mainly oxymorons and puns, in Romeo and Juliet, the love and hate between the Montagues and Capulets, as well as the deaths of the star-crossed lovers, and their families’ unity, as well as in Taming of the Shrew, with the relationship of Kate and Petruchio. In short, the paradox of love vs. hate will be explained through these stories, and how it defines as being an “undeniable fact of life.
The first topic that proves the love vs. hate paradox is the love and hate between the Capulets and Montagues in Romeo and Juliet. One point found in Romeo and Juliet is Romeo’s statement about the fight that occurred at the beginning of Act 1, Scene 1. In the text Romeo states, “Here’s to do with hate, but more with love. Why thee, O brawling love, O loving hate, O anything of nothing first create,”(1.1.168-170). The oxymoron here is that the quarrel occurring between the Capulets and Montagues is mainly from hatred and scorn;, however, it’s also from the love within each family. Each family needs to protect their own, and that caring and protective nature of the two families leads to the violence that is created:, a paradox of love and hate. Another point related to the topic of love vs. hate between the two rival families is Juliet’s own personal view on her love for Romeo. When she learns of Romeo’s identity. Juliet quotesremarks, “My only love sprung from my only hate, too early seen unknown, and known too late,!”(1.5.135-136).! This detail clearly shows its meaning, Juliet’s only love, Romeo, comes from the family she is supposed to hate, and she feels that it is too late now that she finally knows who he is to reverse the feelings they have developed over the course of the evening. This idea is not as complex as some quotes and exhibits how love can be derived from hate, as Juliet falls in love with someone who is supposed to her enemy, and this creates a very paradoxical circumstance within the textnature itself. The relationship of the two clans is immensely related to the love vs. hate paradox, as shown through Romeo and Juliet’s views on their families’ feud;, it connects two words of complete opposite meanings, and proves that there is in fact a paradox within the vendetta between these two families.
AMoving on to another topic, which is of the same importance as the equally importantprevious subject,, is the significance of the death of Romeo and Juliet,; as well as, the reconciliation of the Montagues and Capulets, and how it all connects to the love vs. hate paradox. For instance, the way in which how the ending of Romeo and Juliet plays out is a reflective outcome,: the Prince’s criticism of the families’ bad blood towards the end of the play is one of the pieces of evidence that shows how the love vs. hate paradox is an idea used in this part of the text. Towards the end of the final act, the Prince remarks, “See what a scourge is bid upon your hate, that heaven find means to kill your joys with love,”(5.3.291-292). In other words, Prince Escalus states that the families’ disputes have led to bloodshed and disaster,. t The lovers’ passionate romance was created at least in part by their families’ rivalry, which has caused both sides suffering and pain. Naturally, this shows the paradox of love and hate within Romeo and Juliet, how love comes from hate, and how in the end love causes both families to endure have pain and suffering. In additionMoving onto another point of interest, the reconciliation of the two rival families is another subject worth delving into, as it also connects to the love and hate paradox. After the deaths of their children, Capulet and Montague apologize to one another, with Capulet declaring, “As rich shall Romeo’s by his lady’s lie, poor sacrifices of our enmity.” (5.3.303-304). This quote demonstrates means that Romeo and Juliet’s deaths