Chris Puente
2nd Period
The Impulsive Romeo and Juliet

Love is:
Love means knowing someone intimately and caring about them and their well-being

Position Statement:
Romeo and Juliet's relationship was not true love because they did not truly know each other.

Evidence from the play:

Romeo and Juliet's actions were rash showing that they were not in love.
During the balcony scene, Juliet is so overcome by her feelings for Romeo that she suggests they go ahead and get married. She says, "all my fortunes at they foot I'll lay" (2.2.146). Juliet has known Romeo for only a few hours, but she likes the way it feels to be with him. As a result, she is willing to give herself to him totally without really knowing him.

Later, when Romeo asks the friar to marry them, the friar points out how quickly this is happening by exclaiming, "What change is here! Is Rosaline...so soon forsaken?" (2.3.65-66) In just one night, Romeo has forgotten the girl he was obsessed with yesterday and wants to marry Juliet.

That sort of rash behavior is not love.

Evidence from the articles:

Research shows that teenagers often act impulsively because they respond to situations with a gut reaction instead of thinking it through.

Deborah Yurgelun-Todd, a scientist, points out that a "teenager's brain may be responding with more of a gut reaction than [a] more thinking kind of response" (Yurgelun-Todd).
This could explain why Romeo and Juliet acted like they did. They didn't love each other, they were just responding to their situation with what felt good at the time.

Call to Action:

Teenagers should not make rash decisions based on how they feel because their feelings might not be genuine. If they do act rashly, teens could end up like Romeo and Juliet.

Works Cited

• Shakespeare, William. "Romeo and Juliet." 2010. Holt McDougal Literature: Texas Grade 9. Evanston, IL: Holt McDougal, a Division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010. 1036-145. Print. 
• Yurgelun-Todd, Deborah. "Inside the Teenage Brain." Interview. Frontline. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. .