Romeo and Juliet

Act II, scene iiClose Reading

“The Balcony Scene”

Form discussion groups of 2-3 people. These should be people with whom you do

not normally work. When your group has been organized, send

one person up to get the materials necessary for this lesson.

In addition to the material I provide, your group will need a separate sheet of paper for its written responses.

Discussion Groups

Analyze how an author's choices concerning how to

structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.

Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

Standards Addressed

Vestal livery (n) = virginal appearance

Doff (v) = cast off; get rid of; remove

Aloft (adv) = high above

Baptized (v) = gave a name to

Key Vocabulary

Follow along in your copy of the text while

listening to the professional reading of Act II, scene ii, lines 1-51.

Professional Reading

Choose someone to read aloud lines 1-34.

As a group, respond to the following questions about lines 1-35. I should see multiple forms of handwriting.

To whom is Romeo talking? How do you know? What phrase(s) or word(s) in lines 12-14 can help

you make meaning of the word discourses? What can you infer about Juliet’s physical actions

from the way Romeo describes her in these lines?

Romeo’s Soliloquy

Choose someone to read aloud lines 36-51.

As a group, respond to the following questions about lines 36-51. I should see multiple forms of handwriting.

To whom is Juliet speaking? How do you know? You may want to look at Romeo’s lines again to help your answer.

What does the audience know about this scene that Juliet does not?

Juliet’s Soliloquy

Reread lines 35-38.

What does Juliet want Romeo to do? Why?

Reread lines 40-44. What relationship is Juliet establishing between

the name of a thing and the thing itself? Reread lines 45-49.

How does Juliet’s claim about the nature of a rose apply to Romeo?

Closer Reading

Consider lines 35-51 in your discussion/written

response of the following question:

How might Juliet’s soliloquy have been different if she had known Romeo was listening? Hint: Consider the length of this soliloquy in comparison to the length of other things she has said previously.

Reading Closer Still

Independent Formative Assessment:

Why do you think Shakespeare crafted this scene so that the audience is aware of Romeo’s presence before Juliet is aware of it?

Remember to use evidence from the text to support your answer.

Set your Quick Write on the front of the Document Camera when you are done.

Quick Write