Romeo and Juliet (Abridged)

William Shakespeare; Howard Staunton (ed.) (1864(1864)) The Works of William Shakespeare London; New York, N.Y.: Routledge, Warne, & Routledge OCLC: 5665511. 4 vols.

Prologue

There are two similar households,

In beautiful Verona where our scene begins,

An outbreak of fighting from an old grudge,

Has caused citizens to kill.

From these two enemies,

Two young lovers will commit suicide.

Their untimely end defeats the grudge,

With their death their parents' hatred is removed.

It could not be removed except for with the death of their children,

This is what will be on our stage for two hours,

For those of you who are patient,

We will fill you in on more details.

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In the original play the prologue is a sonnet. It introduces the play and the setting, but it also outlines the entire contents of the play. The audience knows the ending right from the beginning. This goes along with the idea of fate; The ending is known and no matter what happens, no one can stop it.

The image on this page is an illustration of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet's Prologue. It is dated from eighteen sixty four. And it was found in The Works of William Shakespeare collection by Howard Staunton.

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