After reading Scene 3, I came to the conclusion that Juliet has a very distant relationship with her parents. Juliet's father said that his daughter would be given two years to marry Paris yet after Tybalt's death, he gave her three days. Most parents would probably try to let their children mature before forcing them into marriage, whether or not the suitor was an earl. I understand how angry Juliet might have been in this situation. She trusted that her father would let her wait, and suddenly she was betrothed.
      Instead Juliet's point, Capulet said that she was "baggage" (a worthless woman). He continued to insult her and described her as a curse to his wife. He commented on her pale skin, and said how she was worthless for denying marriage to a "worthy" man. Had Juliet and her parents been close, Capulet may have apologized, and given her more time.
       I understand why Capulet may have felt this way. He probably wanted his only heir secure with a husband. He knew that she was hurt,but probably wanted the best for her despite her feelings at the moment. Maybe things would've been better if Juliet gave up Romeo, and trusted her parents in marriage to Paris- as the Nurse recommended.

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

        Sarah's Key was probably the most heartbreaking book I've ever read. I was near tears in this book, where it jumped from a Jewish girl in France during the Holocaust to a modern American living in France. Sarah's family was arrested along with many other Jews in Paris by the French police. She locked her four year old brother in a cupboard to keep him safe, assuming she and her family were coming home soon. Sarah and her family were separated in a village on their way to Auschwitz, a concentration camp. Sarah got away from the village with a friend, and the help of a kind police officer. They got to the home of an old couple who realized Sarah's friend, Rachel was sick. They called a doctor, who reported the Jew to Germans. She was taken away, but Sarah remained hidden. She got back to her family's apartment to find her brother Michel's dead body in the cupboard. Years later, Sarah killed herself.
         Tatiana de Rosnay did an excellent job of demonstrating the emotions in this book. I felt pain when Michel's body was found, and hope that he'd miraculously been saved, or survived. I worried when Rachel showed signs of illness. This took the job of a good author. It isn't easy to show the anguish, love, and pain a character feels, but Tatiana de Rosnay did it.
        Sarah's Key also made me THINK. I was confused as to why RELIGION was a reason for innocent children to have their lives ruined. Sarah was the only survivor in the family. The fact that Michel died as a result of one evil man's deed added to my hate of Hitler. I related to Sarah even more because I have a brother who I'm very close to. Sarah must've carried the guilt of her action until the day she purposely drove into a tree.

Romeo & Juliet- Nurse

          My favorite character in Romeo and Juliet is the Nurse. Although she (I'm assuming) was paid to take care of Juliet, she loved her with the fierceness of a birth mother. She wanted the best for her. This was shown when she encouraged Juliet to wed Paris. She expressed that she'd be secure as the wife of a wealthy, powerful man who sought her out. She probably knew Juliet might've been reluctant in marrying Paris, being that he was older than her yet, the Nurse sought for the best for Juliet, even if her own emotions at the time didn't agree.
          Even Lady Capulet realized how important and influential the Nurse was to Juliet. When she spoke to her daughter of Paris' proposal,  "This is the matter- Nurse, give leave awhile. We must talk in secret. - Nurse come back again." (1.2 Lines 8 and 9). Lady Capulet intended to shut the Nurse out of the discussion, but after seeing that the Nurse was necesarry because of her connection to Juliet, she called her back.
         The Nurse's relationship with Juliet was similar to Aibileen's relationship with Mae Mobley in "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. Aibileen was employed as a maid and nanny, but she still loved her. Mae Mobley said that Aibileen was her actual mother at one point. The Nurse was close to Juliet, even though they weren't related. They loved and care for one another, and the Nurse wanted Juliet to be happy and taken care of.

Dear Billybob,

       Reading Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is quite interesting. I've learned a lot about the culture of the characters and the society they lived in. At the time, two feuding, wealthy families, the Montagues and the Capulets, lived in Verona, Italy. At the time, Romeo Montague was suffering from heartbreak because the woman he was in love with wanted to remain chaste, and didn't want to have any relationships.
        The characters are very dramatic. Romeo locked himself in a dark room all day because the person he loved didn't love him. I understand that he might have been hurt, even devastated, but his behavior was extremely odd he spoke to Benvolio, his cousin of how he felt like "a lead feather". This shows that he was in agony, because he used these two contradicting terms to describe how he was feeling.
         The people of this time and place seem very violent. A servant of the Capulet family spoke of how he wanted to rape and kill Capulet maidens. They have an odd sense of loyalty to their households. I guess at the time, one's family was most important; but murder in the name of your household is foolish in my opinion. Instead of showing how strong the Capulets are, they seem weak. I see weakness in them because rather than tolerating those they dislike (which can take a LOT of strength) they want to let go of their anger. Sampson, a Capulet servant, seemed to demonstrate his lack of control in the beginning of Scene 1. He seemed like the type to kill many people in a fit of rage, rather than controlling his negative emotions.
         The language of the book is a bit confusing, but I understand the focus of each character's line. The Old-English, when explained, makes a lot of sense.