The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, ​
Act I, ​
by William Shakespeare Reading Strategy: Using Text Aids Most versions of Shakespeare’s works include ​
text aids​
—explanations, usually written in the margins, of words, phrases, or customs that may be unfamiliar to modern­day readers. Even with the help of text aids, the language of sixteenth­century England seems awkward to us. The key to success is to read slowly and carefully, remembering to pause where punctuation indicates, not necessarily at the end of each line. When you come upon a numbered or footnoted text aid, read the explanation carefully and then return to the text. Reread the sentence, applying the meaning or explanation you obtained from the text aid. It might take two tries to make sense of it before you go on. DIRECTIONS: ​
Use the text aids to answer the following questions about what you read in Act I. 1. In your own words, tell what is happening in Verona, based on lines 1–4 of the Prologue. 2. In Scene i, as the two Montague servingmen approach the two Capulet servingmen, Sampson says, “Let us take the law of our sides; let them begin.” What does he mean? 3. Later in Scene i, Benvolio and Montague talk about how unhappy Romeo has been. Then they see Romeo; Benvolio tells Montague to leave so that he can talk to Romeo alone. Montague says, “I would thou wert so happy by thy stay/To hear true shrift.” Put this wish in your own words. 4. In Scene iii, Juliet’s mother tells her to “Read o’er the volume of young Paris’ face.” Refer to that passage and, with the help of footnotes 9 and 10, restate the advice Lady Capulet gives to her daughter. 5. Romeo’s last words in Scene iv prove prophetic. Why does he have misgivings? Restate the passage.