if Romeo and Juliet lived, how it would alter the meaning of the play?

[Queenie]

Hey,
I'm new here :)
i was just curious if you guys could give me a little help on..
if Romeo and Juliet lived, how it would alter the meaning of the play?

[truth_forest]

for me, If they lived, everthing in the play will changed.
first, Romeo met Juliet and they ran away...they may live together...happy ending.
and this will change my feeling to the famous tragedy play.
Romeo and Juliet is normal like the happy ending stories.
Nothing enough to remember...and moreover, Shakespear is not the greatest playwright.

[Miss Darcy]

Welcome to the Forum, Queenie and truth_forest. I trust you'll both enjoy your time here.


if Romeo and Juliet lived, how it would alter the meaning of the play?

I think the most obvious difference is that, as truth_forest already said, the play would no longer be a tragedy but a story with a happy ending, more reminiscent of Shakespeare's tragicomedies than anything else. But it certainly doesn't stop there. If Romeo and Juliet had lived, there would almost certainly be no reconcilement between the Montagues and the Capulets, and the feud would go on, perhaps for many generations to come. Nothing less than their deaths could heal the breach between the two clans; in the end, the loss of the lovers' lives (whee, alliteration) is a sacrifice that finally dissolves the enmity of their families.

We must not forget that the feud was a bloody one, and that many other lives were lost in public brawls. The death of Romeo and Juliet effectively restored peace to gentle Verona.

If they had lived, Friar Laurence would have probably been in danger of his life if the part he played in their marriage were discovered.

There may be other points which I have not thought of, but I'll leave them for some other member to light upon.

Darcy