“Romeo and Juliet” and “West Side Story,” share many similarities throughout their screen play. Both plays have similarities within setting, character, conflict, plot and theme. Although by different authors, it seems as though thier stories are exactly the same just at different periods of time.
Major analogies are included throughout the characters of each screenplay. Maria is like Juliet, with different motivations of religion; and they each fall in love with the person they aren’t supposed to. Maria and Juliet both are pressured into marriage to people they are dreading to be with. Tony resembles Romeo both eager for love; and also end up marrying an “enemy”. Also, the Nurse and Anita both act as a support figure for both Maria and Juliet; although the Nurse was obligated to take care of Juliet while Anita had the choice to be a “big-sister” figure towards Maria. More obviously, the Sharks represent Capulets, and the Jets represent Montagues; who both have strong hatred towards each other. Throughout each play the similarities of each character are strongly shown.
Both plays begin in two different atmospheres; Romeo and Juliet in Verona; Mantua and West Side Story on the West Side of New York City. The different settings and time periods each cause a major difference in each plot. The major similarities in the conflicts are the fights between the two different “gangs,” or “groups”. During Romeo and Juliet, the play opens with a conflict between servants from the Montagues, and the Capulets. While in West Side Story, it’s started out with a conflict between the Sharks, and the Jets. Throughout each play each rival group endures similar situations. For example, when each group goes to a dance, conflict arises when they each find their rival competitor. The conflicts at the dance both create an even bigger problem when Romeo meets Juliet, and Tony meets Maria. Throughout the plot, more of a resemblance is discovered.
Not only do the two plays open...