The Story of Romeo and Juliet. English has gone through 400 years of evolution since Shakespeare. Archaic words, unfamiliar phrases and antiquated references make comprehension difficult on first exposure and require serious study.
I began this project simply to clear up the thees and thous that cluttered the text in order to make the lines flow more smoothly for the 21st century ear.
Whenever the experts disagreed, which was often, I used the meaning which best suited my understanding of the author’s intent and reworked the line wherever necessary. The poetic imagery was favoured always, although verse and metre were sacrificed for clarity.
My rationale rests on the shoulders of George Steevens who, in 1766, said of Shakespeare:
To make his meaning intelligible to his audience seems to have been his only care, and with the ease of conversation he has adopted its incorrectness.
