Adolescent Brains In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

Romeo and Juliet, a tragic love play written by Shakespeare, circles two adolescents in lust, which some can say it can portray teenagers in real life. When watching or reading, it is common to see both Romeo and Juliet making shallow decisions, resulting to the end of their lives. Science can show the way human brains develop from the rear to the front, which can explain why teenagers are more prone to making illogical choices during this era. The outcome of Romeo and Juliet can be connected to the studies of the adolescent brain.
In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the title characters make impulsive decisions from the moment they are introduced to the audience. For example, during the first moments of meeting in Act I, both Romeo and Juliet profess their love for each other and Juliet even claims, in seeking out Romeo’s identity, that “If he is married, My grave is like to be my wedding bed” (Shakespeare 396). Juliet, in these lines, is stating that if she cannot have Romeo, she would rather die than be with anyone else. This behavior is rather surprising, as Juliet has just met Romeo and knows nothing about him. The article, “Beautiful Brains” addresses studies and findings on how the development of the teenage brain correlates with impulsive behavior in teenagers stating, “We all like new and exciting things, but we never value them more highly than we do during adolescence. Here we hit a high in what behavioral scientists call sensation seeking: the hunt for the