“We Found Love in a Hopeless Place”
Romeo and Juliet and the music of Rihanna and Taylor Swift.
In the book Romeo and Juliet, the two protagonists are Romeo and Juliet. They meet at a party that Romeo was not even invited to. Although love is unlikely for them, they still figure out a way to make it work. Juliet’s family, the Capulets, and Romeo’s family, the Montagues, were arch rivals and were the two powerhouses in town, the families despised each others. The hate for the opposing escalated so far that a few casualties occurred. This story is so meaningful to many that it can connect to songs, movies, and other modern culture. Two songs with obvious connections to this book are “We Found Love” by Rihanna, and “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift. The song “We found Love” clearly relates to the book and this is shown by the lyrics. “Safe and sound” connects in a deeper way unlike “We Found Love”, the connection is beyond the lyrics. “Safe and Sound” relates to Romeo and Juliet because it shows how both of them will always be there for each other and that together they are strong. Romeo and Juliet never felt fulfilled and hadn’t yet reached the peak of their lives until they met at the party.
The Song “We Found Love” shows how although it is not likely for Romeo and Juliet to be together they still end up with each other. Romeo and Juliet fall in love at the party even though they are an unlikely couple. A line from the song that supports this is; “we found love in a hopeless place.” This clearly connects to Romeo and Juliet. They never saw each other before the party. Romeo wasn’t even supposed to be at the party because he wasn’t invited. Another quote from “We Found Love” that relates to the play is; “And we’re standing side by side As your shadow crosses mine What it takes to come alive.” Before they fell in love the two of them were unsatisfied, and when they fell in love, this changed drastically. In addition, they came alive like in the song, they both became happier and more positive. These are the two most significant phrases of the song, “We Found Love.” The love that Romeo and Juliet have for eachother is irresistible. Although they are one of the most unlikely couples they still are able to make it work. Even though sometimes their love seems “hopeless” they are able to fight through it. Throughout the book there is always hope even with all odds are against them. Like the song, “We Found Love” the two find love in a hopeless place and they continue to be positive throughout the play. One example of this happening during the play is when Romeo arrives to the Capulet party, and Tybalt spots him the first thing he says is, “Tis he, that villain Romeo” (1.5.73). This quote also shows how the party seemed hopeless; it seemed like nothing was going to happen between them. The whole Capulet family already despised Romeo, without even knowing he was going to fall in love with Juliet. Juliet finally starts to come alive like the lyrics said in the song when she sees Romeo. She immediately asks a family friend of the Capulet’s what his name was, referring to Romeo, and the nurse replies, “His name is Romeo, and a Montague, The only son of your great enemy” (1.5.150–151). The two finally start to become joyful when they see each other. Romeo and Juliet had not been happy until they met, and when do, they transform into completely different people, and finally become satisfied. When they met, it was the first time they really found true love. For example,
Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?
Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.
O then, dear saint let lips do what hands do.
They pray: grant thou, lest faith turn to despair. (1.5.112–115)
This quote shows the two of them finally reaching their full potential. To summarize, the song “We found love” connects to the book in many ways. It shows that even though the chances of finding love were low, Romeo and Juliet got through it together. They never let the odds keep them from finding true love.
The song “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift is another example of how the play, Romeo and Juliet connects to modern culture. One of the most important phrases is, “I’ll never let you go.” Similarly, in the story, Romeo and Juliet would never let eachother go. They wanted to stay together and get married, without anybody knowing but themselves and the Friar. Another important line from the song, “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift is, “When I said I’ll never let you go When all those shadows almost killed your light.” It shows even though times could get tough she will still try her hardest to keep everything intact. In a similar way, Romeo and Juliet’s relationship could have fell through, but never did. A quote from the play showing Juliet’s persistence to stay with romeo is; “I will not marry yet, and when I do I swear it shall be Romeo, whom you know I hate, rather than Paris” (3.5.126–128). This quote is showing that Juliet is disobeying her parents for Romeo. It is like the song, even if times are tough the two of them will get through it. Getting over all these obstacles only made their relationship stronger, and after only being together for a very short time they were already much happier and reaching their full potential together. When the two of them are together they can do anything, but alone they are weak.
The songs “We Found Love” and “Safe and Sound” are very similar to the book Romeo and Juliet. The song “We Found Love” connects by showing how even with the chances of the two being together very low they still find a way to find love. The song “Safe and Sound” shows how although times are tough for the two of them they both have persistence and hope to make everything work out.
Sources
Shakespeare, William, Barbara A. Mowat, and Paul Werstine. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet.
New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2011. Print.
“Genius Song Lyrics & Knowledge.” Genius. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 June 2017.
RihannaVEVO. “Rihanna — We Found Love Ft. Calvin Harris.” YouTube. YouTube, 19 Oct. 2011. Web. 01 June 2017.
TaylorSwiftVEVO. “Safe & Sound Feat. The Civil Wars (The Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 And Beyond).” YouTube. YouTube, 16 Feb. 2012. Web. 01 June 2017.
