Romeo And Juliet - Comparisson To West Side Story

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hatred. When Tony kills Bernardo, Chino is driven by the need for revenge and he kills Tony.
In order to fully understand the plot of West Side Story, one must have an understanding of the nature of gangs in the 1950’s and know the reasons for their actions. Between 1941 and 1956, more than 500,000 Puerto Ricans moved to major cities in the U.S. such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Cleveland. The majority of them lived in poor areas of their city. Puerto Rican gangs formed so that they could protect themselves from prejudiced Americans. Many people took advantage of the immigrants’ poor social status. For example, Bernardo says, "And Chino makes half what the Polack makes - the Polack is American!" (Laurents 165) Youth agencies and youth boards concluded that most gangs formed because of the poverty, disease, and racism present in the ghetto. Gangs, which were usually made up of teenagers, fought over girls, territory (otherwise known as "turf"), and ...

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gang, a member of the rival gang would avenge his friend’s death by killing the member of the first gang. Revenge was necessary because of the inflexible code of loyalty to one’s gang.

Although there is hatred present in West Side Story, there is also much hatred in Romeo and Juliet. Some people would argue that it is the hatred between families, not fate, that causes Juliet and Romeo to take their own lives. For example, the duels between Tybalt and Mercutio, and then Tybalt and Romeo start because of the family feud. The result of the duels is Romeo’s banishment, which in turn results in both of the lovers’ deaths. Also, Friar Laurence goes against his morals to help Romeo and ...

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