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In 1530 a guy in Italy called Luigi da Porto wrote a story called Giuletta e Romeo, which is pretty darn similar to the story we know. And da Porto claimed it was all true, and that it had happened between 1375 and 1381 in Verona.

Well, that should satisfy us, except, if we behave like snopes, we find that there is a story called Mariotto e Gianozza published in 1476 which is virtually the same story except that the author swears it took place in Siena and he was around when it happened.

Do we detect an urban legend here?

Add to that that parts of the story seem to have been drawn from Bocaccio's Decameron, Ovid's Metamorphoses (the Pyramus and Thisbe story) and Xenophon's Ephesiaca. Hmm.

And in addition, there were no Capulets in Verona. They were from Cremona (The Montagues were Veronese however).

All of this means that, no, Romeo and Juliet is not a true story, and the events it talks about did not happen in 1303. That date appears to have been proposed by the grossly inaccurate City of Verona Tourist Site, which of course would love to have you believe that the story was true.

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12y ago
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12y ago

No, it is fiction that Shakespeare based upon an Italian poem.

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Q: Was 'Romeo and Juliet' based on a true story?
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What work is Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet based on?

A play from Shakespeare, about sacrificial love. i am an yr 11 student at school and to me romeo and Juliet is a true passionate love story based on two peoples families being totailly against each other but they fall in love and get married in secret until it all goes wronge the friar pronounces Juliet dead when really she is sleeping but romeo didnt know that then he killed himself then she woke up and saw him dead when she stabbed herself in the heart


What famous Shakespeare's play is 'West Side Story' based on?

The musical does have some truth to it. Even though it is not completely autobiographical. In the time that the musical was based on the truth was that there was friction between a growing population of Latin American immigrants. Gangs would fight eachother. West Side Story is also a version of Romeo and Juliet if you look at the story line except Maria does not die in the end.


Is this a true fact that Juliet was 13 at the time she fell in love with romeo?

In Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, Juliet is indeed about two weeks away from her fourteenth birthday. She is thirteen. But this is not a "true fact" in the same way it would be if Romeo and Juliet were real people rather than characters in a play.


What are some interesting Romeo and Juliet facts?

The most famous version of the story is by William Shakespeare. It is a play, not a poem or a book. It contains the most misunderstood line in literature, "Wherefore art thou Romeo?" which means "Why are you called Romeo?". It is not based on a true story but on a series of retellings going back to the story of Pyramus and Thisbe in Ovid. Nevertheless, the Tourist Bureau of Verona would like you to think that it was based on a true story. It is a story that has been adapted into every conceivable artistic form: short stories, poems, a play, a ballet, a symphonic poem, an opera, paintings, cartoons, movies, a Broadway musical, etc.


Is Romeo's love loving Rosaline just before seeing Juliet?

As described by Shakespeare, Romeo was surely infatuated by rosaline, but when he met Juliet he realized what true love is.

Related questions

What did franco zeffirelli base Romeo and Juliet on?

Franco Zeffirelli based his film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet on William Shakespeare's play of the same name, written in the late 16th century. He stayed true to the original story and dialogue while adding his own artistic flair to the movie.


What work is Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet based on?

A play from Shakespeare, about sacrificial love. i am an yr 11 student at school and to me romeo and Juliet is a true passionate love story based on two peoples families being totailly against each other but they fall in love and get married in secret until it all goes wronge the friar pronounces Juliet dead when really she is sleeping but romeo didnt know that then he killed himself then she woke up and saw him dead when she stabbed herself in the heart


What do Paris and Romeo have in common?

Paris and Romeo are both characters in William Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet." They are both potential suitors for Juliet, with Paris being a nobleman chosen by Juliet's parents and Romeo being Juliet's true love. Both characters play important roles in the story's tragic outcome.


What famous Shakespeare's play is 'West Side Story' based on?

The musical does have some truth to it. Even though it is not completely autobiographical. In the time that the musical was based on the truth was that there was friction between a growing population of Latin American immigrants. Gangs would fight eachother. West Side Story is also a version of Romeo and Juliet if you look at the story line except Maria does not die in the end.


What was Romeo focus through Romeo and Juliet?

Finding true love. first trying with Rosaline then with Juliet.


Was the love between Romeo and Juliet true love?

Most people would say yes, Romeo and Juliet's love was true love. It was just a true romance. Others might say that it didn't last long enough to prove itself. It's more of a lust story than a love story therefore you cannot say it is true love in the sense that they loved each other for all they had. They simply loved each other based off looks.


Is Romeo and Juliet a true tragedy?

"Romeo and Juliet was in fact based on the life of two real lovers who both died for each other and lived in Verona, Italy in 1303. Both the Capulets and Montagues existed in Verona at this time and Shakespeare is reckoned to have discovered this tragic love story in Arthur Brooke's 1562 poem entitled ("The Tragical Historye of Romeus and Juliet") .


Who did Juliet almost marry in romeo and Juliet?

Juliet almost married Paris, a nobleman chosen by her parents. However, her true love was Romeo, with whom she secretly married. Their love story ends in tragedy due to the feud between their families.


What does romeo think about Juliet?

She loves him because it is a love story between romeo and Juliet. Then Juliet kills herself over Romeo's death so obviously she loves him very dearly!


What is the true reason Juliet kisses Romeo?

to get a boner


The moment of catharsis in the play occurs when romeo and juliet kill themselves true or false?

True. The moment of catharsis in the play "Romeo and Juliet" occurs when the two central characters, Romeo and Juliet, kill themselves in a tragic act of love and sacrifice.


Is westside story a tragedy?

Yes, it is based on Romeo and Juliet which is a tragedy. At the end of Westside Story the protagonist, Tony, gives himself up to be killed when he thinks that his one true love, Maria is dead. Maria finds out that Tony is dead and she is devastated