Question

Read the excerpts from Ovid’s Pyramus and Thisbe and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

"Pyramus and Thisbe"

They had no confidant—and so used signs:
with these each lover read the other's mind:
when covered, fire acquires still more force.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo: She hath forsworn to love, and in that vow
Do I live dead that live to tell it now.

Benvolio: Be ruled by me, forget to think of her.

Romeo: O, teach me how I should forget to think.

Benvolio: By giving liberty unto thine eyes;
Examine other beauties.

Which statement best describes the difference between these excerpts?

Only Ovid suggests that romantic relationships encounter obstacles or objections.
Only Ovid shows his male character searching for a more suitable companion.
Only Shakespeare reveals a character’s doubts about his beloved.
Only Shakespeare shows a character warning against a doomed relationship.

Answer 1

The statement that best describes the difference between the excerpts is:

**Only Shakespeare reveals a character’s doubts about his beloved.**

In Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," Romeo explicitly expresses his despair and confusion about his love for Rosaline, indicating doubts about her feelings for him. In contrast, the excerpt from Ovid's "Pyramus and Thisbe" reflects a more straightforward situation involving a lack of communication without the characters expressing doubts.