“Star-crossed” or “star-crossed lovers” is a phrase describing a pair of lovers whose relationship is said to be doomed from the start. The phrase is astrological in origin, and is best known from the play Romeo and Juliet by the Elizabethan playwright William Shakespeare.

The most famous star-crossed couple, Romeo and Juliet

Contents

• 1 Star-crossed in Shakespeare
• 2 Famous examples of “star-crossed lovers”
  • 2.1 Modern examples
• 3 See also
• 4 References

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Star-crossed in Shakespeare

The phrase was coined in the prologue of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet:

“From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, / a pair of star-cross’d lovers, take their life.”

It also refers to destiny and the inevitability of the two characters’ paths crossing each other. It also usually means unlucky, since Romeo and Juliet’s affair ended tragically.

Famous examples of “star-crossed lovers”

Tristan and Isolde

Other famous star-crossed lovers include:

• Pyramus and Thisbe (usually regarded as the source for Romeo and Juliet, featured in A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
• Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights
• Lancelot and Guinevere
• Tristan and Isolde
• Hagbard and Signy
• Devdas and Paro (Parvati) in Devdas
• Heer Ranjha
• Layla and Majnun
• Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai (also known as The Butterfly Lovers)
• Paris of Troy and Helen of Sparta in The Iliad
• Oedipus and Jocasta in Oedipus the King

Modern examples

More modern examples are:

• Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler in Gone with the Wind
• Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars saga – the name of their musical theme, Across the Stars, is even based on this phrase.
• Buffy Summers and Angel in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater in Titanic
• Tony and Maria in the musical West Side Story (a retelling of Romeo and Juliet)
• Mei and Jin in House of Flying Daggers
• Rick Blaine and Ilsa Lund in Casablanca
• Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald and Sheridan Crane in Passions
• J.R. Chandler and Babe Carey in All My Children
• Bianca Montgomery and Maggie Stone in All My Children
• Clark Kent and Lana Lang as portrayed in Smallville.
• Cole Turner and Phoebe Halliwell in Charmed
• James Bond and Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale
• James Bond and Tracy Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
• Veronica Mars and Logan Echolls in Veronica Mars
• Christian and Satine in Moulin Rouge!
• Mick St. John and Beth Turner in Moonlight
• Lee Adama and Kara Thrace in Battlestar Galactica
• Marissa Cooper and Ryan Atwood in The O.C.
• Gennosuke Kouga and Oboro Iga in the novel The Kouga Ninja Scrolls, movie Shinobi and anime and manga series Basilisk
• Inuyasha and Kikyo in the anime and manga series Inuyasha
• Spike and Julia from the anime series Cowboy Bebop
• Charlotte “Chuck” Charles and Ned in Pushing Daisies
• Sarah Jordan Beauford and Dr. Nick Callahan in Beyond Borders
• State Trooper Jeff Foster and Officer Ursula Hanson in Super Troopers
• Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain
• Edward Wilson and Margaret ‘Clover’ Russell Wilson in The Good Shepherd
• Holly and Gerry Kennedy in P.S. I Love You
• Gina Malacici and Rosario Capomezzo in Love Is All There Is (another retelling of Romeo and Juliet)
• Sally and Jack Skellington in The Nightmare Before Christmas
• Graystripe of ThunderClan and Silverstream of RiverClan in Warriors
• Landon Carter and Jamie Sullivan in A Walk to Remember
• Bruce Wayne/Batman and Rachel Dawes of “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight”
• Bobby Ewing and Pamela Barnes Ewing in Dallas
• The Doctor (Doctor Who) and Rose Tyler in Doctor Who

See also

• Elopement
• Teenage tragedy song

References

1. ^ Full text / script of the play Romeo and Juliet Act I by William Shakespeare
2. ^ “IGN’s Top 10 Favorite TV Couples”, IGN. Retrieved on 2007-06-12. 

Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star-crossed”
Categories: Love | Shakespearean phrases