How does Shakespeare present love in Romeo and Juliet ?

Love is presented in numerous ways.  The first we see of
love is in Romeo's infatuation with the beautiful Rosaline.  He is obsessed with her and
loves her, so much to the point that he spends most of his days moping about, thinking
about her and wishing that she returned his love.  Rosaline doesn't return his love, so
he is left in misery.  Through this example, we see Shakespeare saying that love is an
intense emotional experience, and if it isn't returned, it can be horribly painful and
exhausting.

Then, the love between Romeo and Juliet is also
intense and all-consuming, but instead of causing them misery, it causes them incredible
happiness and joy, because they feel the same way for each other.  They are elated,
giddy, and high on their love.  Through their love, Shakespeare recreates that power and
intensity of first love, especially first love as a youth, which is filled with so much
innocence, joy, and lack of any sense of doom or hopelessness.  So, love can lift us up
and fill us with hope, joy and elation.

Lastly, as their
love is, in the end, doomed, Shakespeare seems to say that love can indeed lead us to do
dramatic things.  In the name of love, wars have been fought, crazy deeds have been
done, and in the case of Romeo and Juliet, death won them in the end, because they would
rather die than live without each other.  This is Shakespeare saying how powerful love
is; when in love's throws, we often do extremely dramatic and foolish things. But
consider this also--the example of Romeo and Juliet's love also mended the
generations-long rift between their two families.  So, love also has the power to heal
and solve the seeming impossible.

I hope that those thought
helped; good luck!