BACKGROUND: ROMEO AND JULIET
Romeo And Juliet is an early tragedy written between 1594 and 1596. There is no proof that the
tale of Romeo and Juliet is in fact true however, in the thirteenth century there were certainly
two feuding Italian families. The Motecchi of Verona and the Capelletti of Cremona were locked
in political struggle. These two families are referred to in Dante’s Purgatorio, VI. It is not known
if they had children named Romeo and Juliet. The story of two young star crossed lovers was
most popular in France and Italy with tales about them existing hundreds of years before
Shakespeare. His play is based on a poem published two years before his birth. The poem was
an English translation of the French translation of the original Italian. The English translation was
The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet (1562) by Arthur Brooke, a poem of 3020 lines in
couplets and poulters with lines alternating between twelve and fourteen syllables. This was
based on Boiastuau’s translation into French of Bandello’s novelle. Apparently the original
poem was rather clumsy but Shakespeare stuck closely to the plot within it. The plight of young
lovers has always appealed to writers and audiences alike. Throughout history many young
people have fallen in love against their parents’ wishes.
SYNOPSIS: ROMEO AND JULIET
The old feud between the rival families of Montague and Capulet in Verona breaks out in a
street brawl, and Prince Escalus threatens with death anyone, who shall again disturb the
peace. Romeo, a Montague, is in love with Rosaline, but when he and Mercutio gatecrash the
Capulet party he falls in love with Capulet’s daughter Juliet. Later that night Romeo overhears
Juliet declare her love for him as he stands beneath her window in the garden. He reveals
himself and they agree to secretly marry.
The next afternoon they are married by Friar Lawrence. Shortly afterwards Romeo meets the
Capulet, Tybalt, who tries to pick a quarrel with him, and when Romeo, now Tybalt’s cousin by
marriage, refuses to fight, his friend Mercutio accepts the challenge and is killed. Romeo,
infuriated, draws on Tybalt and kills him, for which offence the Prince banishes him.
The distracted Romeo seeks the advice of Friar Lawrence, who tells him to spend the night with
Juliet as arranged, and then to go to Mantua until his friends have secured his recall. Meanwhile
Capulet (Juliet’s father) arranges Juliet’s marriage to the Count Paris, and when she makes
excuses he insists the marriage will proceed. Juliet’s mother and nurse fail to help Juliet avoid
the marriage, and she goes to the Friar, who forms a desperate plan. He gives her a potion to
drink the next night that will make her appear dead for forty-two hours. He promises to send
word to Romeo to come and fetch her at the hour of waking, from the Capulet vault where she
will be laid.
Juliet drinks the potion and believed dead is placed in the vault, but the Friar’s messenger fails
to reach Romeo in Mantua. He hears only that Juliet is dead. He visits the Apothecary to collect
a poison that he might drink and die beside Juliet. Romeo goes by night to the tomb, where he
meets the mourning Paris, who attacks him. They fight and Paris is killed. Romeo breaks into the
tomb, sees the apparently dead Juliet, drinks the poison, and dies beside her. The Friar, hearing
that his plan has miscarried, hastens to rescue Juliet, who wakes as he enters. Upon seeing
Romeo dead Juliet stabs herself. The watch arrives, the Friar is caught and explains what has
happened, and Montague and Capulet families are reconciled over the bodies of their dead
children.
COMMENTARY
The play initially appears to be a typical Elizabethan comedy. The characters, though noble, are
not of historical importance as in tragedies of the day. The early acts are filled with plays on
words, the bawdy talk of Juliet’s nurse, the revelry of a ball, “mooning” lovers, unlikely love
scenes, and, in spite of the feud, a general air of humor and happiness. And, like in all
Elizabethan comedy, there is the feeling that all is a game that will be won by the most clever
player. We see the contrived strategies of Benvolio and Romeo as they mask themselves to
attend the ball. We are privy to the countermove of Mercutio, who appears to be a major player
in the game, as he talks Romeo out of love. Things happen quickly and good fortune seems to
smile on Romeo as he not only finds the lady Juliet at her window, but hears her declaration of
love for him. But, Shakespeare begins to plant the seeds of tragedy. Romeo fears his dreams
and speaks of a sense of foreboding,
...my mind misgives
Some consequence yet hanging in the stars
Shall bitterly begin his fearful date
With this night’s revels and expire the term
Of a despised life, closed in my breast,
By some vile forfeit of untimely death.
(I,iv,106-111)
We meet the fiery tempered Tybalt who clearly states his intent to seek revenge against Romeo.
And, the deception begins. Romeo and Juliet are secretly married by the good Friar whose
perception is faulty when he imagines that the marriage will end the feud. At the beginning of
Act III the comedy turns to tragedy. Even the weather has become hot and “the mad blood
stirring” (III,i,4). First, Mercutio is slain by Tybalt, and, then Tybalt by Romeo. Ironically,
Mercutio, who seemed to be a pivotal player in the comedy, becomes not only the first to die,
but his death makes all those that follow inevitable. “Inevitability” is the force which governs
the world of tragedy. From the time of Mercutio’s death the characters seem to have no control
over the events as they speed by. A sense of doom is dominant; events occur before they can be
stopped; perceptions are marred; errors in judgment are rampant; everyone is inflexible;
everything is absolute, inevitable. The stage has been set for the tragedy.
Studying Act 1, Scene 5
What this scene is about - subject and theme
In this scene Romeo and Juliet meet. Note that in spite of its title, this play has very few scenes
in which both lovers are present. The others are the balcony scene (2.2), the short wedding
scene (2.6) and the opening of Act 3, Scene 5. The lovers are both on stage in Act 5, Scene 3 but Romeo kills himself before Juliet wakes. Shakespeare prepares for this scene by showing
Romeo's infatuation with Rosaline (a very strong “crush” on her). On the guest list for the party,
Rosaline is described as Capulet's “fair niece”, but she never appears in the play. Benvolio (in
1.2) has promised to show Romeo a more attractive woman, but doesn't really have anyone
special in mind, as far as we know. Similarly, we know that Juliet is there because Capulet wants
to give Paris a chance to meet her - this is why he throws the party.
Capulet's speech to Paris (in 1.2) suggests that Juliet has not been out of her house much (only,
perhaps, to go to worship and confession at Friar Lawrence's cell). Maybe this is why Paris (a
family friend) has noticed her, but Romeo has no idea who she is. Immediately before this
scene, Romeo has spoken of his fear that some terrible “consequence [result] yet hanging in the
stars” shall begin at “this night's revels” (Capulet's party). Does this fear come true? Tybalt's
behaviour has also been prepared for by the brawl in the play's first scene. In the scene, several
things happen. Servants do their job, Capulet chats to a friend, Tybalt sees Romeo, wants to
fight him and is told off by Capulet for his behaviour. Romeo and Juliet meet, and each finds out
who the other is. But the most important things in the scene are: the way Romeo falls in love
with Juliet at first sight and the way this contrasts with Tybalt's anger and hatred. Romeo never
knows that it is his presence at the party that causes Tybalt later to challenge him to a duel.
These things lead to the events of Act 3, Scene 1, where Mercutio and Tybalt die.
The structure of the scene
In the opening the servants speak informally (in prose, not verse), about all the work they have
to do. This prepares for the grand entrance when the Capulets come on stage, in procession,
wearing their expensive clothing and speaking verse. Romeo's comments about Juliet alternate
with Tybalt's attempt to attack Romeo - who does not know that he's been noticed. At the end
of the scene, the Nurse tells each lover who the other one is. Within this general outline,
Shakespeare shows the most important episode is that where Romeo and Juliet speak for the
first time. This has the form of a sonnet (a rhyming fourteen line poem) - which many in the
16th Century audience would notice, as they heard the pattern of rhymes.
Characters
There are many named characters in this scene, but you should concentrate on four of them
mainly: Romeo, Juliet, Capulet and Tybalt. The Nurse gives bits of information, and Lady Capulet
tells Tybalt off briefly. But the most important pair is Romeo and Juliet - look at their speech for
evidence of their feelings. Romeo has told us he is attracted to Juliet. Her reaction shows that
she is interested in him - she allows him to take her hand and to kiss her. Anything more in a
public situation could make us think Juliet to be promiscuous. The next most important pair is
Tybalt and Capulet. Capulet may dislike the Montagues, but he is trying to obey the Prince's
command. But as a host, he cannot allow even an enemy to be attacked under his own roof.
And, he tells Tybalt, Romeo is “virtuous and well-governed” [well-behaved]. Tybalt is angry at
losing the chance for a fight, and blames Romeo for this, especially when he is made to look silly
by Capulet, who tells him off and calls him a “saucy boy”.
Language
When Romeo sees Juliet he speaks about her, using metaphor: “She doth teach the torches to
burn bright”. This tells us that Juliet's beauty is much brighter than that of the torches - so she is
very beautiful. She is so much brighter that she teaches the torches how to shine - a poetic
exaggeration, since torches can't really be taught. It is important for Romeo to say this, as the
audience cannot see Juliet's beauty directly - in Shakespeare's theatre a boy, perhaps seen at
some distance, plays Juliet. But the metaphor also tells us that it is night, as Romeo can see the
torches he compares her to. The audience must imagine this, as the play is performed by
daylight, and no lighted torch would be safe in the theatre (the real Globe theatre was
eventually destroyed by fire). At a private performance, at night in a rich person's house, there
might be real torches on the walls, of course. There are other interesting comparisons. In 1.2
Benvolio has said that he will show Romeo women who will make his “swan” (Rosaline) look like
a “crow” (supposedly a common and ugly bird). Now Romeo, in a very similar comparison, says
that Juliet (whose name he does not yet know) is like a “snowy dove” among “crows” (the other
women). She stands out in a dark room as a bright jewel (which would catch the torchlight) in
the ear of a dark-skinned person. The contrast of light and darkness in these comparisons
suggests that Juliet is fair-skinned and perhaps fair-haired while most of the other women are
dark. Although other people are on stage as Romeo says these things, he really speaks his
thoughts or thinks aloud - so these speeches are soliloquies (solo speaking).
When Romeo speaks to Juliet he compares her hand to a holy place (“shrine”) which he may
defile (“profane”) with his hand. He compares his lips to pilgrims that can “smooth” away the
“rough touch” of the hand with a kiss. “Gentle sin” is what we call an oxymoron - a
contradiction. Why? Because “gentle” means noble or virtuous (in the 16th Century) while a
“sin” is usually the opposite of noble. Juliet explains that handholding is the right kind of kiss for
pilgrims, while lipsare for praying. Romeo's witty response is to ask for permission to let his lips
do what his hands are allowed to, and Juliet agrees to “grant” this for the sake of his prayers.
When Romeo kisses her, Juliet says she has received the sin he has “purged” from himself.
Romeo insists at once that he must take it back - and kisses her again! Note how, throughout
this scene (apart from the servants who use informal thou/thee/thy pronoun forms) the
characters (even Romeo and Juliet) often address each other with the formal and respectful
pronoun you. When Capulet is being pleasant to Tybalt he uses thou/thee/thy but when he
becomes angry he switches to you. The same thing happens when he becomes angry with Juliet
in Act 3, scene 5.
Stagecraft
When you write about this scene, think about how it would be staged in the 16th Century and
today. At the start, the servants will have props to show that they are clearing up. These might
include napkins, and trenchers (a kind of plate). The servants' simple clothes will show their
status (social position) - today they might wear the formal clothes of waiters. These will
probably be the same servants who quarrel with the Montague servants at the start of the play.
The wealthy noble guests will have expensive formal clothes. The young men are allowed to be
“maskers”. (They wear masks to hide who they are.) This lets them act in a familiar way to a
lady, and flirt or attempt courtship. If they are successful, they will still need their parents'
approval for a match leading to marriage. There are opportunities for dancing, and the scene
should have music played for this. We know that young men do not wear swords at a ball in the
house of a nobleman (as they do in the street) since Tybalt orders a page to fetch his rapier. (In
the street, in Acts 1 and 3, he is wearing his sword, as are all of the young noblemen. For
example, in 1.1, Benvolio draws a sword and urges Tybalt to do the same, to stop the servants
fighting. ) When Romeo and Juliet meet, their speech shows the sequence of actions from
handholding to kissing. We do not know exactly how this would be acted out in Shakespeare's
theatre with boy actors in the female rôles - but perhaps there would be a very obvious and
slow embrace, while the kiss would be easy to simulate. In modern film versions, with actresses
shown in close-up, we expect rather more authentic action in this episode!
Studying Act 3, scene 1
What this scene is about - subject and theme
This scene occurs immediately after Romeo has married Juliet - which explains his friendliness
to Tybalt. The general contrast of love and hate in the play is explicit (very clear) in this scene.
Another theme of the play that is strong in this scene is the idea that we are not in control of
our lives (the Friar will say to Juliet later: “A greater power than we can contradict/Hath
thwarted our intents”). Here when Romeo has killed Tybalt he cries out: “I am fortune's fool”.
What does this mean? Yet another theme that appears is that of the feud and how innocent
lives are harmed by it. Here it is Mercutio who curses the feuding families:
“A plague on both your houses!”
What does this mean?
Later Paris, too, will die because of the feud, as well as the young lovers who belong to the
feuding families but have wanted not to be part of the quarrel.
Stagecraft
In this section you should refer to different performances of the play that you have seen. You
must comment on the action, use of properties and the structure of the scene. To take the last
first, the scene is really in a number of episodes: first, Mercutio and Benvolio wait for the
Capulets to arrive, and Mercutio trades insults with Tybalt when they do; then Romeo is
challenged by Tybalt and refuses; Mercutio fights Tybalt and is fatally wounded when Romeo
intervenes; Romeo pursues Tybalt and kills him; finally Benvolio gives an account of events to
the Prince, who banishes Romeo.
Comment on any of these episodes, or how they contribute to the total effect of the scene.
Use of props
In this scene, the most obvious stage props are the swords used in the fighting (in Baz
Luhrmann's 1997 feature film there are guns [“Sword” is the manufacturer] and other
weapons).
Explain how swords would be used in Shakespeare's theatre, and how they are used in
performances of the play that you have seen. Are any other props used in this scene?
Action
There are two passages of fighting. The stage directions merely tell us who fights and who dies.
Shakespeare's own company would have known without any written directions how to perform
the fights - such scenes were like stunts in films today: the actors would impress the audience
by their virtuosity (evident skill) with the swords.
Critical to the outcome of the first fight is Romeo's intervention - explain how this proves fatal
for his friend (Mercutio), and how it is shown in performances you have seen. Is there any other
action of interest?
Costume
How is costume important in this play, especially in versions you have seen? Look at how
costume distinguishes Capulet from Montague (shows who is who).
Language
Verse and prose
Often in this play Mercutio speaks in prose. This is a mark of informality, but not of low social
class - Hamlet, Theseus and Prince Hal (in three other plays) as well as Mercutio are all from
royal families yet all sometimes speak in prose. Speaking in prose shows their attitude to the
situation they are in or the person they are addressing.
In this scene various characters speak in prose, but after Mercutio's death the more serious
mood is shown as characters all speak in blank (unrhymed) verse. This is kept up until the end of
the scene, where Benvolio, Lady Capulet, Montague and the Prince all speak in rhyming verse
(Benvolio drops the rhyme in the middle of his long narrative).
Comment on the effect this has on the audience.
Language use for dramatic effect
Look at how the enemies try to win the verbal battle. Explain how Mercutio tries to upset Tybalt
in various ways. First, he plays on his name (“ratcatcher…King of cats...nine lives”). He ridicules
(he has also done this in an earlier scene) Tybalt's supposed skill in fencing (“Alla
stoccata…Come, sir, your passado”).
Look at attitudes to social class.
Why does Tybalt call Romeo a “villain” and why does Romeo deny this?
He also refers to Romeo as “my man”, and Mercutio challenges this. Why?
Comment on the word “gentlemen” which appears several times, and “sir”.
Explain why Tybalt calls Romeo “boy” more than once in this scene.
Look at the form of the second person pronoun. See whether people call each other “you”
(formal) or “thou/thee” (also “thy” = your) which is informal (less respectful).
Tybalt usually calls Mercutio “you” but changes to “thou” when he accuses him of “consorting”
with Romeo. Why?
If you are puzzled by this, be aware that language use has changed since Shakespeare's time. A
villain in earlier times was a common person - so the name, applied to a nobleman like Romeo,
would be an insult. In calling him my man Tybalt speaks of him as if he were a servant - which is
why Mercutio says he won't “wear” Tybalt's “livery” the uniform of his servant). The 16th
century audience would understand this as they heard it - today it needs spelling out.
What is the effect of Mercutio's response to Tybalt's request for a “word” - “Couple it with
something; make it a word and a blow”?
Note also Mercutio's last words: “A plague” is a powerful curse in Verona (the plague is in the
city) and Shakespeare's audience would find it effective.
Language use for poetic and figurative effect
This very active scene is not the best place to look for good poetry (we find this in the scene
where the lovers meet, or the balcony scene or even in Mercutio's description of “Queen
Mab”). For figurative language we need only look at Mercutio's “fiddlestick” - what is a real
fiddlestick and what has he instead? A more powerful poetic image is found in Romeo's
challenge to Tybalt:
“...for Mercutio's soul
Is but a little way above our heads,
Staying for thine to keep him company
Either thou, or I, or both must go with him.”
Explain this image and its effect on the audience.
Perhaps the most powerful (and famous) poetic image is in Romeo's last words in the scene,
where he says he is "fortune's fool".
What does he mean by this?
What is its effect on the audience?
Benvolio gives a convincing account of the fighting, contrasting Tybalt's and Mercutio's
aggression with Romeo's attempts at peace. We see why Lady Capulet disbelieves him, but he
tells the truth. Comment on the audience's response here:
we know Benvolio is truthful
we know why Lady Capulet disputes his account
we know why what she says might seem plausible (believable)
we know that the Prince knows Tybalt's character, as reported by Benvolio
Patterns and details of words and images
This scene (like this whole play) has lots of patterns and wordplay. Much of it is from Mercutio.
See for example his claim that Benvolio (a very peaceful person) would quarrel with a man for
“cracking nuts” as he (Benvolio) has “hazel eyes”. A more developed series of jokes is in his
response to Tybalt's claim that he “consortest” with Romeo. This is the cue for a series of puns
about music (“minstrels” and “dance” leading to “fiddlestick”). Another series of jokes comes
when Mercutio is wounded: first he is sarcastic (his wound is not as “deep as a well” or “wide as
a church door” but quite enough to kill him) then he makes a bad pun (“grave man”). Finally, he
lists animals to insult his killer: “A dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat, to scratch a man to death”. A more
elaborate pattern is found in Tybalt's challenge to Romeo and Romeo's replies. Earlier in the
play we have heard Romeo take up others' words (Benvolio's or Mercutio's) and answer them
with a slightly changed version. When Tybalt sarcastically says “the love I bear thee” (no love at
all) Romeo responds with “the reason that I have to love thee”, while “Thou art a villain”
becomes “villain am I none”. “Boy, this shall not excuse the injuries...” is met with “I do protest I
never injur'd thee”. Finally the direct challenge: “Therefore turn and draw” is countered with
“And so…be satisfied”.
In explaining the effect of this scene on the audience, you are encouraged to refer to any
versions of the play in performance that you have seen. How particular directors or actors
interpret it may be helpful. Make sure you present this work in an appropriate written or
spoken format.
Studying Act 3, Scene 5
What this scene is about - subject and theme
This scene opens with Juliet saying goodbye to Romeo, who must leave for Mantua. In the
previous scene the audience has heard Capulet offer Juliet's hand in marriage to Paris. We
understand why he does this, but we know many things he does not know. We can foresee that
Juliet will not be happy about her father's decision. Once Romeo has gone, Lady Capulet tells
Juliet she must marry. Juliet refuses, and her father angrily insists that she marry Paris or be
turned out of the house. Alone with the Nurse, Juliet asks for advice. She replies that Juliet
should marry Paris. Juliet is astounded and pretends to agree to this advice, while deciding that
the only person who can help her is Friar Lawrence. Now she feels most alone in the world.
Modern audiences may wonder what the problem is - why does Juliet not pretend to go through
with the marriage? But Shakespeare's audience knows that it is a mortal sin to attempt marriage
when you are already married. If you do this, you will certainly be damned (go to Hell). And
there is no way that the Friar would conduct such a marriage ceremony, which is one of the
sacraments (holy ceremonies or mysteries) of the church. The Nurse must know this, too, but it
seems that she does not really believe in, or care about, heaven and hell. The key to this scene
is what various people know:
Capulet thinks he knows what has upset his daughter (Tybalt's death) but he is quite wrong.
Lady Capulet knows as little as her husband.
Juliet knows about her marriage to Romeo, but cannot explain to her parents.
Juliet doesn't know, until they tell her, about their plans for her to marry Paris.
The Nurse, at this point, knows about Juliet's secrets.
Only the audience has the full picture. In the scene Juliet repeatedly speaks ambiguously - with
one meaning for the person to whom she speaks, and another for herself and the audience. For
example, the audience knows that Juliet knows that the Nurse knows that Juliet's parents don't
know about her marriage to Romeo! (Think about it.) Later we know that the Nurse does not
know that Juliet is deceiving her. Throughout the whole scene, Shakespeare makes dramatic use
of what people do or don't know.
The structure of the scene
The structure of the scene is a very simple sequence - the one common element being Juliet,
who is present throughout. After the episode where she bids farewell to Romeo (not set for the
Key Stage test), Juliet learns from her mother of the intended marriage to Paris. When Juliet
defies her mother, Capulet argues with her. He even shouts at the Nurse, when she tries to
defend Juliet. Finally, Juliet asks the Nurse for help. When the Nurse lets her down, Juliet is left
alone on stage to explain (to the audience) what she is going to do.
Characters
We find out quite a lot about all of the characters here. Juliet, only moments after being
together with Romeo, is in a difficult situation. At first she tries simple defiance, like many a
teenager. At the same time she uses irony - saying things that have a different real meaning
from what appears on the surface. But she is also resourceful and ultimately very brave. Lady
Capulet at first seems concerned for her daughter, but when Juliet defies her, she passes the
problem on to her husband. Capulet cares about Juliet, but he has given his word to Paris, and
now he is angry and bullying. But it must seem to him that Juliet is being proud and ungrateful.
Modern audiences should remember that arranged marriages are normal for people of Juliet's
class, and that Paris, a wealthy relation of the Prince, is a very good prospective husband for
her. She is beyond the usual age for marriage, and it is her father who in the past did not wish to
marry her off. So now he feels he has spoiled her, and made her “proud”.
This scene makes the audience completely rethink our opinion of the Nurse. She has always
seemed to care for Juliet and understand what matters to her. Now it becomes clear that the
Nurse has never really understood her. We are made to think again about coarse remarks the
Nurse makes in Act 1, scene 3, and Mercutios's even coarser insults in Act 2, Scene 4. In this
scene he calls her a “bawd” and suggests that she is “an old hare hoar” (“a hairy old whore”), as
well as speaking obscenely about “the bawdy hand of the dial” being on “the prick of noon”.
Perhaps Mercutio knows, or can see, what she is really like. At the end of Act 3, scene 5 Juliet,
now alone, says that from now on she will not trust the Nurse. She only speaks to her one more
time in the play, very briefly in Act 4, Scene 3, and here too Juliet misleads her. It is shocking to
think that the Nurse cares more about Juliet marrying, and perhaps having babies, than about
her eternal soul or about her real love for Romeo, her husband.
Language
The most important feature of Juliet's speech in this scene is ambiguity or double meanings.
When Lady Capulet says that Romeo (by killing Tybalt) has caused Juliet's grief, she agrees that
Romeo has made her sad, and that she would like to get her hands on him. By placing one word
- “dead” - between two sentences, Juliet makes her mother think she wants Romeo dead, while
really saying that her heart is dead because of him. When she swears “by Saint Peter's Church
and Peter too”, her mother thinks she is just using a strong oath - but the audience knows that
Saint Peter decides who goes to heaven or hell: so she is swearing by the saint who would
disallow a bigamous marriage. Later, Juliet speaks sarcastically to the Nurse, who thinks she is
sincere, when she says that the Nurse has comforted her “marvelous much”, with her
suggestion of “marrying” Paris. Juliet's last speech in this scene, as she is alone on stage, is, of
course, a soliloquy - it shows what she is thinking. Both parents use interesting comparisons for
Juliet's tears. Lady Capulet suggests that Juliet is trying to wash Tybalt from his grave, because
she is crying so much - she tells her daughter that she is crying too much, and makes a play on
the words much and some - “Some grief shows much of love”, but “much grief shows some
want [absence] of wit” [common sense or sense of proportion]. Lady Capulet means that Juliet
is overdoing her show of grief. This kind of contrast, where similar words are rearranged in two
halves of a sentence to show opposite meanings, is called antithesis. Capulet also notices Juliet's
tears but uses an extended metaphor. He compares the light rain [drizzle] of a real sunset with
the heavy downpour of Juliet's tears for the metaphorical sunset [death] of his brother's son
[Tybalt]. He develops this into the idea of a ship in a storm at sea - Juliet's eyes are the sea, her
body is the bark [ship] and her sighs are the winds.
Another feature of the language is Capulet's range of insults. He claims that Juliet is proud: she
insists that she is not, and Capulet repeats the word as evidence of her “chopt-logic” or splitting
hairs. These insults may seem mild or funny today, but were far more forceful in the 16th
Century: “green-sickness carrion”, “tallow-face”, “baggage...wretch” and “hilding”. Capulet
contrasts Paris's merits as a husband with Juliet's immature objections. He says that Paris is “Of
fair demesnes, youthful and nobly ligned” and “stuffed...with honourable parts”. He calls his
daughter a “wretched puling fool” and a “whining mammet”, before sarcastically mimicking her
objections to the match: “I cannot love...I am too young”. The audience knows of course that
she can and does love (it is Rosaline who cannot), and that she is obviously not “too young” to
marry.
See if you can find out what these insults mean. Try to remember them, and act out the scene,
making them as forceful as you can.
Also, when Capulet becomes angry, he uses language inventively - so the adjective [describing
word] proud becomes both verb and noun: “proud me no prouds”. And finally, he reminds us of
his power over Juliet by speaking of her as if she were a thoroughbred horse, which he can sell
at will - “fettle your fine joints”, he says, meaning that she must prepare herself for marriage.
Stagecraft
This scene takes place in Juliet's bedchamber. We may see a bed (or something to represent a
bed), but no other furniture is needed. Juliet's costume may show that she has been in bed though her parents do not suspect that she has had Romeo's company. Otherwise, the scene
relies mostly on speech. There are not many clues about action or use of props. Both her
parents speak about Juliet's weeping, and at one point Juliet kneels to beg her father for pity.
Capulet's outbursts against Juliet and the Nurse may be opportunities for some physical action
as well as verbal aggression to show his anger. What might he do to show how angry he is?
This refers to the ideas or themes in the play - what it is about but not its story. In Romeo and
Juliet this means at least the following:
Love - the difference between Romeo's pretended love (affectation) for Rosaline and real love.
Fortune: "a greater power than we can contradict" - how we are not always or fully in control of
our own lives
Authority - of parents · of the law; · of the Prince.
Tragedy - what does this mean? Does the play show general or universal truths about tragic
love? The causes of tragedy?
Stagecraft/appeal to audience
Characterization - this is not description of characters but how they are presented.
The structure of the play.
Important props (swords, the Friar's drugs, the poison, Romeo's dagger).
Contrast - light and dark · fate and free will · love and hate · death and life · appearance and
reality · public and private lives.
Oppositions of time - youth and age · past and present · fast and slow · real time and dream
time
Language
Important figures of speech (metaphor/simile).
Descriptive language for things we can't see - Romeo's description of Juliet's beauty (essential in
a theatre where Juliet is played by a boy Mercutio's Queen Mab speech. Forms of verse and
prose for dialogue: blank verse; · occasional rhymed verse (often at the end of a scene); · sonnet
forms - the Prologue, the lovers' meeting Stichomythia (alternating one-liners) and other
patterned language in the characters' speeches.
Puns and other verbal humor
Language showing attitudes to class - villain, My man, second-person pronoun form: you/your
(polite/formal) or thou/thee/thy (derogatory or informal).
KEY CHARACTER PROFILES: ROMEO AND JULIET
Romeo
Today Romeo is synonymous with love. In this classic play Romeo’s passion drives him to kill
himself when he believes his love, Juliet, is dead. It is the overwhelming power of Romeo’s love
that clouds his character, making him far more complex than his peers. His intensity of emotion
is reflected in his extreme actions throughout the play. Love compels him to creep into the
Capulet garden to see Juliet, anger compels him to fight and to kill, despair compels him to
suicide.
Romeo is a lover of women and a lover of poetry. His love is by no means a simple or
straightforward matter. At the beginning of the play, Romeo pines for Rosaline, ‘Out of her
favour where I am in love’. (Act 1:1:159) He proclaims her beauty, ‘O, she is rich in beauty … ’
(Act 1:1:206). He explains her lack of interest in him ‘She is too fair, too wise, wisely too fair/ To
merit bliss by making me despair’. (Act 1:2:212-3) He then continues in his rant of love to
proclaim the extremities of his emotion. Here on his first appearance pre-empting the later
events of the play driven by his passion, ‘Do I live dead, that I live to tell it now.’ (Act 1:1:215)
Romeo’s love for Rosaline disappears the instant he sees Juliet. His love for Rosaline could be
called puppy love having all the markings of an adolescent crush.
Romeo’s passion for poetry is reflected in his language in Act 1:1. Yet his manner of speech here
could suggest his emotion is somewhat put on or artificial. When considering Shakespeare’s use
of metaphor and imagery this language denotes Romeo’s all encompassing emotion. Perhaps
initially he is a self-indulgent and inexperienced teenager but after first kissing Juliet, she tells
him ‘you kiss by th’ book’, (Act 1:5:107). She finds his kissing adequate but lacking in experience.
His love for Juliet develops beyond the crush felt for Rosaline. Juliet’s clarity of observation
challenges Romeo beyond his superficial love to result in an intense passion. This is revealed
through the development of his language later in the play.
Juliet
Before she meets Romeo Juliet is an obedient child. She is nearly fourteen and accepts that girls
of her age marry, as did her mother. She says that she will try to love Paris when her mother
tells Juliet she is to marry him. When her Nurse talks of sex in Act 1 Scene 3, Juliet is
uncomfortable.
Unlike Romeo, Juliet has no friends of her own age. She is isolated and entrapped in the world
of the Capulets. In just the five days that she meets Romeo and then dies, Juliet is transformed
from child to woman. Unlike the confused Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Juliet is able
to criticise Romeo’s actions and decisions whilst being profoundly in love with him. She keeps
her wits about her and does not blindly follow Romeo after he kills Tybalt, but she does release
herself from her Capulet entrapment when she tries to be reunited with Romeo in the tomb.
Her suicide is not out of loss and weakness but out of intense love for Romeo. Ironically Juliet
kills herself with a dagger whereas Romeo swallows poison.
Friar Lawrence* (In some scripts this may be spelt Laurence)
Friar Lawrence is the only religious figure in the play. He shows compassion in his willingness to
assist the young lovers and in marrying them, yet this act is the most political manoeuvre in the
play. His mystical knowledge in the sleeping potion plan is unusual for a religious figure and the
reasons for this diversity in his character is unclear. Friar Lawrence’s actions in fact bring about
the final tragedy although he acts with well- meaning intention.
Nurse
- Write a character description for Juliet’s nurse.
Mercutio
Mercutio is Romeo’s quick-witted friend. He first appears in witty conversation with Romeo in
Act 1, Scene 4 where he mocks the lovelorn Romeo and recounts the tale of Queen Mab. His
sharp wit and intelligence make him a memorable Shakespearean character. He jokes
frequently but is by no means a light character. His role is to deflate the romantic love within
the play. Whereas other characters die blaming fate Mercutio dies cursing the feuding families.
Tybalt
Juliet’s cousin. Tybalt is an old name given to a cat. Mercutio says, ‘Tybalt, you rat-catcher, will
you walk?’ (3:1:68) and ‘Good King of Cats! Nothing, but one of your nine lives’. (3:1:70).
Whereas Benvolio tries to stop Sampson and Gregory fighting in Act 1, Scene 1, Tybalt is ready
and willing to fight, ‘Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death’. (1:1:58) He hates and his
comment reflects the blind hate of the servants and gives the audience no insight into the origin
of the Capulet-Montague feud, ‘What, drawn and talk of peace? I have the word,/ As I hate hell,
all Montagues, and thee’. (1:1:61-2) Benvolio describes him as ‘The fiery Tybalt with his sword
prepared’, (1:1:100).
The Parents
We first see the parents of Romeo and Juliet in Act 1 Scene 1 when the brawl instigated by
Samson’s and Gregory’s comments wakes the town. Capulet and Montague are angered and
ready to fight. It is their wives’ words which do not blatantly fuel the ongoing feud.
Capulet
Juliet’s father. He has long been feuding with Montague (Romeo’s father) but there is no
suggestion in Shakespeare’s script as to the grounds for the feud. Capulet commands respect
as when he says to Tybalt, ‘It is my will, the which if thou respect’, (1:5:71) and has quite a
temper. Which we glimpse in that same dialogue with Tybalt, ‘You must contrary me!’
(5:1:84) and ‘I’ll make you quiet, what!’ (1:5:87). He appears to truly love his daughter but
believes he knows what is best for her as he insists on the marriage to Paris. At the end of the
play he is remorseful and makes his peace with Montague, ‘O brother Montague, give me thy
hand’. (5:3:296) We see more of the Capulet parents than the Montague parents during the
course of the play. This reflects the independence of the young man of the time, Romeo and
highlights the entrapment of Juliet.
Lady Capulet
Capulet’s wife and Juliet’ mother. She reveals that she married at a younger age than that at
which she wants Juliet to marry Paris, ‘By my count,/ I was your mother much upon these
years/ That you are now a maid’. (1:3:72-4). Lady Capulet leaves the mothering to the Nurse
and tends to coax Juliet by social expectation and obligation.
Montague
Romeo’s father and head of the Montague household. After we first see him in Act 1 Scene 1 he
is concerned for Romeo’s apparent depression, ‘Could we but learn from whence his sorrows
grow,/ We would as willingly give cure as know’. (1:1:145-146)
Lady Montague
Romeo’s mother and Montague’s wife. She is most obviously against her husband joining the
brawl in the opening scene, ‘Thou shalt not stir one foot to seek a foe’. (1:1:71) She dies of grief
when Romeo is exiled and her death is reported in one line by Montague as he enters the tomb
in the final scene, ‘ … my wife is dead tonight;/Grief of my son’s exile hath stopped her breath’.
(5:3:210-1).
Benvolio
He is Montague’s nephew and Romeo’s cousin. He is a thoughtful character who tries to defuse
violent scenes in public places, ‘I drew to part them:’ (1:1:99). Mercutio accuses Benvolio of
having a nasty temper when in private, throughout the play Benvolio’s chief role is to help
Romeo get his mind off Rosaline, even after Romeo has fallen in love with Juliet.
Prince Escalus
As the Prince of Verona he holds the position of political power and is therefore concerned with
maintaining the public peace at all costs. He appears in Act 1 Scene 1 where he proclaims,
‘Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,’ (1:1:72) speaking against those who have begun the
fight in the street. He is not seen again until the end of the play in Act 5, Scene 3 and he has the
final word, ‘For never was a Story of more woe/ Than this of Juliet and her Romeo’. (5:3:310)
Paris
He is the man Capulet would like to marry Juliet. Paris is also a kinsman to the Prince. Paris
becomes quite arrogant and presumptuous in his manner when Capulet has promised Juliet will
marry him. He refers to Capulet as father, ‘My father Capulet will have it so’ (4:1:2) and greets
Juliet, ‘… my lady and my wife!’ (4:1:18)
Friar John
He is the Franciscan friar who Friar Lawrence asks to take the message to Romeo in Mantua.
Friar John is literally locked into a house when meeting with another Friar prior to heading off
on the journey to Mantau. At the time in London if people were suspected to be sick with the
plague they were quarantined and as the friars were in such a house they were literally locked
in and not permitted to leave, ‘Sealed up the doors, and would not let us forth’, (5:2:11). As a
result the message never reached Romeo and Friar John gives it back to Friar Lawrence,
‘I could not send it here it is again-‘ (5:2:13)
Balthasar
He is Romeo’s dedicated servant. In Act 5, Scene 1 Balthasar brings Romeo the news of Juliet’s
death, ‘Her body sleeps in Capel’s monument’. He does not know that Juliet faked her own
death.
Sampson and Gregory
Two servants from the Capulet household, They provoke the fight at the beginning of the play.
Abram
He is Montague’s servant who fights with Sampson and Gregory in the opening scene of the
play.
The Apothecary
He is the chemist or pharmacist in Mantua. He makes potions and poisons. He sells Romeo the
death potion in Act 5 Scene 1, ‘Such mortal drugs I have, but Mantua’s law/ Is death to any he
that utters them’. ‘My poverty, but not my will, consents’, says the Apothecary as he explains
that had he been wealthier, he would have refused to sell poison to Romeo.
Peter
He is a servant of the Capulet household. He is referred to by other servants in Act 5 (5:4:128166).
Rosaline
Romeo is infatuated with Rosaline at the beginning of the play. Rosaline never appears onstage.
In Act 1 Scene 2 the servant asks Romeo to read the names on the invitations to the Capulet
party that the servant (who cannot read) is delivering. Rosaline is one of the names and this
gives Romeo motivation to ‘crash’ the party.
The Chorus
The Chorus is derived from the Chorus in Greek drama which functions as a narrator offering
commentary on the play’s plot and themes. In this play the Chorus appears only in Act 1. The
Act 1 and Act 2 Prologues and then does not appear again.
THEMATIC CONCERNS OF THE PLAY: OPPOSING FORCES
Opposing forces are found through the play. Particularly in the language, images of night and
day, black and white, love and hate.
Love and Hate
Love is a powerful force in Romeo And Juliet as is hate. The hate between the Montague and
Capulet families is the seed that sows the destruction. The bad poetry Romeo reads for Rosaline
in the opening of the play disappears as the powerful emotion evolves. Love in this play
captures
Romeo and Juliet. Once caught up in love in just nine days they travel a whirlwind journey which
leads to their tragic ends. Juliet, perhaps, most perfectly describes her love for Romeo by
refusing to describe it:
But my true love is grown to such excess
I cannot sum up some of half my wealth. (2:6:33-34).
Romeo sums up the confusion of love and hate that runs throughout the play:
Here’s much to do with hate, but more with love:
Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate,
O any thing of nothing first create! (1:1:166-8)
Light and dark - Night and Day
The contrast between dark and light is vital in this play. This use of light highlights the passing of
the days within which the events take place.
The light and dark suggest the building tension of the opposing forces in the play and neither
definitively represents good or evil.
Light and dark are a particular focus for Romeo and Juliet. When Romeo first sees Juliet he talks
of light, ‘O she doth teach the torches to burn bright!’ (1:5:43). In Act 2 Scene 2 (known as the
balcony scene) Romeo compares Juliet to the sun and talks of the ‘envious moon’. (2:2:46) After
their night together in Act 3 Scene 5 both Romeo and Juliet try to convince themselves it is still
night so that Romeo must not flee in the morning, as he has been banished to Mantua.
Fate
In the Chorus’ first speech ‘a pair of star-crossed lovers’ are introduced. Fate is a key element of
the play from the beginning.
Romeo: I fear too early, for my mind misgives
some consequence yet hanging in the stars (1:4:104)
Romeo suspects something bad will happen to him.
Juliet: Methinks I see thee now, thou art so low,
As one dead in the bottom of a tomb (3:5:55-6)
Juliet fears death when she and Romeo part.
Romeo: Is it e’en so? then I defy you, stars! (5:1:24)
Romeo challenges fate when he hears of Juliet’s death. Fate surrounds Romeo and Juliet: the
feud between the two families, the plague holding up Friar John and stopping him delivering the
message to Romeo and finally the timing in the tomb whereby Romeo drinks the poison and
dies before Juliet awakes to find him there.
At the start of the play we are immediately introduced to the theme of fate through the
prologue which says “A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life.” This tells the audience that
fate is working against Romeo and Juliet through the reference to their stars being crossed
which in Shakespeare’s time meant that their love was destined to end.
Fate is responsible for the numerous tragedies that occur in the play. It is also responsible for
the meeting of Romeo and Juliet. The night of the Capulet ball Romeo says ‘methinks I see
some hanging in the stars’, this shows the way in which he believes in fate and also reveals the
premonition he has that after tonight nothing will be the same in his life again. This proves to
be very true as it is at the ball that he meets the love of his life, Juliet.
The Friar Lawrence also believes in fate and it is this belief that enables him to convince himself
to marry Romeo and Juliet. He sees their love as being a destiny for the two, arranged by fate,
to stop their houses fighting and hatred for each other.
Juliet also believes in fate and says ‘What must be will be’ to Paris when talking about their
arranged marriage. Another example is when she farewells Romeo before he leaves Verona she
says ‘Methinks I see thee dead in the bottom of a tomb.” This shows the way that she, like
Romeo, has premonitions about their future, premonitions that can only exist with a belief in
fate.
When Romeo mistakenly believes Juliet is dead he screams ‘then I defy you stars!’ This quote
clearly shows that he feels betrayed by the stars; symbols of fate in Shakespeare’s time.
Throughout the play Romeo and Juliet act as ‘toys to the gods’ as if their lives are not in their
hands and that fate and/or destiny is working against them. This idea is what adds that extra
element of tragedy to the play. The audience knows after the prologue that the love between
Romeo and Juliet is doomed even before it has begun and that they are ‘fortunes fools’ (this is
how Romeo describes himself).
The Language of Love
Shakespeare’s characters use metaphors to explain themselves, what they see and what they
feel.
Love at first sight
When Romeo gatecrashes the Capulet’s party he is instantly entranced by Juliet’s beauty. Look
at the language he uses in Act 1:5:43-52 to describe his first impression of Juliet:
O she doth teach the torches to burn bright!
It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night
As rich a jewel in an Ethiop’s ear Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear:
So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows,
As yonder lady o’er her fellow shows.
The measure done, I’ll watch her place of stand,
And touching hers, make blesséd my rude hand.
Did my heart love till now? Foreswear it, sight!
For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.
Romeo And Juliet is a play full of oppositions: characters are opposed, images are opposed,
ideals are opposed. Opposing forces are presented through the Shakespeare’s language and
they are represented visually by means of set, costume, lighting and character.
ACTIVITY
1) In pairs take a line from Romeo’s speech. Define the comparison being made by Romeo.
For example:
He exaggerates. He uses hyperbole: extravagant and exaggerated language or ‘hype’.
For example:
O she doth teach the torches to burn bright!
It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night
As rich a jewel in an Ethiop’s ear In these lines Romeo talks of Juliet’s beauty as a kind of brightness. Romeo says she is so bright
she could teach flames to ‘burn bright’. She is bright in the dark of night in the way an earring
stands out against the dark skin of an Ethopian person.
2) Individually or in pairs make up your own ‘love at first sight’ soliloquy using your own
metaphors and your own exaggeration. It may help you to use an excerpt of script as a model.
Try Romeo and Juliet’s discussion in the balcony scene Act 2, Scene 2.
3) Look for examples of imagery used to present the following oppositions:
• Light and dark
• Fate and freewill
• Love and hate
• Death and life
• Public and private
• Past versus present
• Fast versus slow
• Youth versus age
• Dreamtime versus reality time
For example:
Light and Dark
Romeo and Juliet wish that it would still be night so that Romeo would not have to leave for
Mantua.
The lark represents morning and the Nightingale night. Juliet says
Wilt thou be gone? It is not yet near day:
It was the nightingale, and not the lark,
(3:5:1-2)
Fate and Freewill
If the servant could read and if Rosaline’s name was not on the list, surely Romeo would not
have gone to the party and consequently met Juliet. (1:2:38-85)
Throughout the play characters talk of fate. Find evidence of this in what the characters say.
Students collect newspaper, magazine and Internet articles about young love and family feuds.
Display these on a board in the classroom and use this as a resource for stimulating students’
ideas about the story prior to the performance.
CHARACTER ACTIVITY
1) Character Profiling
a). Select two characters and then find information about each character from the script. By
listing quotes you can create a character profile.
For example:
Tybalt was a name commonly given to cats, like Fido or Rex for a dog today.
b). Look at the character Tybalt. Create a profile of Tybalt from what other characters say about
him and what he says himself.
Who refers to him as rat-catcher?
2) Character Contrast
Take pairs of characters and consider how they differ. They may have different temperaments,
likes and dislikes, approaches to people.
Pairs to contrast:
Benvolio and Mercutio
Romeo and Tybalt
Lady Capulet and the Nurse
Friar Lawrence and Paris
For example:
Romeo and Mercutio are friends, yet they are quite different in their nature. Romeo is the
romantic Renaissance lover. He writes poetry and speaks in flowery rhymed couplets. Outside
the Capulet’s party he is melancholy. Mercutio is keen to fight and tends to use harsh imagery.
Look at the contrasts in their language in Act 1,Scene 4.
3) Creating Contrasting Characters
This activity can be taken a step further.
Two students stand up as the mannequins; other students give directions for how these
students can become the contrasting characters (i.e. you should pose them as if you are
shooting photos).
For example:
Benvolio and Mercutio
Benvolio about Mercutio:
‘And I were so apt to quarrel as thou art, any man should
buy the fee-simple of my life for an hour and a quarter’.
(3:I:27-8)
Mercutio about Benvolio
‘Thou art like one of these fellows that, when he enters the
confines of a tavern, claps me his sword upon the table, and says
‘God send me no need of thee!’
(3:I:4-6)
‘Come, come thou art as hot a Jack in thy moody as any in
Italy, and as soon moved to be moody, and as soon moody to be
moved’. (3:1:10-11)
Make your own similar list for two characters and prepare your ‘photos’.
Shakespeare’s script does not indicate what the feud is based on. It is only clear that this feud
caused hatred between the families that has lasted for a long time.
Around the world today there are cultural feuds that have their origins deep in history. Consider
the following:
• Israel and Palestine
• Iraq and Kuwait
• Russia and Chechnya
• The Cronulla riots
• Hitler and the Jews
• White and Black South Africa
• France and England
• Ireland and England
• Northern Ireland - the Catholics and the Protestants
ACTIVITY
1) Select one of the above or carry out an Internet search for another feud. Try to find evidence
of the feud:
a) Who is involved?
b) When it began
c) Why it began
d) How is it manifest today?
2) Your response:
Create a treaty or a peace plan for your feud. This may be a letter of agreement for the
representative of the feuding groups to sign or a list of steps to be followed.
3) Using the idea of Romeo and Juliet as your model, write a short story about two people
caught up in the feud you have researched. How will they overcome the feud and find a way to
maintain their friendship/love. You may choose to write this in any form:
• Narrative
• Play script
• Film script
• Hip-hop or rap
• Poetry
• Song
How were these characters presented in the play?
Juliet
Romeo
Capulet Montague
Lady Capulet Lady Montague
Mercutio Tybalt
What visual contrasts were used to establish character?
How are the Montague family portrayed?
How are the Capulet family portrayed?
Consider casting choices, costumes, characterization, style and setting of scenes, lighting, and
music.
Symbolism in the script and on the stage.
Poison symbolizes human society’s tendency to poison good things and make them fatal, just as
the pointless Capulet-Montague feud turns Romeo and Juliet’s love to poison. After all, unlike
many of the other tragedies, this play does not have an evil villain, but rather people whose
good qualities are turned to poison by the world in which they live.
1).
What other symbols appear in the play? What is the purpose of the symbol?
DEBATE
That Romeo and Juliet were too young to make the choices they made.
Language in general:
PUNS:
Mercutio. Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.
Romeo. Not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes
With nimble soles; I have a soul of lead
So stakes me to the ground I cannot move.
Mercutio. You are a lover. Borrow Cupid’s wings
And soar with them above a common bound.
Romeo. I am too sore enpierchd with his shaft
To soar with his light feathers; and so bound
I cannot bound a pitch above dull woe.
Under love’s heavy burden do I sink.
Mercutio. And, to sink in it, should you burden love-Too great oppression for a tender thing.
Romeo. Is love a tender thing? It is too rough.
Too rude, too boist’rous, and it pricks like thorn.
Mercutio. If love be rough with you, be rough with love;
Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.
An old hare hoar,
And an old hare hoar,
Is very good meat in Lent;
But a hare that is hoar
is too much for a score
When it hoars ere it be spent.
(I,iv,13-28)
(Mercutio, II,iv,141-146)
FORESHADOWING:
O God, I have an ill-divining soul!
Methinks I see thee, now thou art so low,
As one dead in the bottom of a tomb. (Juliet, III,v,54-56)
Or if you do not, make the bridal bed
In that dim monument where Tybalt lies.
(Juliet, III,v,202-203)
METAPHOR:
It is the East, and Juliet is the Sun!
Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven,
Having some business, do entreat her eyes
To twinkle in their spheres till they return.
(Romeo, II,ii,3,15-17)
Alas, poor Romeo, he is already dead:
stabbed with a white wench’s black eye; run through
the ear with a love song; the very pin of his heart
cleft with the blind bow-boy’s butt-shaft... (Mercutio, II,iv,13-15)
Gallop apace, you fiery-footed steeds,
Towards Phoebus’ lodging! Such a wagoner
As Phakton would whip you to the west
And bring in cloudy night immediately. (Juliet, III,ii,1-4)
NAMING:
‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy.
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What’s Montague? It is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face. O, be some other name
Belonging to a man.
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet. (Juliet, II,ii,38-44)
As if that name,
Shot from the deadly level of a gun,
Did murder her; as that name’s curshd hand
Murdered her kinsman. O, tell me, friar, tell me,
In what vile part of this anatomy
Doth my name lodge? Tell me, that I may sack
The hateful mansion. (Romeo, III,iii,102-108)
It was the nightingale, and not the lark...
It was the lark, the herald of the morn;
No nightingale. (Juliet, III,v,2; Romeo, 6-7)
LANGUAGE TO REVEAL SOCIAL CLASS AND DEVELOP CHARACTER:
(Nurse’s peasant speech and attempt to imitate her betters)
Yes, madam. Yet I cannot choose but laugh
To think it should leave crying and say, “Ay.”
And yet, I warrant, it had upon it brow
A bump as big as a young cock’rel’s stone;
A perilous knock; and it cried bitterly.
“Yea,” quoth my husband, “fall’st upon thy face/
Thou wilt fall backward when thou comest to age,
Wilt thou not, Jule?” It stinted and said, “Ay.” (I,iii,50-57)
(Friar’s moralization)
Virtue itself turns vice, being misapplied,
And vice sometime by action dignified. (II,iii,21-22)
(Juliet’s lyrical imagery)
O, bid me leap, rather than marry Paris,
From off the battlements of any tower,
Or walk in thievish ways, or bid me lurk
Where serpents are; chain me with roaring bears,
Or hide me nightly in a charnel house,
O’ercovered quite with dead men’s rattling bones,
With reeky shanks and yellow chapless skulls;
Or bid me go into a new-made grave
And hide me with a dead man in his shroud-Things that, to hear them told, have made me tremble-And I will do it without fear or doubt,
To live an unstained wife to my sweet love. (IV,i,77-88)
(Illiterate banter of servants) Find them out whose names are written here?
It is written that the shoemaker should meddle with
his yard and tailor with his last, the fisher with
his pencil and the painter with his nets; but I am
sent to find those persons whose names are here
writ, and can never find what names the writing
person hath here writ. I must to the learned. In good time! (I,ii,38-45)
(Gentrified tale of Capulet and Prince Aeschylus)
And too soon marred are those so early made.
Earth has swallowed all my hopes but she;
She is the hopeful lady of my earth. (Capulet, I,ii,13-15)
And for that offense
Immediately we do exile him hence.
I have an interest in your hate’s proceeding,
My blood for your rude brawls doth lie a-bleeding;
But I’ll amerce you with so strong a fine
That you shall all repent the loss of mine.
I will be deaf to pleading and excuses;
Nor tears nor prayers shall purchase out abuses.
Therefore use none. Let Romeo hence in haste,
Else, when he is found, that hour is his last.
Bear hence this body and attend our will.
Mercy but murders, pardoning those that kill. (Prince, III,i,188-199)
(Intellectual command of Mercutio)
Romeo! Humors! Madman! Passion! Lover!
Appear thou in the likeness of a sigh;
Speak but one rhyme, and I am satisfied!
Cry but “Ay me!” pronounce but “love” and “dove”;
Speak to my gossip Venus one fair work,
One nickname for her purblind son and heir
Young Abraham Cupid, he that shot so true
When King Cophetua loved the beggar maid!
(II,i,7-14)
(Insolent, fiery talk of Tybalt)
What! Dares the slave
Come hither, covered with an antic face,
To fleer and scorn at our solemnity?
Now, by the stock and honor of my kin,
To strike him dead I hold it not a sin. (I,v,57-61)
(Figurative language of Romeo)
But soft! What light through yonder window breaks?
It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!
Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,
Who is already sick and pale with grief
That thou her maid art far more fair than she.
Be not her maid, since she is envious.
Her vestal livery is but sick and green,
And none but fools do wear it. Cast it off. (II,ii,1-9)
Discuss how Shakespeare’s use of language reveals attributes of each character.
1. Record the chronological sequence of events.
2. Select a major character and keep a journal of his/her development, noting: scenes that
illustrate character traits, how Shakespeare’s use of language develops the character, how the
character interacts with other characters, how the character relates to the themes of the play.
Use a character relationship chart to plot and discuss each character’s development.
3. Write an essay about the theme you select. Discuss why this theme is important today.
Discuss how Shakespeare developed the theme. Discuss how the theme relates to the tragedy
of the play.
Top Ten Quotes
1) My only love, sprung from my only hate!
Too early seen unknown, and known too late!
Prodigious birth of love it is to me
That I must love a loathed enemy. (I.5.139-142)
Juliet after the Nurse tells her that Romeo is a Montague. She has already fallen in love with
him. The information has come too late to save them from this difficult situation.
2) But soft! What light through yonder window breaks?
It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!
Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,
Who is already sick and pale with grief
That thou her maid are far more fair than she. (II.2. 2-6)
Romeo, seeing Juliet at her window. He compares her to the sun, light that brightens his dark
world. He had previously compared Rosaline to the moon. His love for Juliet, the sun, has risen
and killed the feelings he had for Rosaline.
3) What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet. (II.2 .43-44)
Juliet lamenting fact that her love is a member of the family that is a bitter enemy of her own.
He is not defined by his name. They would be able to express their love freely if he were called
anything else.
4) See what a scourge is laid upon your hate,
That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love. (V.3. 292-293)
The Prince to Capulet and Montague. Since the families didn't have the sense to end their feud,
heaven has provided a solution for them, at a price. They have all been punished for their
actions.
5) These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which, as they kiss, consume. (II.6.9-11)
Friar Lawrence, warning Romeo to cool down his passion. Moderate love is less likely to lead to
disaster than violent love. His warnings prove to be founded.
6) No, 'tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as
a church door; but 'tis enough, 'twill serve. Ask for
me to-morrow and you shall find me a grave man. I am
peppered, I warrant, for this world. A plague o'both
your houses! (III.1.94-98)
These are Mercutio's dying words. He still maintains his sense of humor with his pun on the
word grave but also blames the feuding families for his demise (ignoring the fact that he jumped
into the fight of his own accord).
7) The earth that's nature's mother is her tomb.
What is her burying grave, that is her womb;
And from her womb children of divers kind
We sucking on her natural bosom find,
Many for many virtues excellent,
None but for some, and yet all different. (II.3.9-14)
Friar Lawrence is in his cell philosophizing before Romeo bursts in with his request for marriage.
He is talking about the duality of all things in nature, including humans. From death comes new
life.
8) O serpent heart, hid with a flow'ring face!
Did ever dragon keep so fair a cave?
Beautiful tyrant! fiend angelical!
Dove-feathered raven! wolvish-ravening lamb!
Despised substance of divinest show!
Just opposite to what thou justly seem'stA damned saint, an honorable villain!
O nature, what hadst thou to do in hell
When thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend
In mortal paradise of such sweet flesh?
Was ever book containing such vile matter
So fairly bound? O, that deceit should dwell
In such a gorgeous place! (III.2.73-84)
These are Juliet's words when the Nurse tells her that her new husband has killed her cousin
Tybalt. She is speaking of the oppositions in Romeo's character, his duality (remember Friar
Lawrence's philosophy). Romeo is both her friend and enemy, a lover and a murderer.
9) O son, the night before thy wedding day
Hath Death lain with thy wife. There she lies,
Flower as she was, deflowered by him.
Death is my son-in-law, Death is my heir;
My daughter he hath wedded. I will die
And leave him all. Life, living, all is Death's. (IV.5.35-40)
Capulet uses these words to inform Paris of Juliet's death. Juliet is Capulet's only living child and
sole heir to his estate. With Juliet goes the continuation of his bloodline. He did not show this
concern for his daughter when she was still alive however; he had very recently been willing to
throw her out in the street for disobeying him. He only becomes a caring father when she is
dead.
10) I fear, too early; for my mind misgives
Some consequence, yet hanging in the stars,
Shall bitterly begin his fearful date
With this night's revels and expire the term
Of a despised life, closed in my breast,
By some vile forfeit of untimely death.
But he that hath the steerage of my course
Direct my sail! On, lusty gentlemen! (I.4.106-113)
Romeo is about to enter the Capulet's party and has a premonition that his life will change
forever after that night. He feels fate has death in store for him but does not fear it. His life is
moving in a direction that cannot be changed.