Romeo and Juliet
Spring 2014
Davis
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Terminology
A soliloquy is a speech in a play in which a character, alone on stage, expresses his or her
thoughts directly to the audience.
A monologue is a lengthy speech, like the soliloquy, but a monologue is addressed to other
characters, not to the audience.
An aside is a brief remark, unheard by the other characters on stage, from the character to the
audience.
A soliloquy and an aside both serve the purpose to let the audience know what a character is
really thinking or feeling.
Shakespeare used soliloquies and asides to:
 reveal character
 disclose motives
 advance the plot
Differences between a soliloquy and an aside are:
 A soliloquy is a lengthy speech and an aside is brief.
 A soliloquy is usually spoken when no other characters are present, and an
aside is delivered with other characters present but unable to hear.
Metaphor:
Simile:
Dramatic Irony:
Personification:
Foreshadowing:
Sonnet:
Couplet:
Allusion: A reference to a historical person, place, event, literary work, piece of art, etc. Shakespeare
makes allusions to mythological figures throughout the play.
Pun: a form of wordplay that occurs when two words pronounced the same way have different
meanings.
Oxymoron: placing two words that have opposites meanings next to each other.
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Blank Verse: unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter (blank=unrhymed verse= rhythm)
Iambic pentameter: An iamb is a unit of rhythm in a line (unstressed, stressed) (soft hard).
Pentameter is the number of units in the line, 5. Iambic pentameter, then, is the meter of a line.
Elizabethan English Translation Guide
Traveling to a historical time period through reading often involves learning a new dialect.
Remember, Shakespeare did not write in “old English,” he wrote in modern English—but he used
the dialect (including slang) of his day.
Here are some tips for literary travelers to Shakespeare’s Elizabethan Era:
1. Shakespeare often adds “doth” before or “t” or “th” or “-st” after a verb.
 wilt—will
 wrong’st—do wrong
 art—are

 didst—did
 quoth—quoted (said)
 hath—has
 thinkst—think
2. Shakespeare often uses slang/curse words we don’t know very well.
 marry—by the virgin Mary (in place of “By God!”)
 fie—shame on you
 mass—by the mass (in place of “By God!”)
 out—shame on you, get out of here
 i’faith—in faith (in place of “by God”)
3. Thou/Thee = You –only between people who are intimate or share status
Thy/Thine = Your –only between people who are intimate or share status
‘a = he/she –slang or lower class situations only
4. Shakespeare depended on contractions that look unfamiliar to us. Sometimes
he will show that it is a contraction by using an apostrophe. Other times, he will simply cut out
some of the syllables or words.
For example
 oe’er—over
 ‘twas—it was
 ‘tis—it is
 on’t—on it
 havior—behavior
 an—and
 ta’en--taken
 I’ll to the friar—I’ll go to the
friar’s place
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5. Shakespeare often flip-flopped his sentences
(Think Yoda-speak).
This is more about poetry than dialect, but it’s worth knowing. For example, Juliet says:
If thy bent of love be honorable, thy purpose marriage, send me word tomorrow.
But we would probably put the main part of the sentence first:
Send me word tomorrow if thy bent of love is honorable, thy purpose marriage.
Translation of Common Words (the “Glossary”)
apothecary—pharmacist or drug dealer
ay or nay—yes or no
bid—tell me, ask me
choler—anger
doth—do
enmity—hatred
ere—before or until
fray—fight
haste--hurry
hence--therefore
hither/thither—here/there
humor—mood
naught/aught—nothing/anything
profane—make unholy
steal—sneak
straight—right away
vessel—container or “means of”
wherefore—why (NOT WHERE!!!!!)
why—well
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Monologue Explication
During our study of Romeo and Juliet, you will each get a chance to do some close reading of
Shakespearean language and explicate one of the monologues in the play. This will give you the chance to
interact with the language of Shakespeare in a capacity that will not completely overwhelm you.
Select a monologue and read it carefully. You may need to read the lines prior to your monologue in
order to completely understand the context of the situation. Complete the following tasks with your
monologue:
Step One:
Identify any similes, metaphors, personification, oxymorons, and puns in the monologue. Underline and
label them. (If you want to try your hand at scansion, try to identify the rhythm in the lines. If there is a
rhyme scheme (sometimes Shakespeare likes to put sonnets in the middle of monologues), identify it.)
Mark and label the devices right on the text.
Step Two:
For each device that you identify, explain why Shakespeare uses the devices and how they help create
meaning in the play.
Step Three:
Explicate the monologue by writing down, line by line, what is being said in each line. Be sure to look up
any words you do not understand and use the notes in the margin to help explain archaic phrases.
Explain how the character would deliver these lines.
If you need help with this assignment, please talk with me, but do not come in the day your monologue is
due for help. Plan ahead so I will have ample time to help you. You may also use the internet if you would
like. There will be many web sites that will help you work through your monologue. You can access the
entire play scene by scene at: http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/romeoscenes.html.
Although many of you will not present monologues until later in the play, I strongly encourage you to
begin preparation for this assignment as quickly as possible. Monologues for each act should be ready the
day we begin to read the act.
When selecting a monologue, please select a monologue that is appropriate for your strengths and skill
level. If you are a strong reader, consider selecting one of the longer monologues. Also consider signing
up to read the role that corresponds with your monologue. There are a few extra monologues that I will
offer for extra credit.
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Act I
Scene
1.1
Character
1
Prince
Lines
89-111
2
1.1
Romeo
181-193
3
1.2
Capulet
13-38
4
1.3
Nurse
16-63
5
1.3
Lady Capulet
88-103
6
1.4
Mercutio
58-100
7
1.5
Capulet
17-35
Scene
2.1
Character
8
Mercutio
Lines
8-23
9
2.2
Romeo
1-34
10
2.2
Juliet
35-52
11
2.2
Juliet
94-115
12
2.3
Friar
1-44
1
2.5
Juliet
1-19
1
2.6
Friar
9-21
Presenter
Act II
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Presenter
Act III
Scene
3.1
Character
15
Benvolio
Lines
163-189
16
3.1
Prince
202-213
17
3.2
Juliet
1-37
18
3.2
Juliet
79-91
19
3.2
Juliet
106-138
20
3.3
Romeo
32-54
21
3.3
Friar
125-175
22
3.5
Capulet
202-223
23
Scene
4.1
Character
Juliet
Lines
57-74
24
4.1
Friar
98-130
25
4.3
Juliet
16-60
26
4.5
Nurse
1-17
27
4.5
Friar
74-93
Scene
5.1
Character
28
Romeo
Lines
1-17
29
5.1
Romeo
35-60
30
5.3
Romeo
22-39
31
5.3
Romeo
77-123
32
5.3
Friar
252-293
Presenter
Act IV
Presenter
Act V
Presenter
Reading Roles
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Act 1
1.1
Sampson
Gregory
Abram
Benvolio
Tybalt
Citizens
Capulet
Lady Capulet
Montague
Lady Montague
Prince
Romeo
1.2
Capulet
Paris
Servant
Benvolio
Romeo
1.3
Lady Capulet
Nurse
Juliet
Servingman
1.4
Romeo
Benvolio
Mercutio
1.5
1st Servingman
2nd Servingman
3rd Servingman
Capulet
2nd Capulet
Romeo
Servant (line48)
Tybalt
Juliet
Benvolio
Nurse
Act 2
2.1
Romeo
Benvolio
Mercutio
2.2
Romeo
Juliet
Nurse
2.3
Friar
Romeo
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2.4
Mercutio
Benvolio
Romeo
Nurse
Peter
2.5
Juliet
Nurse
2.6
Friar
Romeo
Juliet
Act 3
3.1
Benvolio
Mercutio
Tybalt
Romeo
Citizen
Prince
Lady Capulet
Montague
3.2
Juliet
Nurse
3.3
Friar
Romeo
Nurse
3.4
Capulet
Paris
Lady Capulet
3.5
Juliet
Romeo
Nurse
Lady Capulet
Juliet
Capulet
Act 4
4.1
Friar
Paris
Juliet
4.2
Capulet
Servingman
Nurse
Juliet
Lady Capulet
4.3
Juliet
Lady Capulet
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4.4
Lady Capulet
Nurse
Capulet
First Servant
Second Servant
4.5
Nurse
Lady Capulet
Capulet
Friar
Paris
1st Musician
Peter
2nd Musician
3rd Musician
Act 5
5.1
Romeo
Balthasar
Apothecary
5.2
John
Lawrence
5.3
Paris
Page
Romeo
Balthasar
Friar
Juliet
Chief Watchman
Boy
2nd watchman
3rd watchman
Prince
Capulet
Lady Capulet
Montague
A PLAY OF OPPOSITES
Shakespeare included many ideas, characters and even language that contradicts or opposes each other.
For example, the main conflict of the play is about two households in Verona, the Montagues and the
Capulets, that despise each other based on ancient grudges. These two families act much like opposites.
However, as the old cliché goes, opposites attract and Romeo and Juliet, the children of each household,
fall in love.
Watch for these opposites.
Light v. Dark
Throughout the play, there will be images of light and dark. Notice how these images connect to the
events and bigger ideas in the play.
Fate vs. Individual Choice
Did Romeo and Juliet choose their destiny or was it simply fate?
Dreams vs. Reality
Several characters mention, indulge in, and live in a sort of dreamland separate from reality.
Youth v. Age
Consider how the age of the character affects their actions and perspectives.
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DRAMATIC FOIL
A dramatic foil is a character that highlights or brings out the personality traits of another character in a play.
Usually, the foil contrasts (is the opposite) with the other character, and the contrast serves to emphasize the other
character’s traits.
Benvolio and Romeo: Benvolio has a calm and sensitive disposition, which contrasts with
Romeo’s moody, emotional disposition.
Benvolio and Tybalt: Benvolio tries to quiet the brawling servants, which contrasts with the fiery Tybalt
who always wants to fight.
Romeo and Mercutio: Romeo’s artificiality of sentiment contrasts with Mercutio’s sense of reality.
Mercutio is a carefree, outgoing, and optimistic person to whom almost everything is a joke; Romeo is
sensitive, moody, pessimistic, and romantic.
Romeo and Paris: Paris becomes a foil to Romeo after Mercutio dies; Paris is built up as a lover whose
conventionality and inexperience contrast with Romeo’s newly developed range and depth of feeling for
Juliet
Juliet and the Nurse: The Nurse is crude and she talks senselessly. Juliet is romantic, which contrasts
with the Nurse’s practical approach to love. The nurse’s easy-going moral indulgence is contrasted with
Juliet’s purity.
Friar Lawrence and Romeo: Romeo is all passion and courage while Friar Lawrence counsels caution
and moderation. The Friar is a very thoughtful man, one who ponders life’s mysteries, while Romeo is
much more a person of action, one who is essentially driven by a single passion.
DIFFERENT VIEWS OF LOVE EXIST IN THE PLAY
Juliet: Prior to meeting Romeo, Juliet’s attitude toward love is one of modesty and lack of
comprehension. After she meets Romeo, she allows the passion of love to consume her, but she remains
practical and strong.
Romeo: His love for Rosaline consists of his melancholy at being rejected by one who refuses to love at
all; his passion for Juliet is fully developed when he is able share his love and passion with one who is
willing to accept love.
Mercutio: his brilliant intelligence seems to make ridiculous an all-absorbing and exclusive passion based
upon sex
Friar Lawrence: love is an accompaniment to life, reprehensible if violent or unsanctified by religion
Father Capulet: love is something to be decided by a prudent father for his heiress-daughter
Lady Capulet: love is worldly wisdom (her husband gave up dancing thirty years ago)
Nurse: love is something natural and sometimes lasting, connected with pleasure and pregnancy
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TRAGEDY AND TRAGIC HEROES
Tragedy (as a type of drama)
 Starts off happy or with a humorous scene
 Descends into chaos
 Deals with profound and universal problems: a person’s destiny, the nature of good and
evil, a person’s relationship with forces greater than himself, consequences of individual
actions.
The Tragic Hero





Positive and active character, caught up in sharp conflict with opposing forces.
Suffers greatly, moving from fortune to misfortune.
Tragic actions arise from inner conflicts or test the hero’s integrity.
Usually has a tragic flaw—a lapse in judgment that leads to catastrophe.
Death may overtake the protagonist, but usually he is spiritually triumphant.
NAMES
Tybalt: Tybalt’s name comes from a word that means “bold.” Tybalt is also named after a kind of cat; Tybalt, or a
variation of it, is the name of the cat in medieval stories of Reynard the Fox.
Benvolio: Benvolio is from the Latin words bene, meaning “good,” and volo, meaning “I am willing.”
Mercutio: Mercutio’s name suggests that he is a mercurial type, that is sprightly, quick-witted, and volatile. His
name is also derived from that of the Roman god Mercury, who was known for eloquence, cleverness, and thievery.
Romeo: in Italian, Romeo meant ‘a pilgrim to Rome’. It is also defined as ‘a roamer, a wanderer, a palmer’ in an
Italian dictionary.
Nurse – is a byname for the nurse, whose first name is Angelica.
THE NOTION OF COURTLY LOVE
Courtly love was a philosophy of love and a code of love making which grew out of medieval notions of
chivalry. According to the system (reserved for the privileged), falling in love is accompanied by great
emotional disturbances. The lover is bewildered, helpless, tortured by mental and physical pain, and
exhibits certain symptoms, (pallor, trembling, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, sighing, weeping, etc). He
agonizes over his condition and indulges in endless self-questioning and reflections on the nature of love
and his own wretched state. His condition improves when he is accepted, and he is inspired by his love to
great deeds. He and his lady pledge each other to secrecy, and they must remain faithful in spite of all
obstacles.
Some believe that Shakespeare is using Romeo and Juliet to poke fun at the notions of courtly love, an
ideal that was more and more out of fashion in the Elizabethan Era, under the guidance of “The Virgin
Queen.”
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LOGISTICS
The mutual passion of Romeo and Juliet is surrounded by the mature bawdry of the other characters.
However, it is not impaired by it, and nothing in the highly-sexed world seems to damage the intense
purity of the two lovers. The youthful lovers have an exuberance and moodiness, and their reactions to
the disappointments of love are extreme.
The belief in the fateful influence of the stars upon human life was common during Elizabethan times.
Romeo and Juliet frequently make statements indicating that their fates are determined by the stars. A
modem audience may not be as responsive to the stars determining fate, and we are more likely to believe
that chance (bad luck) determines Romeo’s fate.
Romeo does not appear in Act IV of the play. An absence of the principal performer during approximately
the third quarter of the play is usual in Shakespeare. It gives the actor a chance of rest, which is especially
needed if he is to give a good display of swordsmanship in the fifth Act.
Juliet has a short dying speech, in contrast to Romeo’s long one. Probably, Shakespeare could not
altogether trust his boy-actor to maintain the tension for long. Cleopatra is the only one of Shakespeare’s
women who is allowed to take her time dying.
In the story as told by Luigi da Porto about 1530 and Bandello in 1554, Juliet awakes from her trance
before the poison has taken effect upon Romeo. The lovers are thus able to talk together, to lament their
unlucky fate, and to take an eternal farewell. This way of dealing with the episode was incorporated in
Shakespeare’s play in the eighteenth century; extra dialogue was written for the lovers (adapted from a
version by Thomas Otway of 1680), and this improvement was the usual theatrical version of Romeo and
Juliet until far into the nineteenth century. Many critics complained about this perversion of Shakespeare’s
artistry because Shakespeare was not writing a sentimental drama, but a grand and rich tragedy of human
passion and responsibility. By bringing on their families and the prince, he seems to be deliberately playing
down the lovers in this final scene.
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Examples of Devices— Act I
Read through the following lines and identify the different literary devices Shakespeare uses.
Sampson: The heads of the maids, or their/maidenheads. Take it in what sense thou wilt.
Lady Montague: O, where is Romeo? Saw you him today?
Right glad I am he was not at this fray.
Romeo: Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health!
Romeo: Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs.
Romeo: She hath Dian’s wit/And, in strong proof of chastity well armed,/From Love’s weak childish bow
she lives unharmed.
Capulet: At my poor house look to behold this night
Earth-treading stars that make dark heaven light.
Capulet: Such comfort as do lusty young men feel/When well-appareled April on the heal of limping
Winter treads…
Lady Capulet: This precious book of love, this unbound lover,/To beautify him only lacks a cover.
Romeo: You have dancing shoes/With nimble soles. I have a soul of lead/So stakes me to the ground I
cannot move.
Romeo: Is love a tender thing? It is too rough,/Too rude, too boist’rous, and it pricks like thorn.
Romeo: …my mind misgives/Some consequence, yet hanging in the stars,/Shall bitterly begin this fearful
date/With this night’s revels and expire the term/Of a despised life, closed in my breast.
Romeo: It seems she hands upon the cheek of night/Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop’s ear.
Romeo: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand/To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.
Juliet: If he be married,/My grave is like to be my wedding bed.
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Examples of Devices—Rest of Play
Read through the following lines and identify the different literary devices Shakespeare uses.
Romeo (in response to Juliet’s question about how he found her balcony): By love, that first did prompt
me to enquire./He lent me counsel, and I lent him eyes.
Romeo: Love goes toward love as schoolboys from their books.
Friar Laurence:
The grey-eyed morn smiles on the frowning night,
Chequ’ring the Eastern clouds with streaks of light;
And flecked darkness like a drunkard reels
From forth day’s path and Titan’s fiery wheels.
Romeo (to Tybalt, who wants to fight him): I do protest I never injured thee,/But love thee better than
thou canst devise/Till thou shalt know the reason of my love.
Mercutio (as he’s dying): Ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man.
Juliet (upon learning Romeo killed Tybalt): A damned saint, an honorable villain!
Romeo (after the wedding night): …jocund day/Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops.
Juliet (as Romeo climbs down the balcony): Methinks I see thee, now thou art below, /As one dead in the
bottom of a tomb.
Juliet to the Friar: “O bid me leap, rather than marry Paris,/From off the battlements of yonder
tower,/…Of bid me go into a new-made grave/And hide me with a dead man in his shroud—
Capulet: Death is my son-in-law, Death is my heir.
Prince: For never was there a story of more woe/Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.
Juliet (to Romeo): Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.
Romeo: It was the lark, the herald of the morn…/Night’s candles are burnt out, and jocund day/Stands
tiptoe on the misty mountain tops./I must be gone and live, or stay and die.
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Themes in Romeo and Juliet
It often takes something catastrophic or tragic to make people realize that they are behaving or
living foolishly.
Old codes or old traditions can be especially foolish or dangerous. We should perhaps rethink how we
live. Not to consider these things is to live the unexamined life, to live a life without meaning.
There is always conflict between youthful passion and old age with its narrow-mindedness.
Love expressed and consummated is worth any cost.
It’s better to burn out than to fade away. A brilliantly lived, fully passionate life is a more
valuable, spiritually triumphant life than a life of sedate balance and compromise. (contrast with
#7)
Loyalty is the most important value in friends, it trumps everything, especially romance.
Possible cautionary tale: “Don’t let passion rule you!” or “The best life is the balanced life.” (contrast
with #5)—So compromise is necessary—So pursue moderation, do nothing to extremes.
Fate connects everything to everything else. OR Fate is a cruel boss.
What happens is preordained or destined to be.
There is no one bad guy in the play, manipulating everyone.
The stars or fates are mentioned as controlling the young lovers
Each person has enough to manage in his/her own life; managing the lives of other people leads
to tragedy.
Everyone is connected in a web of experience—not just our enemies, but our loved ones are
impacted by malicious choices.
For each act, I have pulled out lines that develop the themes in the play. Your job is to identify which
theme is developed by the quotes from the text.
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Themes  Act 1
GREGORY
The quarrel is between our masters and us their men.
SAMPSON
'Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant:
TYBALT
What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,
As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:
Have at thee, coward!
CAPULET
What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho!
LADY CAPULET
A crutch, a crutch! why call you for a sword?
CAPULET
My sword, I say! Old Montague is come,
And flourishes his blade in spite of me.
LADY CAPULET
Marry, that 'marry' is the very theme
I came to talk of. Tell me, daughter Juliet,
How stands your disposition to be married?
JULIET
TYBALT
It is an honour that I dream not of.
This, by his voice, should be a Montague.
Fetch me my rapier, boy. What dares the slave
Come hither, cover'd with an antic face,
To fleer and scorn at our solemnity?
Now, by the stock and honour of my kin,
To strike him dead, I hold it not a sin.
TYBALT
It fits, when such a villain is a guest:
I'll not endure him.
CAPULET
He shall be endured:
What, goodman boy! I say, he shall: go to;
Am I the master here, or you? go to
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Nurse
His name is Romeo, and a Montague;
The only son of your great enemy.
JULIET
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.
Themes  Act 2
JULIET
ROMEO
And the place death, considering who thou art,
If any of my kinsmen find thee here.
O, let us hence; I stand on sudden haste.
JULIET
O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name;
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I'll no longer be a Capulet.
ROMEO
And we mean well in going to this mask;
But 'tis no wit to go….
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,
ROMEO
Direct my sail!
FRIAR
Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.
FRIAR
These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die
FRIAR
Therefore love moderately; long love doth so;
Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.
ROMEO
Amen, amen! but come what sorrow can,
It cannot countervail the exchange of joy
That one short minute gives me in her sight: (Romeo)
JULIET
Had she affections and warm youthful blood,
She would be as swift in motion as a ball;
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My words would bandy her to my sweet love,
And his to me:
But old folks, many feign as they were dead;
Unwieldy, slow, heavy and pale as lead. (Juliet)
JULIET
Go ask his name: if he be married.
My grave is like to be my wedding bed. (Juliet)
CAPULET SERVANTS
The quarrel is between our masters and us their men.
'Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant: when I
fought with the men, I will be cruel with the
maids, and cut off their heads.
Themes  Act 3
TYBALT
Boy, this shall not excuse the injuries
That thou hast done me; therefore turn and draw.
MERCUTIO
O calm, dishonourable, vile submission!
MERCUTIO
A plague o' both your houses! (cursing someone was considered really bad luck)
JULIET
Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?
Ah, poor my lord, what tongue shall smooth thy name,
When I, thy three-hours wife, have mangled it?!
JULIET
'Romeo is banished,' to speak that word,
Is father, mother, Tybalt, Romeo,
Juliet, All slain, all dead. 'Romeo is banished!'
There is no end, no limit, measure, bound,
In that word's death; no words can that woe sound.
ROMEO
And say'st thou yet that exile is not death?
Hadst thou no poison mix'd, no sharp-ground knife,
No sudden mean of death, though ne'er so mean,
But 'banished' to kill me?--'banished'?
ROMEO
Thou canst not speak of that thou dost not feel:
Wert thou as young as I, Juliet thy love,
An hour but married, Tybalt murdered,
Doting like me and like me banished,
Then mightst thou speak, then mightst thou tear thy hair,
And fall upon the ground, as I do now,
Taking the measure of an unmade grave.
ROMEO
Let me be ta'en, let me be put to death;
I am content, so thou wilt have it so.
I'll say yon grey is not the morning's eye,
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'Tis but the pale reflex of Cynthia's brow;
Nor that is not the lark, whose notes do beat
The vaulty heaven so high above our heads:
I have more care to stay than will to go:
Come, death, and welcome! Juliet wills it so.
ROMEO
O, I am fortune's fool!
JULIET
O fortune, fortune! all men call thee fickle:
If thou art fickle, what dost thou with him.
That is renown'd for faith? Be fickle, fortune;
For then, I hope, thou wilt not keep him long,
But send him back.
Themes  Act 4
JULIET
Be not so long to speak; I long to die,
If what thou speak'st speak not of remedy.
FRIAR
If, rather than to marry County Paris,
Thou hast the strength of will to slay thyself,
Then is it likely thou wilt undertake
A thing like death to chide away this shame,
That copest with death himself to scape from it:
And, if thou darest, I'll give thee remedy.
JULIET
Things that, to hear them told, have made me tremble;
And I will do it without fear or doubt,
To live an unstain'd wife to my sweet love.
JULIET
For I have need of many orisons
To move the heavens to smile upon my state,
Which, well thou know'st, is cross, and full of sin.
JULIET
Romeo, I come! this do I drink to thee.
FRIAR
She's not well married that lives married long;
But she's best married that dies married young.
Themes  Act 5
BALTHASAR Then she is well, and nothing can be ill:
Her body sleeps in Capel's monument,
And her immortal part with angels lives.
ROMEO
Is it even so? then I defy you, stars!
ROMEO
I will hence to-night.
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ROMEO
Hold, there is forty ducats: let me have
A dram of poison, such soon-speeding gear
As will disperse itself through all the veins
That the life-weary taker may fall dead
And that the trunk may be discharged of breath
As violently as hasty powder fired
Doth hurry from the fatal cannon's womb.
FRIAR
Unhappy fortune! by my brotherhood,
The letter was not nice but full of charge
Of dear import, and the neglecting it
May do much danger.
ROMEO
Good gentle youth, tempt not a desperate man;
Fly hence, and leave me: think upon these gone;
Let them affright thee. I beseech thee, youth,
Put not another sin upon my head,
By urging me to fury: O, be gone!
ROMEO
O, give me thy hand,
One writ with me in sour misfortune's book!
ROMEO
O, here
Will I set up my everlasting rest,
And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars
From this world-wearied flesh.
ROMEO
Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavoury guide!
Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on
The dashing rocks thy sea-sick weary bark!
Here's to my love!
FRIAR
A greater power than we can contradict
Hath thwarted our intents. Come, come away.
Thy husband in thy bosom there lies dead;
And Paris too. Come, I'll dispose of thee
Among a sisterhood of holy nuns:
JULIET
Go, get thee hence, for I will not away.
MONTAGUE What further woe conspires against mine age?
BALTHASAR I brought my master news of Juliet's death;
And then in post he came from Mantua
To this same place, to this same monument.
Act 1 Prologue:
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1. What is the setting of the play?
2. Are the families of equal status? What tells you this?
3. What is going on between the two families?
4. How are the lovers described? What does this mean?
5. In line eight how did the lovers’ deaths affect the parents?
6. What does line eleven mean?
7. Approximately how long is the play?
Act 1.1
8. At the very beginning, what does Sampson mean by, “We’ll not carry coals.”
9. What happens with Sampson and Gregory when Abraham and Benvolio show up?
10. What is the purpose of the opening scene?
11. Why are they fighting?
12. Who first tries to break up the fight? Who actually breaks up the fight?
13. The prince speaks of “purple fountains issuing from your veins” (Line 93). What does this say about
the Capulets and the Montagues?
14. List three characters who speak in couplets. What does this show about them?
15. In lines 104-105, what is the Prince foreshadowing?
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16. Who knows where Romeo is, and where is he?
17. In lines 139-148, why do the Montagues say they’re worried about Romeo?
18. Explain why Romeo is so unhappy (Note “Rosaline” is the girl’s name).
19. How does Romeo describe love in lines 186-190? Why does he feel this way?
20. What advice or suggestion does Benvolio offer his friend?
21. What metaphor does Romeo use in line 202? What does this show about Romeo?
Act I.2
22. What is Paris asking Capulet?
23. How old is Juliet? Is this an unusual age to marry?
24. What’s Capulet’s initial reaction (lines 8-11)? What about a little later (lines 16-19)?
25. What does Capulet tell Paris he is going to do?
26. According to lines 35-38, how will people be invited to the party?
27. What does “God-den” mean?
28. What is the servant’s problem?
29. Who helps the servant and what important information does this person find out? What will he do
now and why?
30. What does Benvolio tell Romeo to do at the party? What metaphor does he use here?
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Act I.3
31. What happens to Juliet on Lammas-tide?
32. What is “Lammas-tide?”
33. Who is Susan and what’s become of her?
34. What is Nurse doing in lines 21-54?
35. What does Juliet think of marriage?
36. What does it mean when the Nurse says Paris is a “man of wax” in line 83?
37. What does Lady Capulet want Juliet to do tonight (lines 88-103)? What is the central metaphor in
her advice?
38. What’s Juliet’s response?
Act I.4
39. Explain Romeo’s first two lines.
40. Explain the pun in lines 14-16.
41. In lines 25-26, how does Romeo describe love?
42. And what does Mercutio reply?
43. According to line 59, what is Queen Mab?
44. According to lines 75-93, this Queen Mab does what to lovers? Lawyers? Ladies? Parsons?
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Soldiers?
45. Explain what Mercutio says about dreams in lines 103-105.
46. What are Romeo’s fears? What is he foreshadowing in lines 114-119?
Act I.5
47. What does Capulet reflect upon with Second Capulet?
48. In lines 49-58, of whom does Romeo speak and what does he say?
49. Who recognizes Romeo’s voice and what does he want to do?
50. How does Capulet react to finding out about Romeo (lines 71-78)?
51. What does Tybalt mean in lines 98-101?
52. What happens the first time Romeo and Juliet speak?
53. How do Romeo and Juliet find out about each other’s identities?
54. Explain line 122, “You kiss by the book.”
55. In lines 150-151, Juliet says, “if he be married, my grave is like to be my wedding bed.” What is
she foreshadowing?
Act 2 Prologue:
56. What has happened to Romeo concerning Rosaline?
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Act 2.1
57. To what does Romeo compare Juliet when he says, “turn back, dull earth, and find thy center out?”
58. Where do Mercutio and Benvolio think Romeo has gone? Where is he really?
59. How does Mercutio try to get Romeo to come back?
Act 2.2
***THIS IS THE MOST FAMOUS SCENE IN THE PLAY***
60. Where is Romeo and where is Juliet in this scene?
61. Juliet’s most famous lines! What does she mean in lines 35-38?
62. What is Juliet saying about names in lines 46-50?
63. In lines 72-73, what warning does Juliet give Romeo?
64. According to Romeo, how did he get in the orchard?
65. What does Juliet want Romeo to do?
66. What is she afraid he might think about her (lines 95-98)?
67. Why doesn’t Juliet want Romeo to swear his love by the moon?
68. According to lines 127-131, why is Juliet unhappy tonight?
69. If Romeo’s vow of love is honorable, what does Juliet want him to do? What then will she do?
70. At what time will Juliet send someone to him?
71. Famous line! “Parting is such sweet sorrow.”—what does it mean? How can something be both
“sweet” and “sorrow?”
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Act 2.3
72. What kind of things does Friar Laurence speak about?
73. In lines 24-29, Friar Laurence holds a particular flower. What exactly does it do?
74. Where does Friar Laurence believe Romeo has been all night?
75. What does Romeo ask Friar Laurence to do?
76. According to lines 70-84, why is Friar Laurence so surprised by Romeo?
77. According to lines 98-100, why does Friar Laurence agree to do what Romeo asks?
Act 2.4
78. Who sent the letter to the Montague house?
**NOTE: Mercutio teases Romeo about being out all night***
79. Lines 91-96 describe what changes in Romeo that Mercutio is happy to see?
80. How does Mercutio make fun of the nurse?
81. Nurse is somewhat upset by Mercutio’s rudeness. What does Romeo tell the Nurse about
Mercutio? Lines 152-154
82. Who is trying to help Romeo and Juliet get together?
** NOTE: “shrift” is confession as in the Catholic Church
83. According to lines 184-187 and 191-195, what plans does Romeo have? Write down ALL the
specifics details!
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84. In lines 207-210, what was Nurse’s advice for Juliet, and why did Nurse not push the advice too
much?
Act 2.5
85. Why is Juliet upset at the very beginning?
86. When Nurse arrives, why does Juliet get upset with her? (Nurse does what?)
87. Finally, what does Nurse tell Juliet to do?
Act 2.6
88. Romeo says any sorrow or misfortune may come after what? Why?
89. What advice does Friar Laurence give the couple?
***Romeo and Juliet have been married by Friar Laurence.***
Act 3.1
90. Explain what Mercutio is saying about Benvolio’s personality in lines 5-9.
91. Tybalt confronts Mercutio in the streets of Verona. What does Benvolio suggest to the two?
Lines 52-55.
92. What does Tybalt call Romeo?
93. Romeo does not feel the same way Tybalt does. Why? Explain what he says to Tybalt in lines 6568.
94. Who wants to fight Tybalt?
95. In lines 89-93, what are Romeo’s words to the fighting men?
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96. What happens in the fight and what does Mercutio say as a curse?
97. When Mercutio says “ . . .ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man.” He is making
a pun on the word “grave.” Explain the two meanings implied here. (You may have to use a
dictionary.)
98. Lines 120-122—Explain Romeo’s emotions and why he feels that way.
99. What “catastrophe” has taken place? (This is the first one.)
100.
Lines 126 and 145 are famous lines! Write them down. What do they mean?
101.
What happens between Romeo and Tybalt? (This is the second catastrophe)
102.
What does Benvolio tell Romeo to do?
103.
On whom does Benvolio put all the blame (lines 162-188)?
104.
Why does Lady Capulet say Benvolio is lying?
105.
What is the Prince’s decision about Romeo?
Act 3.2
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106.
What is Juliet anxiously awaiting?
107.
If Romeo dies, what does Juliet wish for him?
108.
What does Nurse bring with her? Why?
109.
What does Nurse accidentally lead Juliet to believe has happened?
110.
Juliet realizes the truth of the whole situation. What is the truth?
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111.
In lines 81-85, what literary device does Juliet use to describe Romeo? Why does she say
these things about him?
112.
Lines 123-125—To Juliet, what is the worst part of all this?
113.
Lines 147-149 indicate that Juliet is afraid of what?
114.
Where is Romeo hiding out?
115.
What token does Juliet want Romeo to have?
Act 3.3
116.
What does Romeo think of his punishment?
117.
What is heaven to Romeo?
118.
When they hear knocking, Friar Laurence tells Romeo what?
119.
What is Romeo afraid that Juliet is thinking?
120.
An angry Friar Laurence scolds Romeo and points out three reasons Romeo is lucky. What
are those reasons?
121.
In lines 163-171, what specific instructions does Friar Laurence give Romeo?
What does he hope they can do?
122.
To what town will Romeo go?
Act 3.4
123.
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Why does Capulet believe Juliet is grieving so?
124.
plan?
What does Capulet do to cheer up Juliet? Why does he believe she’ll go along with his
Act 3.5
***Romeo and Juliet have now spent their wedding night together***
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125.
Why does Juliet want to insist that she hears the nightingale and not the lark?
126.
According to line 11, what must Romeo do?
127.
In line 36, Romeo says that the lighter it gets the __________________________.
128.
In lines 55-58, Juliet says she has a bad feeling. Why? What does this foreshadow?
129.
What does Lady Capulet want to do with Romeo?
130.
Juliet responds to her mother with double meanings. What are the two ways that
we can read lines 105-114?
131.
What supposedly good news does Lady Capulet have for Juliet?
132.
What does Juliet reply? Why does she respond this way?
133.
What does Capulet have to say to his daughter in lines 168-176?
134.
When Capulet says, “My fingers itch . . .” what does he mean?
135.
What does the Nurse say to Capulet?
136.
What is Capulet saying about Paris in lines 206-210?
137.
In lines 215-223, what ultimatum does Capulet give Juliet?
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138.
What does Juliet ask her mother in lines 226-229?
139.
And her mother’s reply is what?
140.
In lines 243-255, what specific advice does the Nurse give Juliet?
141.
What is Juliet’s reaction to the Nurse’s advice?
142.
How is Juliet going to get away from the house?
143.
When Juliet says, “I’ll to the Friar to know his remedy. If all else fail, myself
have power to die.” What does she mean?
Act 4.1
144.
In lines 2-3, why does Paris say he is in a hurry to marry Juliet?
145.
Why is Juliet at Friar Laurence’s chapel?
146.
Juliet tells Friar Laurence all the things she’d rather do than marry Paris (lines 85-95). What
are they?
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147.
What does Friar Laurence tell Juliet to do the night before the wedding?
148.
Explain exactly what the potion will do.
149.
What will be done when Paris finds Juliet in the morning?
150.
How will Romeo know where to go to get Juliet?
151.
Then what will Romeo and Juliet do?
152.
How will the letter get to Romeo?
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Act 4.2
153.
In lines 19-24, what does Juliet say to her father?
154.
How does Capulet react to Juliet’s change of heart (although she’s lying)?
Act 4.3
155.
Juliet asks Nurse to do what tonight (line 2)?
156.
According to line 25, what is Juliet’s back-up plan if this potion doesn’t work?
157.
What other things is Juliet afraid of (lines 26-56)?
Act 4.4
158.
What is going on in this scene?
Act 4.5
159.
What does the Nurse say to Juliet as she tries to wake her up?
160.
How does Lady Capulet speak of her child, Juliet in lines 22-24?
161.
How does Capulet react? (lines 33-34)
162.
In lines 66-74, what does Friar Laurence say about Juliet’s “death?”
163.
What does Capulet say instruct the servants to do with the things for the wedding
164.
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What’s the purpose of the scene with the musicians at the end of this act?
Act 5.1
165.
Where does this scene take place?
166.
According to lines 6-10, what was Romeo’s dream?
167.
Romeo’s servant, Balthasar, brings what news to Romeo?
168.
In line 25, Romeo shouts, “Then I defy you, stars.” What does Romeo mean?
169.
***Apothecary – a pharmacist or druggist***
What does Romeo want to do? Who can help him
do it? What does he want to get from this person?
170.
What does the apothecary tell Romeo about a person who sells poison in Mantua?
171.
How does Romeo convince the apothecary to give him what he wants?
172.
Where is Romeo going to kill himself?
Act 5.2
173.
Who was supposed to give Romeo the message from Friar Laurence?
174.
According to lines 6-13, why could he not get to Mantua?
175.
Why is Friar Laurence so upset that the letter didn’t get to Romeo?
176.
According to lines 25-30, what is Friar Laurence’s new plan?
Act 5.3
177.
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Lines 1-9 What does Paris want his page to do?
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178.
To whom does Romeo ask Balthasar to deliver a letter? What do you think this letter says?
179.
Why does Romeo claim he’s going into the tomb?
180.
Romeo tells Balthasar to leave. If he returns to pry, what will Romeo do?
181.
But what does Balthasar tell the audience (in his “aside”)? Why?
182.
Why does Paris believe Romeo has come to the tomb?
183.
Romeo asks Paris to leave, but he won’t. Explain what happens.
184.
What is Romeo unsure about in lines 79-82?
185.
How does Juliet look to Romeo in lines 95-99?
186.
What does Romeo say in lines 112-115? What does he mean by this?
187.
What does Romeo do before dying?
188.
H does Friar Laurence feel entering the tomb?
189.
What did Balthasar believe he dreamed, which was actually true?
190.
According to lines 169-70, what does Friar Laurence want to do with Juliet?
191.
According to lines 177-179, why does Juliet kiss Romeo?
192.
Exactly how and with what does Juliet end her life?
193.
Who first finds all three dead bodies?
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194.
Who are the two people under suspicion of killing them?
195.
What other tragedy has taken place meanwhile?
196.
Who tells the true story of Romeo and Juliet?
**Lines 255-290 give a synopsis of the whole story***
197.
According to line 294, how is the Prince convinced that he has heard the true
story?
198.
In lines 315-319, what does the Prince say to Capulet and Montague?
199.
Who are the kinsmen of Prince Escalus has lost because of the feud?
200.
How do Capulet and Montague end the feud?
201.
When Capulet says, “Poor sacrifices of our enmity,” what does he mean?
202.
The last couplet of the play reads, “For never was a story of more woe, than this
of Juliet and her Romeo.” What makes this such a tragic story?
Overview Questions
203.
Does Romeo and Juliet have a tragic hero? If so, who? Why? If you think there
isn’t, why not?
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204.
Why are we still reading this play after roughly four hundred years?
205.
Who is responsible for the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet? Why?
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