“Tis true, and therefore women being the weaker vessels are ever thrust to the wall: therefore I will push Montague’s men from the wall, and thrust his maids to the wall.”
Sampson then continues to say:
“Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads, take it in what sense thou wilt.”
From this the audience can clearly see that Sampson is in the most aggressive mood out of the two. From the quotation above when Sampson refers to a ‘maid or maidenheads’ they are both basically another for a virgin. The audience would also refer to Sampson being a cruel and insensitive man as he actually thinks of ‘raping’ innocent women of the Montague household. He therefore states to Gregory that he would force himself on the women of the Montague household, however, when the Montague servants enter on the scene, Shakespeare then illustrates Sampson to be a coward and fearful as he tells Gregory to start the quarrelling and then he will back him up.
“My naked weapon is out. Quarrel, I will back thee.”
This unrestrained and arrogant attitude that Sampson portrays leaves the audience questioning whether he is a fearful and cowardly man. I personally feel that he is that.
The argument between the servants then develops into a fight which is later broken up by the Prince Escales. From the dramatic opening scene I feel that the audience would get more and more interested in the play due to the amount of action and the tension that Shakespeare creates between the two households. This would also leave the audience thinking that there will be more exciting things to come throughout the play.
Before Romeo first enters on the scene, the Lady Montague (Romeo’s mum) speaks with Benvolio and acknowledges to him that she is proud that Romeo had nothing to do with the brawl between the Capulets and the Montagues. This suggests to the audience that Romeo has been involved in fights in the past but also shows that he is a sensitive character because of the way that Lady Montague asks about Romeo, for example on line 110 in Scene 1 she says:
“O where is Romeo? saw him today?
Right glad I am not at this fray.”
This is the first time the audience have actually heard of Romeo and they gain two perspectives about him.
Benvolio then goes on to answer from this question:
“…. A troubled mind drive me to walk abroad,
Where underneath the grove of sycamore.”
In the Elizabethan period a sycamore which is a tree which is associated with love-sickness. This therefore tells us that Romeo is in love but I don’t think that the audience would grasp at this stage of the play as the language that Shakespeare uses can be rather difficult to understand. From Lady Montague you can tell that Romeo is cared deeply about the discussion that her and Benvolio are having suggests that Romeo is in a black mood. He shuts himself away from everything else.
For example, lines 133-136.
“Shuts up his windows, locks fair daylight out,
And makes himself an artificial night:
Black and portentous this humour prove,
Unless good counsel may the cause remove.”
The use of the word ‘portentous’ creates tension is going to get worse predicting the doom. The audience gets this as it is a bad sign for the future.
When Romeo first enters on the scene, Benvolio has a conversation with Romeo and it is then that Shakespeare reveals that Romeo is in love. He does not tell us who Romeo is in love with and so it intrigues the audience as they want to find out. Shakespeare uses a technique called Oxymoron. This can be found on lines 163 and 170-173.
“……O me!..........
…..O brawling love, O loving hate,
O any thing of nothing first create!
O heavy lightness, serious vanity.”
This technique used by Shakespeare is prophetic. It shows Romeo’s awareness of how opposites can be joined. This also gives the audience an indication that Romeo is not really the violent ‘type’ but actually more sensitive and caring.
As well as Oxymoron, Shakespeare uses metaphors in his speech for example on line 184.
“Love is smoke made with the fume of sighs.”
As I had already said the universal themes of love will be an important factor in this play. Romeo is already in love in the beginning scene. This is good as love is such a strong theme throughout this play it will really set the mood of the play.
In Scene 1 we are left with Romeo being in love and again in Scene 2 love and relationship are the topic again. We are introduced to Capulet, who is Juliet’s father and Paris, the man who is eager to marry Juliet. The marriage in Shakespeare times had nothing to do with love as Juliet has no control of her lover. Shakespeare’s audience I feel would have expected this, but a modern audience would not. This also shows us how marriage was dealt with in their day. This would therefore create complications and tension as she later falls in love with Romeo as the play proceeds. However Capulet shows that he does care about her daughter’s welfare.
“But woo her, gentle Paris, get her heart,
My will to her consent is but a part;
And she agreed, within her scope of choice
Lies consent and fair according voice.”
This tells the audience that Capulet is not bad at all but is a sensitive man who cares about her daughter like any other father would.
Further on in Scene 2 we come across a servant who cannot read. He then asks ask Romeo to read the letter and Romeo accepts. The result of this is that the servant invites Romeo to his masters where a party is being held but as long that he is not a Montague he can come.
“Now I’ll tell you without asking. My master is the great rich Capulet, and if you not of the house of Montagues, I pray come and crush a cup of wine. Rest you merry.”
This gets the audience more interested in the play and on the edge of their seats as they know that Romeo is a Montague and so if he gets caught in the Capulet household they would believe that trouble and fighting might break out.
In Scene 3 we see Juliet and Lady Capulet discussing marriage. This again makes marriage and love central part of the play. Juliet thinks of marriage as an honour and dream. She respects marriage.
“It is an honour that I dream not of.”
On line 97, Lady Capulet asks Juliet whether she would be pleased with Paris’s love. Juliet answers:
“I’ll look to like, if looking liking move,
But no more deep will I endart mine eye
Than your consent gives strength to make it fly.”
From this, Juliet is saying that she will not let it continue further than she will allow. Shakespeare creates a position of dramatic irony which Juliet is in as something will spur her against the wishes of her parents. This leaves the audience curious as they would want to know what Juliet ends up doing.
Romeo has good friends as they try to cheer him up in Scene 4. There friends describe him as gentle and this again brings out his sensitive side.
“Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.”
The use of the word women will also appeal to the women in the audience and they would want a man who would be loving and caring. Shakespeare made Romeo a sensitive character to appeal to the female monarchy.
In Scene 5, this is the scene that there is love at first sight between Romeo and Juliet when they first meet. This also shows that Romeo didn’t really love Rosilyn as he is struck by Juliet’s beauty.
“So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows.”
Shakespeare also uses a rhyming cuplet which reflects the character of Romeo.
“Did my heart love till now? forsever it, sight!
For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.”
From these lines it tells the audience that Romeo has fallen in love and they would also be impressed by the intense emotion, it shows two sides of him as women would be thinking that he is a fickle (changes his emotions).
In this scene we are introduced to Tybalt again who wants to start a fight but Capulet restrains him as he says that Romeo is a well-governed and virtuous youth.
“And to say truth, Verona brags of him
To be a virtuous and well-govern’d youth.”
This makes the audience impressed with Capulet by the way he speaks about Romeo and controls Tybalt from ruining the party.
The first encounter of the two protagonists in the play is a pivotal moment. On line 92 is where it starts. Romeo uses semantic field of religion to describe their first meeting and first kiss.
“Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urg’d!
Give me sin again.”
The Elizabethan audience may have found this sacrilegious as Romeo is comparing his first kiss practically to their religion. The use of religious lexis that Shakespeare creates makes the meeting more sacred and therefore elevating their status of their relationship.
When Romeo realises that Juliet is a Capulet it is then he realises how serious he is about Juliet and how in love he is with her.
“Is she a Capulet?
O dear account! my life is my foe’s debt.”
This gives the audience an indication that Romeo is serious about Juliet and they will now begin to get more and more interested as the play progresses.
When watching the Bazel Film, the way that he had interpreted the play was very good as he created ‘wicked’ visual effects, used guns instead of swords and the use of sound effects was good. He also used good looking and famous actors, for instance, Leonardo DiCaprio whereas in the play the Elizabethan audience would have seen boys in the play and not girls. This might have caused some impediment to the audience’s sympathy to the protagonists. At the beginning of the film there was a lot of action straight away which really drawed me straight into it. This would therefore engage the audience’s attention for the remainder of the film.
To conclude I feel that the use of the prologue was a very compelling technique used by Shakespeare. He explained how they were doomed from the start and began the scene with a conflict which would draw the audience into the play. I feel that Romeo was more interesting than Juliet because of the number of times we see him in Act 1. I feel he is a sensitive character who is rather romantic. I feel Shakespeare does this to really intrigue the women in the audience.
