And this excitement rises when Juliet realizes that in order for her love to live, Romeo must leave Verona. Here the mood suddenly changes. She says ‘ It is, It is morning, hence BE GONE AWAY!!’
This shows the sudden excitement that Shakespeare has made with the increase of pace and faster moving dialogue.
As soon as Juliet realizes that the sun ‘has’ actually broke, the nurse then knocks on the door and whispers ‘ Your lady mother is coming to your chamber/the day has broke/BE WARY, LOOK ABOUT’
Now at this point of the scene, the tension has reached its climax and the audience must be at the edge of their seats because, of the atmosphere Shakespeare has made as if Romeo was going to get caught. And when Romeo does ‘descend’ and leaves, Shakespeare reminds the audience of they first met, when they exchanged vows to one another, but only this time the mood and atmosphere is much darker and sadder.
Just after Romeo leaves, there’s a sudden concern as to why Juliet’s Mother has come so early, and this is where dramatic irony takes place because the audience already knows that she’s come to tell Juliet about her father accepting Paris’s Proposal, and Juliet does not know a thing about it. This is what increases the tension.
Just before Romeo leaves, Shakespeare uses imagery which links to love, death, and Marriage together. We see this when Juliet says goodbye to Romeo. She says ‘Methinks I see thee now, thou art so low, as one dead in the bottom of a tomb’
And also ‘If he be married, my grave is like my wedding bed’
This echoes Juliet’s comment from earlier in the scene.
When Romeo leaves the mood of the scene is sad and sympathetic towards the lovers. After Romeo’s sad departure, the audience begin to wonder how Juliet would cover her emotions in front of Lady Capulet. To hide her emotions, just seconds before Lady Capulet comes, she begins to cry.
At this point the audience are really excited and worried because, Lady Capulet would wonder why she’s crying.
When Lady Capulet s sees her daughter in tears, she says ‘Evermore weeping for your cousin’s death’
Juliet then replies ‘Yet let me weep for such a loss’
At this point of he scene, the audience are relieved. But not for long.
The tension begins once again only this time, Shakespeare uses fast moving dialogue. The tension occurs when Lady Capulet tells Juliet that she and Lord Capulet have fixed a marriage for her, with Paris.
Now here the audience are really tense not knowing what sorts of emotions Juliet must be experiencing at this point because the audience already knows that she’s married to Romeo, and now Juliet’s Mother and Father has fixed her a marriage with Paris.
Bigamy, would have been considered a huge sin as well as Illegal and would’ve brought great shame to the family, especially to a family of Juliet’s, where she an heiress.
Juliet refuses straightaway. She says ‘He shall not make me a joyful BRIDE!’
This show that she has stood up to her parents wish. And back in medieval time. It was a duty for daughter’s to fulfil their parent’s wishes, and arranged marriages were really common compared to love Marriages.
And this was expected from Julies, but she refuses, which made Lord Capulet furious.
Also we had seen Lord Capulet’s temper before, at the banquet, with Tybalt. And now the audience can’t imagine how he’s going to react to Juliet’s refusal. Even so, the audience would have still been shocked to Lord Capulet’s reaction, most probably because of the language and violence Shakespeare has shown. Language such as ‘Go with Paris to Saint Peter’s Church or I will drag thee on a hurdle THITHER!’
And ‘Out you tallow face! You BAGGAGE!’
All this shows Lord Capulet’s anger.
But elsewhere we had seen Lord Capulet cherish and care for his daughter, but in this scene we had seen the complete opposite, we hear verbal abuse and violence directed at Juliet.
After Lord Capulet’s tantrum, we once again see imagery from Lady Capulet which the theme of love, death, and marriage. When she says
‘ I would the fool were married to her grave’
This shows the audience how Lady Capulet reacts to Juliet’s refusal.
Then when Lady Capulet, and Lord Capulet leave Juliet’s room, the excitement decreases and there’s a sense of relief however it does not last for very long because, Shakespeare brings a sudden shock. This happens when Juliet is distraught by Lord Capulet’s threats and insults, and seeks comfort from the nurse. Then there’s a sudden twist. The nurse says ‘ I thing it’s best you married with the county. O he’s a lovely gentleman. Romeo’s a dish clout to him!’
This is when Juliet and the audience are shocked, by the nurses response because, earlier in the play Shakespeare had taken great pains to show how close the characters are.
Juliet replies ‘Speak’st thou from thy heart?’
Juliet couldn’t believe what she was saying. Throughout the whole play, the nurse has been a mother-like character toward Juliet, and she has supported her throughout every decision, and she’s the only one in the Capulet house who knows the truth. At this point Juliet is totally isolated. She’s got no one to go to except Friar Lawrence, who is another person who knows the truth. Now, with Romeo gone, and the Nurse, no longer being able to help, she had no choice, but to go to him.
By the end of this tense scene, the audience is on the edge of their seats. Throughout the whole scene, there’s been nothing but tragedy and despair. Shakespeare has also created tension and excitement by using various techniques, some of them include, fast staccato dialogue, use of language and changing the pace of action. But Shakespeare has used another technique, which he’s use throughout the whole scene, this is isolating one character through the whole scene, which in our case, Juliet!
Shakespeare has made sure that the audience were always sympathetic towards her throughout the scene. This is what kept the audience tense and on the edge of their seats.
