‘Romeo and Juliet’ take place over 3 days. It begins with a prologue, which tells us that the children of “Two households, both alike in dignity”, Romeo and Juliet, will fall in love and secretly get married, and that it is a tragedy as in the end they will both die, as it says “From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life”.
Act 3 Scene 1 is a crucial scene because it is the turning point of the whole play. Benvolio and Mercutio are out walking in the heat of the day, when Benvolio suggests they should retire and go home because there are many Capulet’s about, and if they bump into any of them there's bound to be a fight because the heat is stirring everyone up. Mercutio ignores this and tells Benvolio he has a bad temper. Tybalt enters with his companions, and asks to speak to one of them, and asks if either of them “consort” with Romeo – a phrase which at the time was often associated with musicians. Mercutio teases Tybalt. Romeo enters, fresh from his wedding with Juliet. Tybalt calls him a villain and demands a fight, but Romeo refuses as unbeknown to the other characters he is now related to Tybalt through marriage. Mercutio angrily draws his sword and says that is Romeo will not fight Tybalt, he will, and they begin to fight. Romeo tries to break up the fight, but Tybalt stabs Mercutio from under Romeo’s arm, and he and his men run away. Before he dies, Mercutio jokes “Ask for me tomorrow, and you will find me a grave man” and curses both their houses. Benvolio takes him somewhere quiet to die. Romeo is very angry and blames his love for Juliet for making him less of a man , and that he should of fought Tybalt not Mercutio. When Tybalt returns, Romeo fights Tybalt and kills him. Realizing what he has done, Romeo cries “I am fortunes fool!” Benvolio urges Romeo to run away. Because of the circumstances of Tybalt killing Mercutio, the Prince spares Romeo from execution but exiles him from Verona.
Shakespeare builds tension in this scene by warning the audience at the start that there will be a fight between the Montagues and the Capulets, when Benvolio says “And, if we meet, we shall not scrape a brawl; for now, these hot days, is the mad blood stirring”. As soon as Tybalt enters the audience knows there is going to be a fight, and as he taunts him and draws his sword more tension is built. Shakespeare has purposely juxtaposed this scene with the contrasting wedding scene for effect and there is great dramatic irony as the audience knows that Romeo and Tybalt are family, however none of the characters on stage do. Mercutio repeating “A plague on both your houses” has a very dramatic effect and highlights to the audience that Mercutio was a neutral and this is what has happened to him. This also suggests the play will end in tragedy because there is a curse on both families.
This scene becomes the turning point in the play because without it, Romeo would have not needed to flee and Juliet’s Father would have not tried to wed her to Paris. Mercutio death is quite unexpected and shocks the audience as they would have predicted one of the Capulets of Montagues would have been killed. I think this scene is very well arranged and builds great dramatic tensions and really intrigues the audience.
