Discuss how Shakespeare creates dramatic impact in Act 3 Scene 1.

The play “Romeo and Juliet” is a tragic yet romantic play written by William Shakespeare, in the 16th century in London. The play would be performed in the globe theatre on the banks of the Thames River. The play “Romeo and Juliet” is the story of two families engaged in a ferocious hatred for one another. A Montague and a Capulet fall in love with each other in the form of Romeo and Juliet. This play tells the story of how the two lovers meet and how horrifically it ends.

The scene I will concentrate on is Act 3 Scene 1 where Tybalt and Mercutio fight to the bloody end. Tybalt loses and meets a painful end at the point of Mercutio sword. Romeo then revenges the death of his friend by killing Mercutio. Romeo is later exiled by the prince and is told never to return to Verona. A plan is conjured by Friar Lawrence to reunite Romeo and Juliet. The plan goes horribly wrong, and ends in the death of both Romeo and Juliet.

The tranquillity of Act 2 Scene 6, a wedding featuring Friar Lawrence, Juliet Capulet and Romeo Montague, precedes the dynamic scene of Act 3 Scene 1. This marriage leaves Romeo ecstatic in a blissful world where Capulet and Montague lay down swords and no longer fight. In Act 3 Scene 1, the dynamics changes dramatically. Romeo is brought back to the reality that Montage and Capulet will not stop fighting that easily. The new dynamic is very fast and has a lot of action. It also contains numerous people coming and going, this is a source of dramatic impact. Act 3 Scene 1 moves the action forward with so many entrances and exits; it is a pivotal one in the middle of the play. This scene is constantly changing from monolog to group conversations.

The environment in Act 3 Scene 1 is conveyed through the subtle repetition of words throughout the dialog in the early lines of the scene (1-25). The fact that the word “Hot” is repeatedly used shows the heat of the day in Verona. It also suggests the emotions of anger that fill the air. The sensation of fury is enhanced by the repetitious words that refer to hatred and violence e.g. “mad blood stirring”. All this prepares the audience that there is an inescapable conflict about to unfold.

In line 30 the mood takes a more serious turn when ...

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In line 30 the mood takes a more serious turn when Mercutio challenges Tybalt to a fight. In line 39 it is clear that Tybalt is looking for Romeo to seek revenge for him turning up to the masked ball uninvited. It seems ironic that Romeo should enter on that line. Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt and professes love for him. The audience know that this is because he has fallen in love with Juliet, Tybalt’s cousin. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony here to create suspense. Tybalt believes that Romeo is saying that he loves him as a joke which just angers him further.

In lines 70-75 the tone of voice that Mercutio and Romeo adopt creates dramatic contrast. Mercutio is up for a fight “Will you pluck your sword out of his pilcher by the ears?” but Romeo does not wish to fight “put thy rapier down”. Mercutio’s language means that a duel is inevitable with Tybalt. The duel ends with the death of Mercutio and his curse being placed on the Montague’s and Caplet’s in line 97.

In lines 89-90 and 98 Mercutio uses puns even though he is about to die after his fight with Tybalt “ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.” The mix of tragedy and humour is in sharp contrast therefore heightening the emotional response. The threat of Mercutio’s curse, “A plague a’both your houses!” is heightened when it is repeated. Unfortunately the curse seems to come true in the end when both Romeo and Juliet take their own lives. After this curse is spoken the pace quickens.

Romeo’s emotions seem to swing as at the beginning of line 100 he is ashamed and full of regret “My very friend, hath got this mortal hurt/ In my behalf… O sweet Juliet, / Thy beauty hath made me effeminate,” But these emotions soon evolve in to anger and revenge “…fire-eyed fury be my conduct now!” Romeo is far from the state of the scene where he was ecstatic after being wed.

In Romeo’s madness he vows either he or Tybalt must die. This creates dramatic anticipation as it suggests that one more person will die in this scene. Another fight does occur between Romeo and Tybalt, ironically, as Romeo refused to fight at the Tybalt start of the scene. This adds drama to the high action scene, with its fighting and many entrances and exits.

Benvolio’s speech (lines 143-166) retells the scene in a simple verse. Each line is ten syllables long to enhance the emotions of the dramatic monolog. Benvolio’s speech is brought to an end with rhyming couplets which also heighten the emotional response of the audience. This speech by Benvolio is fulfilling a dramatic function. It lets the prince know what has happened so far and slows down the action. The prince is a symbol of calm and order; he only arrives when chaos brews in the town of Veronica. This image of the prince shows Shakespeare’s belief in the order of being.

This scene uses many dramatic techniques to bring it to life. The many entrances and exits create a busy feel. The use of tragedy and humour side by side creates a turbulent atmosphere. This scene is a critical scene as it sets scene for an inevitable conclusion. Things start to go wrong for Romeo and Juliet from this point on. The scene creates a suspense and tension by creating dramatic expectation and irony. Act 3 Scene 1 creates irony by letting the audience know what the characters don’t. Besides the emotions of love and hatred the whole scene is filled with ideas of revenge such as Romeo’s response to Tybalt killing Mercutio. Tybalt’s death then leads to Lady Capulet seeking revenge on Romeo from the prince of Verona.

I think this is a good fast action-packed and multi layered scene that leaves the audience wondering what will happen next.