To disobey your father’s judgment, at that time, was dishonorable and definitely not accepted. This explains why Capulet became so angry and violent when Juliet refused to marry Paris. Dramatic irony is used in this part of the play as the audience is aware that Juliet is refusing to marry Paris because she is already married to Romeo but the other characters are not aware of this. Capulet is so angry that Juliet is not being dutiful to him by refusing to marry Paris that he tells her ‘get thee to church on Thursday, or never after look me in the face’ which tells Juliet if she does not marry on Thursday he will disown her. This scene would produce emotion in the audience as violence to a young child is un acceptable and also the audience know that the reason Juliet will not marry is that she is totally in love and married to Romeo.
Paris shows respect for Juliet when marriage is first discussed, although he does not seem to be really truly in love with her. The audience knows this because of the contrast with the true love shown by Romeo to Juliet. Their approach to their love for Juliet is very different .Romeo is much more emotional about his feelings and could not bear to be without Juliet. In contrast Paris is disappointed but accepts that Capulet thinks Juliet is too young to be married showing he is rational-love is often irrational.
Paris is dutiful when he respects Juliet’s privacy in the chapel by saying ‘God shield I should disturb devotion’, he thinks she cries for the death of Tybalt when really the audience knows she cries over the banishment of Romeo. I think the audience would find Paris’ a good honorable person but the audience knows that it is Romeo who is Juliet’s perfect match. And it is Romeo who longs to be with her, he would sacrifice anything to do so. Paris’ love for Juliet is of duty it is not true to the heart as that of Romeo’s.
It is suffice to say that Paris remained dutiful to Juliet throughout the play even when Paris had been killed by Romeo he said to him ‘if thou be merciful, open the tomb, lay me with Juliet’ so Paris’ dutiful is rewarded when after death his body is placed next to Juliet.
Shakespeare portrays ‘Courtly Love’ with its fancy and romantic, but not true from the heart characteristics by using a number of language devices.
The audience becomes aware that Romeo’s love for Rosaline is ‘courtly’ by the use of oxymorons, which were fashionable to use in plays at that time, such as ‘feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health’ and then later using metaphors ‘a fire sparkling in lovers eyes’ and ‘a sea nourished with lover’s tears’. These figures of speech conjure up images in the readers mind to suggest that Romeo is infatuated with Rosaline. Rhyming couplets is another language device Shakespeare uses repeatedly in Romeo’s speech ‘For beauty starved with her severity, cut beauty off from all posterity’ rhyming couplets are used most often at the end of speeches in Shakespearian plays to emphasize an important point. His use of romantic language also displays Romeo’s crush for Rosaline ‘o she is rich in beauty’. Romeo’s behaviour over Rosaline is perceived to the audience as being pathetic. Romeo’s love is accepted by the audience and the characters of the play that it is something he will grow out of-a puppy love. They understand the language he uses is of a teenager with a crush.
The theme of Sexual Love is threaded through the play with references in jokes and puns. These are often lewd and disrespectful but add humour and break the tension of the drama. They contrast with the pure and romantic love of Romeo and Juliet examples of this are the way in which Mercutio calls for Romeo, claiming that he will be having a romantic encounter with his crush Rosaline, after the ball ‘By her fine foot, straight leg, and quivering thigh’. In contrast to this bawdy humour Romeo is referring to his true love Juliet, romantically by using light imagery to describe her ‘Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon’. Also crude jokes about Juliet’s virginity from the nurse ‘Thou wilt fall backward when thou comes of age’ add to the contrast with the true love Juliet later has for Romeo. The disrespectful language from the servants contrast with Romeo’s true love for Juliet ‘tis known I am a pretty piece of flesh’ Romeo shows the utter most respect for Juliet throughout the play and for women whereas these servants think of the women as things that can just give them sexual pleasure.
