How effectively does Shakespeare develop the themes of love and hate in act one scene five of Romeo And Juliet?
How Effectively Does Shakespeare Develop The Themes Of Love And Hate In Act One Scene Five Of Romeo And Juliet?
Laurence Phillips
0G1
The fifth scene in act one is remarkably important in the story for a number of reasons. It is the first time that Romeo lays his eyes on Juliet and becomes overwhelmed by her beauty.
"O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright!"
He has forgotten all about his previous love Rosaline and realises that up until this point he has not known the true meaning of love. "I ne'er saw true beauty till this night."
It is also incredibly important because it is the first opportunity for a conflict to occur between the Capulet and Montague families. The fact that The Prince warns both Lord Capulet and Lord Montague in act one scene one of the play with the words
"... If ever you disturb our streets again your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace," means that the suspense is greatly added to.
Romeo's remarks at the very end of act one scene four about his expectations of the evening's party makes the next scene very interesting for the audience.
"... For my mind misgives some consequence, yet hanging in the stars shall bitterly begin his fearful date."
Shakespeare presents the theme of hate in quite a few ways, one of them being the prologue.
"From ancient grudge break to new mutiny" is a quotation from the prologue that informs us of previous hate felt between both families and tells us of a "new mutiny" about to arise, building up the tension for the first scene.
During the first scene, Tybalt tells Benvolio:
"...Peace? I hate the word, as I hate hell, ...
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"... For my mind misgives some consequence, yet hanging in the stars shall bitterly begin his fearful date."
Shakespeare presents the theme of hate in quite a few ways, one of them being the prologue.
"From ancient grudge break to new mutiny" is a quotation from the prologue that informs us of previous hate felt between both families and tells us of a "new mutiny" about to arise, building up the tension for the first scene.
During the first scene, Tybalt tells Benvolio:
"...Peace? I hate the word, as I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee." This gives us an indication of the absolute hate felt by Tybalt himself for the opposite family, using a comparison between hell and all Montagues.
In act one scene five, Tybalt is almost again involved in a brawl with the Montague family, particularly Romeo himself. Lucky for Romeo, Tybalt and all, Capulet calms down Tybalt. Tybalt exits but not before expressing his disgust toward Romeo, threatening to,
"...Convert to bitterest gall." (Or kill him.)
The themes of love and hate are very cleverly interwoven with Juliet's words almost at the end of the scene:
"My only love sprung from my only hate!"
Here, she is speaking of young Romeo, whom she had only met that night at her parents' party.
The theme of love in the play is presented clearly throughout, starting with lovesick Romeo, besotted with Rosaline in act one scene one. Romeo talks of being,
"...Out of love," "...In sadness..." and asks Benvolio to "...teach me how to forget to think!" This gives us a strong idea of what Romeo is going through in his mind, and how low he really feels.
In act one, scene three, we hear of Paris' intentions to marry Juliet. When informed of this proposal, Juliet says marriage is:
"...An honour that I dream not of." I feel that she is
talking not about marriage itself, but how she feels about getting married to Paris, a wealthy bachelor.
Romeo's reaction when he first lays his eyes on Juliet is extreme to say the least.
"...She doth teach the torches to burn bright!" is just one of the many expressions Shakespeare uses to convey the idea of Romeo being a victim of love.
"I ne'er saw true beauty 'til this night." Although he has only just seen Juliet, already Rosaline is out of the picture. Him talking of Juliet being true beauty makes the whole description of her all the more passionate.
I feel Juliet felt exactly the same love for Romeo as he did for her. Juliet said at the end of the scene:
"If he be married, my grave is likely to be my wedding-bed" referring to Romeo. This shows us that Juliet would be willing to die to be with Romeo.
The moment Romeo and Juliet first meet and speak is cleverly laid out by Shakespeare. Juliet uses the religious term "pilgrim" towards Romeo, which to me depicts an image of church, and subsequently marriage. There are also references to "Saints", "Palmers" and "Prayers."
The most important part of Romeo and Juliet's first meeting is the fact that their speech creates a perfectly formed Shakespearian sonnet. I think this was used to show us that these two "Star-crossed lovers" are perfectly matched and completely and utterly in love.
My view is that Shakespeare has very cleverly brought together the two themes in this scene. He has combined many factors. First of which, is the reason Romeo went to the party in the first place, (it was his love for Rosaline.) Also, there is the hate expressed by Tybalt to Romeo in this scene where he threatens to "Convert to bitterest gall."
At the end of the scene, Romeo and Juliet remind us of the ancient grudge between both families. Romeo expresses his surprise at finding out about Juliet being a Capulet with the words:
"My life is my foe's debt." He is distraught at the news of Juliet and feels his life must be cursed by his foe's debt. Or, in other words he feels that he is getting the backlash of his enemy's wrongdoings.
Juliet herself remarks something similar when she says:
"My only love sprung from my only hate!" Shakespeare uses this phrase to show us that his love is not unrequited and to again remind us of the grudge. A grudge that will act as a barrier between the two lovers; progressing until the tragic end of the play.