When Lady Capulet enters, she sees Juliet crying, and her mother thinks she is mourning the death of Tybalt, when in fact she is crying for Romeo. Juliet uses ambiguous language when talking to her mother to make her think that she is in fact crying for Tybalt without lying, “And yet no man like he doth grieve my heart”. Shakespeare shows how Juliet has grown in confidence by having her cleverly deceive her mother like this. Lady Capulet believes that Romeo grieves her heart because he has killed her cousin, but the audience knows that Romeo grieves her heart because he isn’t with her.
Shakespeare also successfully injects irony into Lady Capulet’s speech by having her tell Juliet that she will give Romeo an “unaccustom’d dram”. This is ironic because Romeo does in fact die of poisoning. Juliet is also shown to be mature by the way she stands up for herself and makes her own decisions. For the first time in her life, Juliet defies her mother by refusing to marry Paris, however she still remains polite, as is evident from her polite form of address calling her mother ‘Madam’ and ‘Lady’. This shows how she has matured during the play, and particularly in this scene.
When Lord Capulet enters, Juliet’s tragedy intensifies further. At first, he shows sympathy for Juliet, as he thinks that she is crying for Tybalt. Shakespeare uses metaphors effectively during Capulet’s speech by connecting the imagery of boats and sea with Juliet’s tears, “It rains downright…thy tempest-tossed body”. The first time Paris proposed to Juliet, Capulet refused him permission and appreciated the fact that Juliet should have a say in the matter. In Act 1 Capulet tells Paris “Let two more summers wither in their pride / lest her ready to be a bride”. However, Shakespeare shows a great contrast between Lord Capulet’s attitude then and now. Capulet now shows no appreciation for Juliet’s needs, and tries to control her life for her, insisting that she does marry his “friend”, and demands that she “fettle your fine joints ‘gainst Thursday next”.
When studying any historical text, it is important to consider the context; and in this case we must consider the ideology and social meanings of Elizabethan England. A modern audience could infer that Juliet and Lady Capulet do not have a typical mother-daughter relationship of today, by the fact that they don’t rationally discuss Juliet’s future, Lady Capulet thinks she knows what Juliet wants and refuses to acknowledge that she doesn’t. Shakespeare heightens the tension with Lady Capulet’s departure by the language she uses. “I have done with thee” sums up Lady Capulet’s attitude that she has totally disowned Juliet and doesn’t care for her anymore. As was common during Elizabethan times, Juliet is expected to marry young. This was socially accepted and even expected due to huge fatality rates in the young, and a shorter life expectancy.
Shakespeare seems to successfully intensify the tension and deepen the tragedy with the entrance and exit of each character in relation to Juliet. Abandoned by both her parents, Juliet now turns to the one person she has always relied on. The Nurse has always been Juliet’s companion so when she disowns Juliet, like her parents did, it is a shock for both Juliet and the audience. Juliet is now in a very grave situation; she cannot marry Paris for she will be breaking the laws of heaven (being consumated, the marriage is now heaven-blessed), which the audience of that era firmly believed in, “My husband is on earth…By leaving earth”. When Juliet turns to the nurse for help, she expects her to offer her some words of comfort and to help her reunite with Romeo. However, the nurse contradicts herself by advising Juliet to marry Paris, “I think it best you married with the County”. She is now being hypocritical, as previously in the play, she praised Romeo declaring that (in Act 2 Scene 4) Romeo is “a fine and an honourable and a courteous gentleman”. However she now refers to him as a “dishclout”. This comes as a shock to Juliet, as the nurse had already arranged her and Romeo’s marriage, which was a huge risk for her. If Lord Capulet caught her then she would be in serious trouble, which shows that she wouldn’t have done it if she didn’t think it was the best thing to do.
The nurse’s response further develops the tragedy, as all of Juliet’s closest companions have totally disowned her, and none of them respect her wishes. This means she must now act on her own decisions without any help from anyone. Shakespeare now develops Juliet’s character by having her act in ways she never has before. For the first time in her life, Juliet treats the nurse like the servant she is by commanding her, “ Go in; and tell my lady I am gone.” She tells the nurse that she is visiting Friar Lawrence to confess her sins, when in fact she is going to find out how can see Romeo.
All of her life, Juliet has felt very close to the nurse, however when she leaves, she calls her a “most wicked fiend” declaring that she will never love her again, “thou and my bosom henceforth shall be twain”. This shows that Juliet is already starting to live her life independently. At the end of the scene, Shakespeare emphasises how desperate Juliet is feeling by having her swear to kill herself, “If all else fail, myself have power to die”. Her attitude contrasts greatly to her attitude at the beginning of the scene where she was a happy young bride, making the most of her time with her husband. Now the audience sees her as a young, mature woman who has lost everything and is prepared to die, and for this (despite her tragic situation) the audience respect her enormously.
From the beginning of the scene to the end, Shakespeare rapidly shifts the mood as he develops the tragedy. The audience now view Juliet differently than they did at the beginning of the scene. They now feel great sympathy for her, whereas at the beginning of the scene, they saw her as a young woman with good prospects whom could be admired. Her attitude has also changed from naïve and innocent to determined and independent. The audience knows that a tragedy is developing. They can see Juliet’s situation decline as she uncontrollably spins into a desolate situation which they know will only get worse from listening to the chorus in the opening prologue.
