In Act 1 Scene 5, Tybalt again appears very violent and full of hatred. He argues with Capulet because he spots Romeo and immediately wants to kill him. He is full of anger that Romeo has come to the ball but Capulet orders him to do nothing to Romeo as it will affect the party and attract attention from the Prince. In Act 1 Scene 5 Tybalt uses very powerful language when he speaks to Capulet such as ‘It fits when such a villain is a guest,’ which means he is desperate to fight Romeo but Capulet has none of it. Tybalt also tells his page to get his sword saying ‘Fetch me my rapier boy’ which means he is getting ready to fight. He also says to himself ‘I will withdraw, but this intrusion shall, now seeming sweet, convert to bitterest gall.’ This means he wants to exact revenge on Romeo. Shakespeare uses very powerful language for Tybalt in Act 1 Scene 5 such as ‘scorn at our solemnity’ and ‘to strike him dead I hold it not a sin’ which frightens the audience and emphasises his strength. Tybalt affects the plot in this scene because at the end of the scene he vows to exact revenge on Romeo for his intrusion at the Capulet’s mansion. So the audience know the next time they see him, they know they will see violence.
In Act 3 Scene 1, Tybalt is again on stage for moments but in that time causes extreme violence in the scene. In this scene he only reacts to Romeo’s appearance but restrains himself when Mercutio wants to fight him. He fights Mercutio but only when Romeo appears. Romeo makes it clear to Tybalt he does not want to fight, so Mercutio tries to fight him instead. Tybalt reacts and fights Mercutio and kills him with a “cheap shot.”
Then Romeo stabs Tybalt with a thrust and says ‘O, I am fortune’s fool!’ This appears very violent on stage and makes it look like he regrets what he has done. When Tybalt stabbed Mercutio it says [Tybalt under Romeo’s arm, thrusts Mercutio in and flies] this means he stabs Mercutio and then flees. Tybalt uses language in this scene and starts off very polite saying ‘Good day a word with one of you,’ this means there is a contrast to the way he speaks in Act 1. When Romeo enters, Tybalt’s language changes and tries to confront Romeo into a fight and uses words such as ‘Thou art a villain’ this means he is trying to provoke Romeo into a fight. Romeo does not want to fight and Mercutio fights instead and gets killed.
Tybalt affects the plot because he challenges Romeo but Romeo does not want to fight so Mercutio challenges him instead. He gets killed and Romeo kills Tybalt. The Prince arrives and “banishes” Romeo to Mantua.
In comparison to Romeo, Tybalt in Act 1 Scene 1 and Act 1 Scene 5 is very violent but Romeo compared is all about love and peace and Tybalt is all about anger, hatred and violence.
Romeo is also to blame for what happened at the end of the play not just Tybalt, Romeo kills Tybalt but did not have to, he could have left him alone and Tybalt would have been sentenced to death not him being “banished” to Mantua. He regrets this as he says ‘O, I am fortune’s fool!’ this means he has now regretted what he has done.
In Act 3 Scene 1, Romeo “snaps” and turns into a violent character like Tybalt. Tybalt kills Mercutio and Romeo “snaps” and kills Tybalt.
Romeo’s language in Act 1 Scene 1 and Scene 5 is very poetic, he uses metaphors and it rhymes. His speech is very long with feelings and is expressing himself. He says ‘A madness most discrete, a choking gall and a preserving sweet.’ This is saying he is trying to be in love with Roseline at the start of the play, but Roseline does not like him. Then he sees Juliet at Capulet’s party and then gets married. In Act 3 Scene 1, Romeo kills Tybalt. He says ‘O Juliet thy love hath made me effeminate.’
In Act 3 Scene 1 Romeo uses the words ‘fire-eyed fury be my conduct now,’ Shakespeare is making him use alliteration. Romeo set in motion the rest of the events that happen in the play, by killing Tybalt when he did not have to. Therefore, Romeo could also be to blame for the tragic events of Romeo and Juliet. Also to blame could be Friar Lawrence for giving Juliet the potion, the messenger for no delivering the message and Capulet for forcing Juliet to marry Paris. Juliet could also be to blame for taking the potion Friar Lawrence gave her. The Prince could also be to blame for the law he passed on the Capulets and Montagues fighting.
Throughout this essay I have shown that Tybalt is not completely to blame for what happens but others are also responsible. For example, Friar Lawrence for giving Juliet the potion, however Tybalt is to blame for some of the events at the beginning of the play, such as sparking a fight between him and Benvolio. All the events that sparked the death of Romeo and Juliet were “fate” or “destiny,” such as Tybalt vowing to get revenge on Romeo for his intrusion at the Capulet’s mansion or Romeo killing Tybalt and getting banished to Mantua.
All these events made the end of Romeo and Juliet inevitable. In Act 1 Scene 5 Tybalt vows to get revenge on Romeo for his intrusion and in Act 3 Scene 1 he kills Mercutio and provokes Romeo into killing him. He uses words like ‘Thou wretched boy, that didst not consort him here, shalt with him hence,’ this means he is trying to provoke Romeo into a fight where Romeo kills him. Tybalt in Act 1 Scene 1 says ‘Peace, I hate the word, as I hate hell, all Montagues and thee,’ this shows that Tybalt sets in motion the beginning of the play. Overall, I do believe that Tybalt was to blame but he was only one of the characters to blame.
