Romeo and Juliet

In act 1, scene 5, Romeo sees Juliet for the first time, and uses an epigram to describe her. The language he uses in this epigram is different to the way he speaks about Rosaline in act 1, scene 1. This is clear from the beginning , because of the epigram form its in, this is because an epigram is used to introduce a new idea and work it through to a conclusion, making it clear this new feeling is not like the so called love he had for Rosaline, but a new and pure feeling. Secondly, Shakespeare makes Romeo use light and dark imagery, such as “as a rich jewel, in an Ethiops ear”, this paints a picture that makes Juliet seem unique and special, as a jewel is a rarity, and against the dark skin of an Ethiopian, it stands out and shines brightly. Compare this use of contrast, to the oxymoron’s Romeo uses to describe Rosaline, it is a total different feeling he is experiencing. An example is when Romeo uses phrases like, “O’ brawling love, O’ loving hate”, to describe his feelings for Rosaline, in which he is contradicting himself saying that love is a fight and hate is a love, but when describing Juliet, he is saying things like, “Beauty to rich for use, for earth too dear”, showing that he thinks of Juliet as someone who is to beautiful for this earth. Another example that shows us how Romeo feels for Juliet, is when he says, “So shows an snowy dove trooping with crows”. This makes the audience understand that Romeo thinks of Juliet being totally unique and special compared to everyone else that surrounds her, including Rosaline.

In act 1, scene 5, the audience sees the moment in the play when Romeo and Juliet first meet. In this particular scene Shakespeare decides to use a sonnet to show the feelings they have for each other. A sonnet is a love poem that is considered to be incredibly hard to write, and because of this it is often referred to as a perfect form for expressing love. This use of sonnet is suggesting that Shakespeare intended the audience to see Romeo and Juliet’s love as perfect, pure and true, and that it was meant to be. The way Shakespeare has chosen to structure the sonnet is also significant, as he makes both Romeo and Juliet perform the sonnet together, signifying that both lovers are on the same level and that they are both feeling the same way about each other. It is also suggesting that Romeo and Juliet both complete each other, as they are finishing off each other’s ideas. An example of this is when Juliet says, “Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer”, and then Romeo says after, “They pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair.” This is showing how both Romeo and Juliet are using the same rhyming scheme and that both of their sentences link back and fourth to one and other. Another key theme going on in this sonnet is the use of religious language/imagery, for example when Romeo says, “My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand.” This is suggesting that for Romeo to kiss Juliet would be his pilgrimage, and because a pilgrimage is a journey to a holy place, it has a deeper meaning of importance to him, saying that Juliet is special and even holy. Another example is when Romeo says to Juliet, “ O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do”, here Romeo is referring to Juliet as a saint, which is a very good or holy person, showing the audience that she is almost an angel that has saved him from his heartache, due to the unrequited love he apparently had for Rosaline. All this leads us as the audience to believe that Romeo and Juliet’s love is destined to be, by not only fate, but maybe even the work of God because of all these religious references. Another key idea that is introduced to the performance of the sonnet, is kiss that Romeo and Juliet share, near to the end of the scene. This is significant because just before they kiss, Romeo says “Thus from my lips, by thine, my sin is purged”, what this means is that by kissing Juliet, Romeo will be freed from all his sin, making him a free spirit again. But then after the kiss Juliet says “Then have my lips the sin that they have took”, then which Romeo replies, “Sin from my lips?, O trespass sweetly urged !, give me my sin again.” Here Romeo is asking for his sins back, if it means he can share another kiss with Juliet. Finally I believe that all the key themes and ideas in this sonnet were used by Shakespeare to create a sense of holiness and destiny belonging to Romeo and Juliet’s love. I believe that he also wanted the audience to view their love as requited and unique, because of the way they both expressed their feelings for one and other.

In act 1, scene 5, the audience sees the moment in the play where Romeo first sees Juliet and when they meet each other for the first time. This is important because it is when the audience first see the true love of the star-crossed lovers come out. However, between when Romeo first sees Juliet to when they first meet, we briefly encounter Tybalt, who is Juliet’s cousin. Here we see the fierce hatred that Tybalt has for Romeo, and his outrage at the disrespect Romeo has for turning up at the Capulets family party. Shakespeare has chosen to structure the scene in this way is that by cutting from a love filled scene to a hate filled scene, it is showing the audience how both love and hate are closely linked together and that they are constantly intertwining. This brings to together the two key themes, making the audience feel that one emotion can not be, if another emotion is not there, this is because to truly understand love, you have to contrast it with the opposite emotion, hate. The language that Shakespeare uses to present Tybalt’s anger, highlights the extent of Tybalt’s hatred for a Romeo. He does this by using phrases such as “A villain, that he has come in spite”’ and “To strike him dead I hold it no sin”, this shows us how  Tybalt’s pride has been dented and that the anger he now has for Romeo could lead him to kill Romeo without even thinking of it as sin. This also shows that Tybalt’s extreme hatred could lead to tragic circumstances making us think about how this play might end.

To conclude, I would like summarise the key themes and ideas presented about love. Firstly I believe that Shakespeare is telling the audience that love is hard to find and that if it is something that you have to suffer to discover, it is not true love at all. This is proven when the audience sees Romeo’s heartache at the fact that Rosaline does not feel the same way that Romeo feels about her. Secondly I believe that Shakespeare is trying to tell the audience that true love can happen to anyone, under any circumstances. This is shown when Romeo and Juliet fall in love, this is because even through the hatred and violence between their two families, they both felt strongly enough to try and carry on their relationship together. It is also suggesting that love is destined and is something that comes natural to the two people involved. I believe that these two ideas of love are represented very much in act 1, scene 5, when the audience sees the sonnet performed by the two star-crossed lovers, and when we see Romeo pouring his heart out to Benvolio, in act 1, scene 1. All in all I believe that Shakespeare has intended the audience to view true love, as something special and rare. I also think that he wanted the audience to believe that true love can sometimes be dangerous and tragic, and that something so special is not meant to last very long.