The death of this exuberant man appears as unnecessary waste. Upon Tybalt’s fatal blow, Mercutio, the wounded man, curses the two families three times, “ a plague a’both houses.” This shows that people outside the feuding families are involved in the “ancient grudge” whether they wish to be or not. It also indicates, as his name can be linked with Mercury – messenger of the Gods, that he is a messenger, prefiguring the death of the “star-crossed lovers.” Mercutio’s verbal attack of Romeo, as he “was hurt under... (Romeo’s)... arm” represents the many barriers in the play especially that between the protagonists and their “death-marked love.”
He rivals Romeo in wit and intelligence, whilst occasionally indulges in vulgar, clever retorts shown through badinages like “if love be blind, love cannot hit the mark” and the verbose repartee. His vibrance and boisterousness causes Romeo to say he has “dancing shoes with nimble souls” contrasting his own “soul of lead.”
Mercutio believes in himself and is willing to stand up for his rights; “I will not budge for no man’s pleasure” and “By my heel, I care not.” He is also sincere, able to admit when he is wrong and can take a laugh at himself, accepting that “ True, I talk of dreams,” after the Queen Mab speech. However, Mercutio is rash, impulsive and easily irritated; this leads to his duel with Tybalt after challenging him for “as word and a blow”, even though Tybalt’s quarrel was with Romeo. This hatred was brought on by Mercutio’s displeasure at Tybalt’s precise fighting style and way of speaking and Tybalt’s innocuous remark that he chose to take as insulting him as a “minstrel.” It is this part of his personality that leads, very sadly, to his death.
It is because of Mercutio’s sad demise that Romeo’s impulsive side comes to light. His deep adoration for Mercutio causes him to seek retribution for his friend’s superfluous end and in a moment of “fire-eyed fury” Romeo slays Tybalt “the ‘villain’”. The result of his fervent ire leads Prince Escalus to “immediately…exile him”. The Friar tells Romeo “the Prince’s doom” is not “body’s death, but body’s banishment.” Romeo cannot envision life “outside Verona walls” without Juliet and concludes, “banished…is death…death mis-termed”. Not only is this prefigurative of the lover’s fate, but it is ironic that the fate Romeo wishes to have is his fate.
Mercutio’s death causes Romeo’s impulsive retaliation and ultimately his exile and this consequently leads to his lack of knowledge regarding the Juliet plot with the “sleeping potion”. Upon reaching the Captulet’s tomb in “fair Verona”, on hearing of Juliet’s death, Paris confronts Romeo about his presence. Romeo’s warns Paris “not to tempt a desperate man” nevertheless Paris disregards the warning, starting a sword fight that determines his fate. In a moment of blind love, after Romeo laid Paris’ slain body beside Juliet’s, Romeo drinks his “dram of poison”; telling Juliet that forever with her he will “remain”. Upon Juliet’s awakening to see her lover’s body, her intense love for Romeo causes her to take her own life. Not only does Mercutio’s death turn this complex love story into a twisted tragedy, but also from this effervescent character’s departure stems Romeo’s revenge and banishment and indirectly the end of the lover’s and their passionate “misadventure”. Ironically it is the spontaneous nature of one man, Mercutio, and his loathing of Tybalt that seals the fate of the “two households” as well as “their children’s end”, rather that the antediluvian rancour the families share.
