Shakespeare makes Romeo and Juliet’s conversation more dramatic by the banishment of Romeo by the Prince. Romeo is not supposed to be with Juliet in the Capulet household let alone in Verona. Juliet tries to convince Romeo into staying by telling him that the bird they hear singing outside is the Nightingale, which sings at night, and not a Lark, which sings in the morning this is shown by the phrase ‘Wilt thou be gone? It is not yer near day: It was the nightingale and not the lark which pierced the thine hollow of thine ear’. Romeo doesn’t believe her and says that if he stays he will be killed which he accepts and ‘Juliet wills it so’ ironically. This scene suddenly becomes dramatic as the nurse walks in and tells Juliet that her mother is coming. Romeo exits quickly and says his last goodbye the end of this conversation is marked by Juliet’s apprehensive foreboding where Romeo is lying in a tomb this is highlighted by the phrase ‘…, I see thee now, thou art so low. As one dead in the bottom of a tomb.’ The imagery of this on stage would shock the audience and create suspense to what will happen to them.
The conversation between Juliet and her mother starts with Juliet crying because Rome has just left. Her mother is under the impression that she is crying because of the death of Tybalt this is shown through: ‘Juliet- Madam I am not well; Lady Capulet- Evermore weeping for your cousins death?’ After this misunderstanding they talk about ‘That Villain Romeo’ as her mother calls him. At this point the audience realise that her mother would never agree to her marriage with Romeo. Juliet pretends that she is mad at Romeo because of what happened to her cousin as shown by ‘Lady Capulet- that is because the traitor murderer lives; Juliet- Ay, madam, from the reach of these my hands.’ We know that she is not really mad at Romeo but has to make her mother believe that she is this is a very good example of dramatic irony. This scene suddenly becomes dramatic at the announcement of Paris decree to marry Juliet on Thursday Morn at Saint Peters church. This is highlighted by ‘Marry, my child, early next Thursday morn, the gallant, young, and noble gentlemen, The county Paris, at Saint Peter’s church, Shall happily make thee there a joyful bride.’ Juliet’s reaction to this is one of horror and for the audience creates a sense of shock of that she has to marry another man. She argues with her mother about the sudden arranged marriage and she tells her mother ‘I will not marry yet, and when I do, I swear it shall be Romeo whom you know I hate’. This sends the message to Lady Capulet that Juliet hates Paris and would rather marry Romeo than him who she is making out that she hates. This ends the conversation between them and this is when Juliet’s father, Capulet, comes in.
Shakespeare starts this scene after Juliet’s mother has had words with her daughter, her father enters the room and Juliet is once again in tears because of Romeo’s absence and that she is supposed to be married to Paris on Thursday. We can see that Juliet is upset about the arranged marriage by the conversation between Lady Capulet and Capulet which is demonstrated by ‘Capulet – Have you delivered to her our decree, Lady Capulet – Ay, Sir but she will none, she gives you thanks’ this shows how Juliet is very upset about the whole idea of getting married to Paris but once again her father is under the impression that she is upset because she has lost Tybalt which is highlighted by the phrase ‘But for the sunset of my brothers sun it rains downright, How now a conduit girl? What still in tears?’ She is thankful that her father has gone through all this trouble for arranging this marriage with Paris this is also highlighted by the phrase ‘Not proud you have but thankful that you have, proud can I never be of what I hate, but thankful even for hate that is meant love.’ But she is not ready to marry and she is not in love with Paris so it would be wrong this is shown by the phrase ‘To answer I can not wed, I cannot love’, Additionally she is married to Romeo this is dramatic irony coming in once again. Her father is in disbelief and we feel the dramatic tension in his rage at her refusal to marry to Paris, which is demonstrated by the phrase ‘Soft, take me with you, take me with you wife.’ And father is offended by her actions he has gone through a lot of trouble arranging this marriage with Paris, which is highlighted, by the phrase ‘and then to have a wrethched pulling fool, a whining mammet in her fortunes tender’. He proclaims that Paris is a good man by the phrase ‘A gentleman of a noble parentage, of fair demesnes, Youthful and nobly ligned, stuffed, as they say, with honourable parts’. Her father states that if she doesn’t marry Paris that he will disown her this appears a very dramatic spectacle to the audience because Juliet begs her father on her knees shown by the phrase Capulet – ‘Out, you green sickness carrion! Out you baggage! You tallow face!’ Juliet – ‘Good father I beseech you on my knees, hear me with patience but to speak a word’ Stage Directions – ‘She kneels down’. Her father then says if she does not go to church then she will be kicked out of the household ‘But and you will not wed, I’ll Pardon you graze where you will, you shall not house with me look to think, I do not use to jest Thursday is near, lay hand on heart, advise and you be mine, I’ll give you to my friend; And you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets’. The tension is intense and on stage this will be seen and captivated by the audience. There is also a sense of mystery of what will happen because of her fathers decree and due to Romeo waiting in Mantua for her.
After Juliet’s fathers argument with her she looks to the nurse and her mother for comfort and support but her mother says ‘Talk not to me, for I’ll not speak a word. Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee.’ this comment suggests that her own mother is disowning her as well and after this disappointment her mother departs the room. This scene shows how her mother is annoyed with her because she can see no reason for her not to wed and must agree with the decision that her husband makes. Juliet turns to the nurse because she thinks that god has condemned her as shown by the phrase ‘Alack, alack, that heaven should be practise stratagems upon so soft a subject as myself!’ The nurse tells her that she thinks it is best to marry Paris because Romeo is banished and Paris is much better looking and has lovely eyes as highlighted by the phrase ‘Romeo’s a dishcloth compared to him. An eagle, madam, hath not so green, so quick; so fair an eye as Paris hath. Beshrew my very heart, I think you are happy in this second match for it excels your first, or if it did not, your first is dead, or twere as good he were as living here and you no use of him.’ Juliet pretends to agree with the nurse but after the nurse leaves she turns away and speaks to the audience this is known as a soliloquy. During this she says to the audience that she is disappointed with the nurse for saying them things and tells us that the nurse has always said good things about Romeo in the past as demonstrated by ‘Ancient Damnation! O most wicked fiend! Is it more sin to wish me thus foresworn or to dispraise my lord with that same tongue which she hath praised him with above compare so many thousand times’ Shakespeare expresses her anger by the words ‘Damnation’ and ‘Wicked’ after these words of disgust she tells us that the only person she can talk to is the Friar but if doesn’t have a solution then she will kill her self shown by the phrase ‘myself have power to die’.
This scene is quite a important one to the future plot events because if she didn’t consummate her love with Romeo that night the marriage would not be as strong therefore when her mother and father asked her to marry Paris if the marriage was not yet consummated there would have been a greater chance of a marriage with Paris. Additionally when Lady Capulet tells her of this news the story is changed dramatically everything was going down hill from the moment that Romeo killed Tybalt. When Juliet is told to marry Paris she is faced with an ultimatum to run away with Romeo and be disowned by her father by not marring Paris or to marry a second time to Paris and keep her loving family but be in a loveless marriage with Paris. This is a key point to the future plot events when she is asked to marry Paris it gives her less time and applies pressure to her to make a decision. This means that she has no option but to take the potion that believes that she is dead and Romeos death because of it.