At line 41 we move to a different place in the scene, as now we are listening to Romeo rather than Capulet. This is the point at which Romeo first catches a glimpse of Juliet, and instantaneously falls in love, and forgets Rosaline. Romeo’s speech from line 43-52 is full of romance, and the rhyming couplets enhance this. There is a lot of romantic imagery, such as “She doth teach the torches to burn bright” – in those times there would have been flaming torches for lighting, and it is as if she can be brighter than they ever will be. Another example of this is in line 45, where “As a rich jewel in an Ethiop’s ear” – this suggests the ideas of contrasting light with dark, beauty with ugliness, richness with poverty, it seems to stand out against the background, it is precious and stands out from the crowd (an Ethiop was any black person, not necessarily from Ethiopia). It brings to mind he phrase “diamond in the rough”. The image of the “snowy dove” among crows brings up many meanings; it could be taken to mean new life, peace, gentleness, or the Holy Spirit. Crows are very closely related to ravens, which are considered to be evil, and so it may be said that again there is a contrast between light and dark, beauty and ugliness, good and evil. “I never saw true beauty ‘till this night” – this confirms that he has forgotten about Rosaline, she has become one of the crows. At this point, the atmosphere is most certainly romantic, and the audience is on edge hoping that it all goes well.
The mood changes again in line 53, where we hear Tybalt announcing his belief that Romeo is a Montague – there is a direct contrast between Romeo’s romantic mood and Tybalt’s angry warlike mood. But Tybalt has got completely the wrong end of the stick, he thinks that Romeo is there to mock them and spoil the party, but when actually he is there to find love. When Tybalt is declaring his findings to Capulet, he uses rhyme to give it more emphasis. But when Capulet hears the news, in line 64, he tells Tybalt not to worry, because Romeo s a “portly gentleman”, “Verona brags of him”, he is a “virtuous and well-governed youth”, and that Capulet “would not, for the wealth of all this town, do him disparagement”, he tells Tybalt to take no notice of him. But Tybalt will not have this, and tells Capulet that he will slay him with his own sword. When Capulet hears of this, he puts Tybalt to shame, calling him “a saucy boy”. Then he goes on to give Tybalt a lecture, seemingly under his breath, while at the same time calling orders to the servants for “more light”, and so on. The audience would be feeling very worried when Tybalt makes his announcement, but may feel slightly bemused when Capulet takes no notice. Capulet may have responded in such a way that he may know what is going on, or he may have something more sinister planned for later, but he probably just does not want to spoil the atmosphere of his party.
The mood changes yet again now, to one with deep romance, as Romeo and Juliet share the lines of a sonnet. The sonnet form is used to emphasise the lovers’ isolation, their separation from the society in which they live. The sharing of the lines may be used to show the union of their thoughts, and it helps to make the scene more romantic. During the sonnet, there is a lot of religious imagery, such as the “blushing pilgrims” visiting the “holy shrine” that is Juliet’s hand – if I offend you by touching your hand, I’ll kiss it better. Juliet says that Romeo is showing her respect by touching her hand, and confirms that by putting her palm against his. The rhyming couplet in lines 104 and 105, suggests their harmony, togetherness, and at that point they kiss. The audience is excited at this point, because neither of them yet knows who the other is, and this atmosphere is very romantic.
Now, the party starts drawing to a close, and Romeo asks the Nurse of Juliet’s identity as Juliet is talking to her mother, and Juliet then asks the Nurse about Romeo’s identity, while he is walking out of the door. By asking about Petruchio and Tiberio before asking Romeo’s identity, it makes her enquiries look casual. While the Nurse leaves to ask Romeo’s identity of someone else, Juliet makes a rather dangerous comment “If he be married, my grave is like to be my wedding bed”. This comment turns out to have a meaning later on in the story, but we do not yet know of this, it is ironic and ominous. The audience is likely to feel sympathetic for Romeo and Juliet at this point.
During this scene, the audience has seen Romeo and Juliet grow closer together, and is likely to feel sympathetic, almost sorry for the lovers, as they have discovered each others’ identities. We are likely to feel worried and anxious about what is going to happen later on in the courtship, and we are wondering whether the parents will disapprove, or suchlike, due to the family they come from.