The Capulets,a very wealthy, prosperous family are considering arranging a marriage of convenience for their young, only daughter, Juliet to Paris, an attractive, wealthy man even though Lord Capulet thinks Juliet is to young for marriage.
‘My child is yet a stranger in this world,
She hath not seen the change of fourteen years,
Let two more summers wither in their pride,
Ere we may think her ripe to be a bride’.
Paris unsuccessfully tries to persuade Capulet to change his mind,
‘Younger than she are happy mothers made.’
Capulet remains true to his original word.
When Lady Capulet asks Juliet to consider marriage, Juliet answers in an innocent unknowing manner,
‘It is an honour that I dream not of.’
Lady Capulet and Lord Capulet believe that Paris is well suited to be her husband, he also has the ‘chinks,’ and comes from a similar background as Juliet. Lady Capulet asks Juliet if she likes him or could like him,
‘What say you? Can you love the gentleman?’
Lady Capulet compares Paris to a book lacking the cover. Lady Capulet says that if Juliet were to wed Paris, the book would be complete as Juliet would be the natural cover. Reading just ‘one chapter’ from the book she would be content with him, but reading the whole book she would be pleased.
‘Read o’er the volume of young Paris’ face
And find delight writ there with beauty’s pen.’
Juliet is obedient to her mothers’ wishes as she says that she will try and love Paris. However, this obedience does not last when she meets Romeo. Lady Capulet does not think that love has anything to do with marriage and that wealth, status and nobility are more important issues.
Lord Capulets’ love for Juliet changes throughout the play. In Act one Juliets’ father shows a more protective love for his daughter. Capulet shows that he cares for his daughters’ feelings when he says to Paris that he will only agree to the marriage if Juliet consents,
‘My will to he consent is but a part;
And she agreed, within her scope of choice
Lies my consent and fair according voice.’
Lord Capulet truly loves Juliet. Juliet is all that Lord Capulet has and that is why she is so precious to him. Lord Capulet nurtures Paris into loving Juliet, he wants Paris to win Juliets’ heart but not by complete force.
‘But woo her gentle Paris, get her heart.’
Later on in the play Lord Capulet becomes angry with Juliet for not accepting the marriage proposal from Paris, he bullies and threatens his daughter. He is impatient with Juliets’ tears. Lord Capulet is a temperamental figure and is undoubtedly the figurehead of the household. Capulet shows his vast superiority over Juliet.
‘Hang thee, young baggage! Disobedient wretch!
At the party Juliet hardly notices Paris although he is clearly besotted with her and is planning to ‘woo’ her. Paris is like the son that Lord Capulet never had.
Lady Capulets’ love for Juliet is less obvious. The nurse has a closer relationship with Juliet than her own mother.
The nurses own daughter ‘Susan’ had died and therefore the nurse treats Juliet as her own. Even though the nurse mourns the loss of her daughter and husband, the nurse makes hard situations less difficult by being talkative and making sexual jokes and references, relieving the clear tension between the characters.
“And yet, I warrant it, it had upon it brow
A bump as big as a young cockerel’s stone,
A perilous knock; and it cried bitterly.
‘yea’ quoth my husband, ‘fall’st upon thy face?
Thou wilt fall backward when thou com’st to age;
Wilt thou not, Jule? It stinted and said ‘Ay’.”
Juliet falls instantly in love with Romeo in a romantic, charming, love scene. Their love for each other is so strong that their family divide, which threatens their lives, is ignored by the ill-fated couple and the destiny described in the Prologue comes into ‘play.’
Romeos’ character was based on the stereotypical sighing lover, pining away for the scornful girl, who is unobtainable. Romeo illustrates what was expected of a courtly lover. Romeo was previously ‘lovesick’ for Rosaline although Rosaline did not return Romeos’ love. Romeo uses the language that he expects courtly lovers to use too much when expressing his feelings for Rosaline that it seems unnatural and forced,
‘Being purg’d, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes;
Being vex’d, a sea nourish’d with loving tears.’
Romeo stays in sycamore groves ‘Where underneath the grove of sycamore.’
He shuts himself away preferring night to day,
‘Shuts up windows, locks fair daylight out,
And makes himself an artificial night.’
Romeo is very melodramatic and sums up the whole play in one line, ‘Here’s much to do with hate, but more with love.’
Romeo continues to protest that his love for Rosaline would never change and he even says that if he did see someone more beautiful then his eyes would burn out because they were liars. Romeos’ extreme language is very dramatic and unrealistic.
In contrast Shakespeare makes Romeos’ love for Juliet unconditional and cherished.
Its is love at first sight, Romeo immediately forgets Rosaline and becomes love-struck with Juliet. When he first speaks of his love for Juliet he uses similar language to how he described his love for Rosaline earlier. Romeo uses images to make Juliets’ beauty more real, ‘O,she doth teach the torches to burn bright!’
Romeos’ love for Juliet is superficial to start with and only skin deep, they have fallen in love with each other’s looks. The chorus also mentions this, ‘Alike bewitched by the charm of looks.’
‘For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night’, ‘Did my heart love till now?’
Quickly Romeos’ language changes and his speech becomes simpler and the lines become shorter as he is learning to speak of his true feelings for her, ‘It is my lady. O, it is my love.’
Romeo and Juliet are not too young to fall in love. Romeo expresses his love for Juliet deeply and sincerely. His language has emotion and feeling, he uses religious and holy words expressed in a sonnet, Juliets’ speech is entwined with Romeos’ so that they are in ‘tune’ with each other.
Juliet : ‘Then have my lips the sin that they have took.’
Romeo: ‘Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urg’d! Give me my sin again.’
‘To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss’, ‘holy palmers kiss’, ‘Thus from my lips by thine, my sin is purg’d’, ‘You kiss by the book.’
Although we are heavily involved in the love story we are constantly reminded of the danger and hatred between the rival families.
At the party Tybalt is aggressive. Tybalt represents the worst of the feuding factions. He is irrational, bitter, violent, sensitive and quick to take offence.’
‘Tis he, that villain Romeo’, ‘To strike dead I hold it not a sin.’
Hate is the backdrop for the whole play. In all the love scenes interruptions are made with hate. The lovers’ situation is fraught with danger. This is illustrated in the ‘Balcony Scene’, During the scene there is the constant fear that Romeo may be caught by one of the Capulets’ guards and could be killed.
‘The orchard walls are high and hard to climb,
And the place death considering whether thou art,
If any kinsmen find thee here.’
Juliet is not allowed to talk to a stranger for long, as the anxiously hovering nurse sends Juliet to talk to her mother, whilst letting Romeo know how wealthy Juliet will be and that her future husband ‘shall have the chinks.’
Romeo and Juliet discover the others identity and that they have fallen in love with their enemy.
Romeo is shocked, ‘Is she a Capulet? O dear account! My life is my foes debt.’
Juliets’ words are perhaps the strongest, ‘ My only love, sprung from my only hate!’
Capulet tries to brighten up Juliet as she has been grieving about Romeo slaying Tybalt. Juliets’ parents think that she only crying for Tybalt, she has to lie and agree with her mother that she wants Romeo dead. When Juliets’ father tells her about her marriage to Paris, she is desperate for a delay,
‘Delay this marriage for a month, a week;
Or if you do not, make the bridal bed
In that dim monument where Tybalt lies.’
She threatens that she would rather be dead than marry Paris and she says that Friar Lawrence should be making the bridal bed in the family vault. This shows Juliets’ devotion to Romeo, though to her parents this would look like she was being deliberately stubborn in not marrying Paris.
At the end of the play Shakespeare took a more gentle approach and was sympathetic to the lovers plight. We feel sorry for the lovers whom had to battle against their obstructive families to be together. Even though Romeos’ death was ‘accidental’ Juliet could not bear the thought of not being together with Romeo that she too took her own life. Her only escape to be with Romeo eternally was death and because their love was so unique and exquisite Juliets’ only option was to kill herself. Juliet would rather be dead than live a life without Romeo.
The play is motivated by using love to conquer hate. Love will always win. Shakespeare successfully interprets this theme into the play ‘Romeo and Juliet.’
