In act 1 scene 5 we see a dramatic change in Juliet. From a dutiful, obedient girl she turns into a woman who feels emotions independently from her parents. In this scene it is the first time that Romeo meets Juliet he starts to compare her beauty to a bright torch ‘O she teach the torches to burn bright’. He then goes onto say ‘she hangs upon the cheek of night as a rich jewel in an ethiop’s ear’ here Romeo is saying if she was to be compared with something in the world it would be something rare because beauty is rare. He then says something-ironic ‘Beauty to rich for use, for earth to dear’ here he is saying that Juliet is above the mortal world like an angle. The words ‘for earth to dear’ are ironic as he is saying she is too beautiful to be on earth and she should be somewhere else. He then goes onto to say ‘snow dove trooping with crows’ a snow dove is sent from heaven and this is reinforcing ‘for earth to dear’. The word ‘crows’ is used to describe the other women there. This can mean that Juliet represents peace but brings hatred.
The theme of hatred is also introduced in this scene as Tybalt sees Romeo at the ball. He starts to say ‘antic face’ which means that his mask looks abnormal. He then goes onto say ‘To fleer and scorn at our solemnity’ here Tybalt thinks that Romeo has come to make fun of the ball. He then quotes ‘By the stock and honour of my king to strike him dead I hold it not a sin’ here he is saying it doesn’t seem wrong to kill him because of the ancient grudge. Tybalts language towards Romeo is insulting this is because he hates Romeo and wants to kill him however later on in the play Tybalt dies and this has a major effect on Juliet.
Capulet then come along and it is ironic what he is saying, ‘Be patient take no note of him’ Capulet is saying to Tybalt be patient and don’t take any notice of Romeo. He starts to complement Romeo ‘Partly gentlemen well governed and dignified young man.’ ‘Verona brags of him talks about him’ Capulet is being calm, controlled, measured and rational however in Act 3 scene 5 Capulet is the antithesis he is uncontrolled, violent, unrational and angry.
When Romeo meets Juliet’s for the first time his intentions are to kiss her he’s acting as if he’s a pilgrim on a religious journey and Juliet is the Saint who can cleanse him. Here again there is a dramatic change in Juliet she start flirting with Romeo in line 96 she says ‘for saints have hands… palmers kiss’ here she is saying the don’t need to be kissed. Romeo replies by saying haven’t saint got lips, Juliet then goes onto say her lips are used for prayer. Romeo then kisses Juliet, he’s been purged of his sin. Here is where the change happens because Juliet wants to kiss him back she is now more independent she’s transformed. After Juliet kisses Romeo she finds out that he is Montagues son she then says ‘my life is my foes debt’ which means her life is at the mercy of her enemies. The next quote ‘My grave is like to be my wedding –bed’ here she is saying her wedding bed turns into her grave. This is dramatic irony as it happens. She then goes onto say ‘My only love sprung from my only hate’ and ‘too early seen unknown and known too late’ here she is saying she saw him but didn’t know who he was and now it’s too late because she’s in love with him.
Act 2 scene 1 is the balcony scene here we see Romeo using hyperbolic flattery to transcend their love it’s propelled to a spiritual level and uses symbolic religious imagery. He quotes ‘Bright angle’, ‘winged messenger of heaven’, ‘glorious to this night’ the night fall, dusk of sunset are the friends of Romeo and Juliet because their love is secret hidden. Because of nightfall Juliet can start to express the way she feels about Romeo who affects the way she is growing. Juliet then quotes ‘deny thy father, and reuse thy name…. And I’ll no longer be a Capulet’ this is a sign of a fracture as Juliet is torn between her lover and family. She then goes onto say ‘tis but thy name that is my enemy’ she is philosophical she is thinking about the significance of Romeos name. She is also showing great sign of maturity and exploring the nature of identity. She is now starting to break out as a women. Juliet then makes an analogy with Romeo and the rose just because Romeo is called Romeo it doesn’t make him different. She then quotes ‘what’s Montague? It is nor hand nor foot nor arm nor face, nor any other part belonging to a man’ this shows Juliets emerging sexuality which shows that she is growing even more. She then makes an initiative ‘my ears have not yet drunk a hundred word’ she is saying if Romeo was a drink she still needs to drink more. Then in line 94 she quotes ‘if thou dost love, pronounce it faithfully, her Juliet initiates love urging Romeo to get married committed, this is a really important change in Juliet as she is becoming independent without her parents. Juliet then says ‘O swear not by the moon th’ inconstant moon that monthly changes in her circled ord.’ Juliet is upset because Romeo has sworn by the moon that he loves her but she says the moon is not always there it changes shape. Juliet then quotes ‘god of my idolatry’ this is important because she is saying her world pivots around Romeo where as before it used to pivot around her parents and what they told her to do. She then quotes ‘it is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden’ she is showing signs of maturity and is being reflective. She then says ‘too like the lightning’ here she is saying love is too quick. Romeo them starts to talk about marriage and Juliet says ‘I gave thee mine before thou didst request it and yet I would it were to given again ‘ she then says ’my bounty is as boundless as the sea my love as deep’. Juliet provokes and suggests that if their love is honourable then she’ll send someone to him that can tell him, this is just like tragic irony as she follows him to death.
Act 3 scene 1 is an important scene as here every think goes wrong. Benvolio , Mercutio, Romeos best friend, and Tybalt are arguing. Benvolio is the peacemaker Mercutio the aggressor and Tybalt provoke the fight. Romeo then enters and quotes ‘Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee doth much excuse the appertaining rage to such greeting……. Therefor farewell, I see thou knowest me not. Here Romeo is being the peacemaker as he can’t fight Tybalt because he is Juliets cousin and he has married her. Tybalt then challenges Romeo by saying ‘that thou hast done me, therefore turn and draw’. Mercutio then challenges Tybalt saying ‘Tybalt, you rat-catcher, will you walk? Romeo then trys to stop a fight and says ‘Gentlemen, for shame, forbear this outrage…. Hold Tybalt good Mercutio. Mercutio then gets stabbed and is dying he says to Romeo ‘A plague on both your houses’ this is important because Romeo and then Juliet die. Romeo then quotes ‘this day’s back fate on moe days doth depend’. Romeo then runs after Tybalt and kills him he then says ‘O I am fortune’s fool!’ he has realised what he has done is wrong and that he has made a mistake.
Juliet then finds out what has happened a says ‘My dearest cousin, and my dearer lord?’ we know from this quote that she care about Tybalt but Romeo is more important. Juliet experiences divided loyalty. It is a fracture between her and her family. There is a lot of appearance verses reality. Juliet outward is a daughter in reality she is a wife. Outward she is loyal to father and his wishes reality there is divided loyalty she is more loyal to her husband she also seem to be grieving the loss of Tybalt but she is grieving the loss of Romeo. Romeo outwardly appears to be a son but in reality he is a husband, to Juliet he is romantic, charming and loving in reality he is a killer.
Shakespeare uses oxymoron’s to represent Juliets sense of bewilderment and confusion. Again in reality verses appearance. Romeo appears to be a flower where in reality he is a serpent. He appears to live in a fair cane when in reality he is crude. He appears to be beautiful but he is a tyrant. Appears to be a dove feathered in reality he is a raven. And lastly he appears to be a saint but is dammed evil. He nurse says that Romeo is a shame Juliets response is to defend her husband ‘blistered be thy tongue for such a wish’, ‘he was not born to shame.’ The actions sit unnaturally on the consciene of Romeo. It shouldn’t be there he is a kind person. The is shocked to see Juliet defending her husband she quotes ‘will you speak well of him that killed your cousin’ Juliet replies by saying ‘shall I speak ill of him that is my husband.’ Juliet is being rational and loyal. She then says ‘when I thy three hours wife have mangled it’ here she is saying she has only been married three hours and has already speaking ill of Romeo by using oxymoron’s. She then says ‘that villain cousin would have killed my husband’ here she is calling Tybalt a villain and thinking saying she could have been crying because Romeo was dead. She then says ‘Back foolish tears back to your native spring’ here again she is saying she shouldn’t bee crying because she is not a widow. There is a shift in her attitude she quotes ‘And Tybalt’s dead, that would have slain my husband all this comfort wherefore weep I then’. She then says ‘some word there was, worse that Tybalts death’ the word is banished because Romeo has been banished this word is worse than death.
Act 3 scene 4 is an important scene as this time is it Capulet who is rushing the marriage. He quotes ‘of my child’s love I think she will be ruled, in all respects by me; nay more, I doubt it not’ Capulet refers to Juliet as ‘her’ and as a child he thinks he has control over her. So we know that in her parents eye she hasn’t grown up yet. He also refers to his wife in third person.
In Act 3 scene 5 the fact that night that night time is Romeo and Juliets friend is re-enforced as they meet again. Juliet tries to re create night as their love can only exist at night time and this forces their love to be concealed hidden and secretive. Romeo quotes ‘I must be gone and live, or stay and die’ this is ironic because this happens but he thins he’ll live if he’s gone. He then says ‘more light and light, more dark and dark our woes’ paradoxically light is their enemy and darkness their friend. Juliet then says ‘then window let day in and let life out’ this is ironic because a few hours later they die this is also tragic irony. She then says ‘O think’st thou we shall ever meet again?’ this is ironic because the only time their together is in spiritual unity. In line 54-57 Juliet says she sees him dead. Here she experiences prophecy she has a vision. The quote is ‘Me think I see thee now thou art so low, as dead in the bottom of a tomb. She also says ‘ill diving soul’ this is foreboding something bad will happen. Juliet also personifies fate she talks to it like it is a person and she want it to be fickle or indecisive she wants Romeo back but Romeos behaviour is determined by fate in the prologue. In this scene there again is a lot of appearance verses reality for Juliet. She says to her mother, Lady Capulet, ‘Madam I am not well’ here she appears to be grieving the death of Tybalt whereas she is grieving the banishment of Romeo. She then goes onto say ‘Yet let me weep for such a feeling loss’ here it looks like she want to cry for Tybalt but in reality she wants to cry for Romeo. Juliet then quotes ‘O how my heart abhors to hear him named’ it seems like she can’t stand to hear Romeos name whereas she can’t stand it because he’s banished. Lady Capulet then says to Juliet is she still crying for the loss of Tybalt, the word loss is ironic because Lady Capulet means for Tybalt and Juliet thinks of Romeo. In line 94 Juliet says ‘With Romeo, till I behold him-dead-‘ the first part she is saying she want to hold him but she says the word dead to satisfy her mum. The word joyful is used to tell Juliet about their wishes for her to marry Paris but the word joyful is ironic because it is not joyful for Juliet it becomes tragic irony because they die later on. Juliet challenges her parents she refutes their proposal for early marriage and uses the word joyful to do this. Capulet then enters but doesn’t know Juliet doesn’t want to marry Paris. He uses extended metaphor to describe Juliets loss of Tybalt he compares her body to a small boat the wind her sighs the rain and sea her tears the fountain is her weeping the sunrise is birth and the sunset is death some of these are natural imagery. Lady Capulet then tell Capulet that Juliet has not excepted the proposal of marriage Lady Capulet then says ‘I would the fool were married to her grave’ this is ironic as it does happen. Here is where the split happens and Juliet is moving away from the adult world. In this scene we also see a shift in the tone and style of language. Capulets talks poetic then he starts to talk in third person this is symbolic of this dislocation relationship. Capulet then turn extremely angry and aggressive towards Juliet and Lady Capulet who he hits. Juliet says to her mother ‘Or if you do not, make the bridal bed in that dim monument where Tybalt lies’ this is ironic because it happens. Lady Capulet replies to Juliet by saying ‘Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee’ this is very important as Lady Capulet is saying do what you want I don’t care Juliet has now lost both of her parents. She then turns to the nurse for help and advice but the nurse tell her to marry Paris. The nurse says ‘your first is dead’ this is ironic as it happens. Juliet has now been totally split from the adult world she has no adult to turn to for help. She starts being phycastic saying to the nurse ‘Well thou hast comforted me marvellous much. Juliet then says ‘O mast wicked fiend’ she now sees the nurse as a wicked woman there is a dramatic change in their relationship. Juliet then says ‘thou and my bosom henceforth shall be twain’ here she is saying the relationship between her and the nurse is broken.
Throughout Romeo and Juliet we see a dramatic change is Juliets behaviour and the way she is. At first she is the obedient daughter of Capulet and Lady Capulet she listens to what they say and does what she is told. She then turns in to an independent and mature woman who thinks for herself and does what she wants to do, this is because she finds Romeo and falls in love. She also turns into the wife of Romeo and then experiences divided loyalty between her parents and husband but is mature and rational about this and supports her husband.