Of a despised life closed in my breast,
By some vile forfeit of untimely death.
Direct my sail! On, lusty gentlemen.’
This quotation means that relying on fate, what happens tonight will precipitate to Romeo’s untimely death. The quotation tells me that Romeo is nervous about the evening, as he is likely to see Rosaline. Mercutio’s talk with him about dreams may have made him suspicious and apprehensive about the party and what fate might lead to. This premonition encourages us as a modern audience to consider what might happen to Romeo as a consequence. A Shakespearean audience however, may take the premonition more seriously as in the Elizabethan era people tended to believe the stars influenced their destiny. Therefore this premonition may make them think immediately something tragic is going to happen, whereas a modern day audience may not take as much notice of this premonition. If however Romeo had not gone to the party, taking notice of his premonition he would have never met Juliet, fallen in love and resorted to suicide. This is the most significant premonition in the play as the entire outcome of the play may have been changed.
I would present this premonition on stage using Romeo’s body language and facial expression as the key to what has been said. I would seat Romeo opposite Mercutio, he would look very confused and may be perspiring as a sign of his worries and apprehensive state. As he talks he may say it quickly and shakily as a sigh of his nervous state.
The second premonition occurs in Act 2 – scene 2. Romeo leaves his friends after Capulet’s party to go back and find Juliet. Juliet on her balcony talks about how she loves Romeo, not realising he is listening. Romeo and Juliet then talk of marriage, Juliet is worried by this but agrees to marry him in the morning. This is shown by the following quotation.
‘ I have no joy of this contract tonight,
It is too rash, too sudden, too unadvised.
Too like the lightening, which doth cease to be
Ere. One can say it lightens.’
Juliet is saying that their relationship is going too fast and she thinks it will be gone like lightening , reflecting how their love only lasted a few days before it was gone, they were both dead. This premonition shows me that Juliet has thought about their situation more than Romeo, she is more apprehenscious and probably more scared whereas Romeo seems to know what he wants despite the consequences.
However this premonition if fairly un-direct and may be left unnoticed by a modern day audience and put down to common sense from Juliet. But a Shakespearean audience may take it more seriously and think about it being described as ‘ too like the lightening.’ Leaving the audience to think of what could go wrong and what might happen within the two households.
If Juliet had taken things slower the outcome of the play might not have necessarily changed, as their love would have still been as strong and would have ended tragically if Juliet was forced to marry Paris and her parents found out about her secret love for Romeo. I would present this premonition on stage with Juliet at her balcony leaning over as she talks 2 Romeo who is reaching up to her, they may hold hands over the balcony. Juliet would have an excited but nerved expression on her face and I think Romeo would have a happy expression on his face, but a sense of feeling incomplete as he knows what he wants but Juliet is still unsure, although she does agree toward the end of their conversation.
The third premonition takes place in Act 2 – scene 6. Friar Lawrence is talking to Romeo before he marries him to Juliet.
‘ These violent delights have violent ends,
And in their triumph die like fire and powder,
Which as they kiss consume. The sweetest honey
Is loathsome in his own deliciousness.
And in taste confounds the appetite.
Therefore love moderately, long love doth so;
Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.’
In this quotation Friar Lawrence explains to Romeo that the delight of their love could end unpleasantly. He talks of how honey is nice but if you eat too much of it, you have no remaining appetite for it. He uses this as a metaphor meaning the couple should moderate their love, so it will last longer and is more special. This quotation tells me Friar Lawrence is in two minds about marrying the couple as he is advising Romeo to wait and take things slower, but he then marries them soon after. Again this prediction may not be taken so seriously, just as normal advice. But the fact that they are getting married so quickly and that three predictions have portrayed something bad happening may give a modern day audience cause to think something tragic may happen. A Shakespearean audience may recognise another prediction of their relationship ending badly as a real sign, something terrible will happen. I would present this prediction with friar Lawrence standing and almost pacing the room as he speaks to a seated Romeo. He looks worried and caught up in his own thoughts, but is trying to make a clear point by talking clearly and strongly although we as an audience would be able to tell he is slightly worried about the situation.
The fourth premonition takes place in Act 3 – scene 5. Romeo has spent the night with Juliet and as the nurse arrives in the morning they have to say good bye as Romeo has been banished to Mantua for killing Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt. As Romeo leaves Juliet says to him –
‘ O God, I have ill-divining soul!
Methinks I see thee now, thou art so low,
As one dead in a bottom of a tomb,
Either my eyesight fails, or thou look’st pale.’
In this quotation Juliet is simply saying that as he leaves her balcony, at the point at which he stands he looks as if he is dead in a tomb and this upsets her. This quotation tells me Juliet is worried about her relationship with Romeo and it is upsetting her that he has to leave as she is looking at him differently. I think a Shakespearean audience will again take this quotation quite seriously as it is very emotive, describing someone to look as if they are dead in a tomb will be effective and will make any audience (whether it be present day or Shakespearean) think about what she is saying and what relation it may have with Romeo being Banished from Verona.
I would present this premonition similar to the way I did in the second premonition, with Romeo standing beneath Juliet, as she is on her balcony, although this time he may be kneeling or crouching down to ensure he isn’t seen. Juliet’s expression would be pained and deeply upset, as would Romeo’s. I would stage this premonition similarly to the second to show a contrast between the day they first met, and talked of marriage and the day Romeo had to leave her, being banished for killing her cousin.
The fifth and final premonition occurs in Act 5 – scene 1. Juliet has taken the poison that makes her appear dead and has been found dead and put in Capulet’s vault. Romeo talks to his servant Balthasar about a dream he had the night before. After this Balthasar tells Romeo of Juliet’s death.
‘ If I may thrust the flattering truth of sleep
My dreams presage some joyful news at hand
My bosoms lord sits lightly on his throne
And all this day an unaccustomed spint
Lifts me above the ground with cheerful thoughts,
I dreamt my lady came and found me dead.
(strange dream that gives a dead man leave to think)
And I breathed such life with kisses in my lips,
That I revived and was an emperor.
Ah me, how sweet is love it self possessed
When but loves shadows are so rich in joy! ‘
In this quotation Romeo is talking of a dream, in his dream Juliet comes and finds him dead and then she kisses him and brings him back to life, he revives as an emperor. This prediction is quite accurate but is reversed later in the play, Romeo finds Juliet dead, kisses her and then kills himself and then she awakens. It is in the right context just slightly different to the true story. Although this premonition uses tragedy I don’t necessarily think it will add to the audience’s expectations as they know that Juliet is not dead and will possibly expect a happy ending. A Shakespearean audience however mat take this prediction as an accurate sign but as Romeos does awaken as an emperor they too may expect a happy ending that isn’t as tragic as they may have earlier thought. I would stage this prediction with Romeo simply talking to Balthasar with a happy expression on his face as if he has received good news, but this will not last as he is abruptly informed that Juliet is dead.
I think that these five predictions will not affect a modern day audience as much as it would a Shakespearean audience. As I said before in my introduction fate played an important part of destiny in the Elizabethan era and the five predictions, if noticed would effect a person’s expectations of the play. But to a modern day audience, fate does not effect the majority of us in our lives and what is perceived as predictions may just be put down to common sense and reasoning within the characters. I conclude these predictions to be effective in the Era it was written but less effective now. I have read and seen the play performed and hadn’t noticed the predictions to play any important role on my perception of the play.
In my opinion I think this is a good play, which is written effectively to provoke an audience’s thoughts and expectations. The expectation of tragedy is inevitable from the speech made at the beginning of the play by the chorus and our expectation of tragedy through the predictions just makes the inevitability of the play ending tragically stronger.