Tybalt plays an essential part in introducing some of the key characters, such as Prince Escales, the ‘peace keeper’. Without the fight that Tybalt started in the streets in the first scene, there would be no need for a character of authority in the play. In Act 1, Scene 3 while looking to fight Romeo, Tybalt kills Mercutio, leading to his own death by Romeos hand. This also in turn causes Romeo to be banished by Prince Escales, and therefore a character of authority is required again and supplied thanks to the acts of Tybalt. This banishment leads to the tragedy at the end of the play.
If Tybalt had not died, however, and only Mercutio had been slain, then perhaps Romeo would not have been banished, and some form of punishment would be exacted on the Capulets, as the death toll for each family would have been unequal.
Honour plays a large part in the play as one of the ideals that governs the actions of the characters. This is also a large part of Tybalt’s attitude towards others. At the party, which Capulet holds, (Act 1, Scene 5) Tybalt wants to attack Romeo for entering the party uninvited, but Capulet restrains him, “Here in my house do him disparagement; therefore be patient, take no note of him.” Although Capulet is seen to be restraining Tybalt, the words he uses suggest he is telling him to attack Romeo at another time, showing he has a high value of honour too, but the fact that he does not let Tybalt challenge Romeo outright questions his opinion of the importance of the feud.
Honour also leads to the death of Tybalt. When Tybalt is challenged to duel with Mercutio (Act 3, Scene 1) he kills him. Romeo then honours the death of Mercutio and takes revenge on his death by killing Tybalt. This is unusual for Romeo, as before he was trying not to fight Tybalt, but wanted to make peace with him because he is Juliet’s cousin.
Tybalt’s language is also some of the most colourful in the play. His use of the word hate (Act 1, Scene 1) occurs a number of times, and he lives up to his description as “fiery Tybalt”. He also seems to use inferior terms for others a lot in the play, such as, “boy,” and, “my man”, meaning servant. Tybalt also has one of the smallest tallies of utterances during the play, which is surprising as he plays such a key role in the plot. This means that all of his utterances have to count and therefore are usually more potent than others in the play.
The others characters views of Tybalt are mixed. Characters such as Mercutio, and Romeo (after Mercutio’s death) see Tybalt as an enemy, and attempt to treat him with the same contempt that he uses with them, “Good King of Cats, nothing but one of your nine lives”. At first this seems Mercutio is complimenting Tybalt, but in the second half of the line he cleverly turns it into an insult.
Other characters, like Benvolio and the servants, see Tybalt as a powerful, dangerous and frightening enemy, and Benvolio always attempts to diffuse fight situations rather than fight, “I do but keep the peace. Put up thy sword…”
However, Tybalt can also be polite. We see this when he is talking to his uncle, Lord Capulet. After Lord Capulet has told Tybalt he cannot fight Romeo at the party, the reader expects Tybalt’s anger to show through again, but his utterances become shorter and shorter during the speech between him and his uncle, and instead of being violent, says “Why, uncle, ‘tis a shame”. This shows that his uncle commands the conversation, and therefore has some control over the otherwise “fiery Tybalt”.
On the large scale of the play, the role of Tybalt is a major part. It was his fault that Romeo was banished and therefore the facilitator of the tragedy. On the other hand, even if Tybalt had not killed Mercutio and Romeo had not been banished by the Prince, Romeo would still face the problem of Lord and Lady Capulet wanting Juliet to marry Paris. Therefore the Friars plan may still of been required, and the tragedy could have taken place without the role of Tybalt being needed.
But as I have stated, the role of Tybalt is key. If the role of Tybalt had not occurred in the play, then the feud could have been ended long ago, instead of him keeping the hostilities going between the houses.
Tybalt plays a deciding role in Romeo and Juliet, and without him; the plot could not be as diverse and interesting as it is. The story of Romeo and Juliet is completed by the actions of Tybalt, and the colourful and rich language he uses which differs greatly from others in the play.
