Even before the conversation between Paris and Lord Capulet, Juliet is mentioned. This happens in the prologue. She is described as one member of the, "Pair of star-crossed lovers". We are told what happens to Juliet even before we get the chance to meet her. This gives us opinions about her personality because we know that she dies. It would give the audience the feeling of sympathy towards her character and we would imagine her to be an innocent girl who has just been in an unfortunate situation. Although this is partly true, it is partially Juliet’s own actions that have caused certain events to occur. This shows that during the play, Juliet has changed considerably in her personality.
The context of the play also helps the audience to understand the reasons why the relationship drastically disintegrates. In Shakespearean times girls like Juliet would not be that close to parents and would have "wet nurses" to cater for their every need. Also little education was ever given to girls; all their purpose was to marry into a good family and continue the family. Juliet's life was so cloistered that she would only be allowed out to church. Therefore Lord Capulet is very radical as he says, "my will to her consent is but a part" – showing that Juliet will have a say in the matter. This would be seen as beyond the norm as most fathers would choose the groom without much input from his daughter. However, Juliet is the Capulet's last child (only daughter?) and technically all hopes rest on her: "she is the hopeful lady of my earth", this shows the respect and the love he has for her.
Lord Capulet is very temperamental and seems to care a vast amount for the welfare of his only daughter. He creates a lot of drama through the play with his strong and dramatic language. His lines were written to show he is an important figurehead and is in control of everything in the house. From the play, he seems to demand attention and respect, even when he’s compassionate and friendly. He seemed to have two extremes of personality depending when he was being questioned or if it was affecting him greatly.
At the end of this scene, both audiences of today and of centuries gone by would share the opinion that Capulet is an affectionate man, for he does not automatically ‘condemn’ Juliet to life with Paris, but suggests that Paris should go to a party that night; to see all of the girls (comparing them to “stars” as if to ‘wean’ him off Juliet). Then, if he still desires Juliet most of all, he should “woo her”, and “get her heart”.
In this part of the play Lord Capulet uses lots of soft imagery to capture the things he feels for Juliet. For example ‘Earth threading stars that makes dark heaven light’. Lord Capulet comes across as the epitome of love and affection. As a parent, he is kind, considerate and proud to be Juliet's father. Also, he seems reluctant to let Juliet go and let her grow up. The differences between fathering then and now are that fathers give their children freer rein and independence as opposed to the controlled and contrived Juliet in those times. He talks about Juliet as the only love of his life and all his hopes and expectations rest on her; this is a lot to ask of a fourteen-year-old girl. That is another difference between the times; for a girl to marry at fourteen in our times is illegal, but in those days fourteen would be seen as quite old: ‘younger than she are happy mothers made’.
The first time we encounter Juliet, she is obedient and willing to do as her parents wished. This would be something that fathers of Shakespeare’s day could relate to, as this would have been what they would expect of their daughters. This is in stark contrast to the parents of today, as they would be used to the ways of a modern teenager.
Her attitude to her parents seems to be respectful. When called she answers, “Madam…what is your will”. Notice that she addresses her mother as “Madam”, rather than ‘mother’ or any other term. This implies that her mother is talking down to her, like she would a servant. This is also implicit when Lady Capulet feels uncomfortable about being alone with Juliet – and so calls the nurse back because she bears stronger relations to the daughter than herself. This portrays how shallow the relationship is – seemingly unorthodox to a modern audience. To a Shakespearean audience, there would be nothing wrong with this situation.
This leads on to the fact that Lady Capulet's relationship at the beginning is quite cold and distant almost as if Juliet is not that important. Then, all the work (cleaning, weaning) would be done by ‘wet nurses’ this was common practice with the aristocrats of the era. As a result Lady Capulet would be quite detached of Juliet. Also as a woman, Lady Capulet would not have much say in things to do with Juliet's welfare.
In this scene, Juliet’s willingness to comply is all too obvious – “I’ll look to it, if looking liking move… gives strength to make it fly”. She demonstrates conformity, though this has yet to change with the introduction of Romeo. At the point in which she gets engaged to Romeo, Juliet makes the conscious decision to discontinue obeying her parents, and that ‘following your heart’ is a far more appealing path to choose.
In Act III Scene iv, we see the effects that the murder of Tybalt has on Capulet. Instead of letting “two summers wither in their pride”, Capulet wants Juliet to marry Paris as soon as possible; “A’ Thursday let it be”. It is possible to assume that Capulet is being irrational, just wanting to take the matter into his own hands. This clearly refutes his behaviour in Act I Scene ii – in which he was almost anxious to keep Juliet’s contentment into consideration. Now her happiness is not at all taken into consideration. His attitude towards Juliet has become far more predominant, even though he is still trying to keep what he thinks are her best interests in mind.
As a character Lady Capulet she is quite ambiguous and quietly blends into the background, with the exception of a couple sharp remarks "Here comes your father, tell him so yourself; and see how he'll take at your hands". She just lets Juliet defend her self even though she is highly vulnerable at the moment. Also another observation of the relationship is that it is very impersonal and instead of addressing Juliet with warmth and love, Lady Capulet says "my daughter Juliet".
The pivotal point of the relationship between Juliet and her parents happens in Act 3 scene 5 after Juliet has married Romeo and Tybalt has been killed in a fit of rage by Romeo. When Juliet hears this she is distraught and confused. This is where the calamity of the situation becomes apparent. Lord Capulet enters and is unhappy to see his daughter and tries consoles her," how now a conduit, girl… What still in tears?"
As Lady Capulet tells Lord Capulet of Juliet's disagreement to the marriage of her and Paris his first reaction is of mild confusion "Is she not proud?" and thinks it is who he has chosen is the problem.
This confusion escalates into anger and he throws all kinds of insults at Juliet. He even goes on to insult the nurse "peace you mumbling fool" and treats her with no respect that she would deserve as his child's sole protector for fourteen years. Examples are "mistress minion", Capulet clearly sees his daughter's love as a sin. "You tallow face!" shows that the value of his only daughter has gone drastically down. Finally, the quote "Green sickness carrion" shows that Capulet is now resorting to bullying tactics. "Wretched pulling fool" is another example of this.
Capulet enters the room saying: 'How how, how how, chopt-logic'. This fundamentally is calling Juliet a 'spoilt brat'. This shows the relationship now between Juliet and her parents as being odious, and hateful. This now goes against his previous views on Juliet. Capulet then goes on to say: 'To go with Paris to Saint Peter's Church or I will drag thee on a hurdle thither.’ A
Capulet is saying either she can go and get married to Paris in 'Saint Peter's Church' or he will drag her there on a device used in Elizabethan times to drag people through the streets and absolutely disgrace them. For Capulet to threaten doing this to his daughter is mean and unsympathetic. This would mean that he is willing to completely shame her in front of everyone. This is an indication of just how angry he is that Juliet has dared to defy him, challenge him, and rebel against him. Lady Capulet hearing this says ' Fie fie, what, are you mad?' Lady Capulet is trying to calm Capulet down, and this shows the side of Lady Capulet that is closer to Juliet which means that she does still care for Juliet and does not want this much shame to come to her. This shows that the relationship between Juliet and her parents is merciful, but yet still slightly outlying.
Capulet then says to Juliet when she is on her knees. 'Hang thee, young baggage, and disobedient wretch! I tell thee what: get thee to a church a’ Thursday or never look me in the face.’ Capulet is refusing to be rebelled against and is telling Juliet to got to the church on Thursday or she will never be able to look him in the face again as he will be too disgraced with her. This is a sturdy threat; showing how angry he actually is that Juliet dared to go against his word. This indicates the relationship between Juliet and her parents as being callous, disrespectful and discourteous. Capulet also says: 'Speak not, reply not, do not answer me!' Capulet now will not let Juliet speak to him, as he is so disgraced with her and her actions. This goes against Capulet's previous views of Juliet being 'the hopeful lady' of his 'earth'. He now despises her enough not to let her speak to him. Another example of this change in the relationship is when Capulet says: 'And you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets, for by my soul I'll ne'er acknowledge thee, nor what is mine shall never do thee good. Trust to't, bethink you, I'll not be forsworn'. Capulet delivers his most powerful speech here. He is showing no remorse, repentance, or mercy in what he is saying. He ‘disowns' her. This is the brink of disgust between Juliet and her father as he would rather she 'Hang, beg, starve, die in the streets' than live in the same household and or be part of his family. This is probably the strongest contrast between the relationships with her parents before she met Romeo, and after she met Romeo. Before she met Romeo Capulet said Juliet was 'the hopeful lady of his earth' and now he wants to disown her and preferred that she 'hang, beg, starve, die in the streets'. This now indicates the relationship between Juliet and her parents as being full of revulsion, disgust, disrespect, and shamefulness.
The last quote "out on her hiding" being the worst as in those days the threat of being thrown out would be the end of the world as you would not have the experience of the independence as opposed to us in this era, we are independent in comparison and can probably survive better under the circumstances. These outbursts from Capulet show how high Capulet’s expectations of Juliet’s obedience have become. Today’s audience would find this a rather extreme expression of opinion outrage, becoming critical of Capulet. An audience of the time would see that this could have been a little too far to take the matter, though would not necessarily be overly critical of his actions.
The most unusual thing in all of this is Capulet’s shock to Juliet's answer. He is astounded at the audacity of his daughter when she refuses him. This is .not an unexpected reaction, despite the fact that wasn't he a man a couple of acts a go saying that Juliet's decision is a major part of the overall choice of suitor? To explain this, we have seen Capulet’s reactions to Tybalt when he tried to disobey Capulet. Now we start to wonder was he at all liberal to start with or was it a ploy to get Juliet to consent and make him look good or was it that he never thought that Juliet would ever refuse. Lady Capulet's reaction to this full-blown family argument is to take the back seat and makes no noticeable attempt to save her daughter and lets Lord Capulet throw all these insults at their only daughter. The only feeble attempt she makes is "you are too hot". Which is Lady Capulet trying to calm Lord Capulet's hot temperament? Lady Capulet even goes on to even disown Juliet "do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee" Which shows Lady Capulet has given in to Capulet and therefore washes her hands of her. Juliet cannot take .this abuse from her mother, and turns to the nurse instead.
Capulet’s attitude towards Juliet now seems to be quite aggressive. He expects Juliet to be submissive to his wishes. Of course his state of mind is fragile. He has only just lost a member of his family, so his actions may be quite different from his intentions. The audience’s sympathy for Capulet starts to decline, as the audience knows that Juliet cannot obey her father.
Juliet’s attitude towards her parents changes at this point from Act I, scene iii. Now we see her in a new light. She has long passages of speech which could mean that she is frantic with grief; she may also be trying to take control of her own life. She is scared and afraid of losing Romeo, so much so, that she said “I long to die”. She is adamant that she will not marry Paris; “…bid me leap, rather than marry Paris,/From off the battlements of any tower”. Juliet is forced into an impossible situation. She has been asked to marry Paris, when her heart lies for Romeo. She is scared to deny Paris, in case she enrages her father further. Conversely, if she marries Paris, it will be a sin against God. As shown in the text, we see that Juliet is highly religious, as would an audience of Shakespeare’s day. She would know the consequences of her doing this. We feel sorry for her, as we see her in such an awkward position.
She starts to speak confidently with her mother, a change to her formal speech as touched upon earlier. However, when Capulet enters, now aggressive and authoritive, she is reduced to pleading humbly, whilst kneeling before her father. Despite this, we see Juliet pleading for what she believes in (true love and so on), not what her parents wish. This step towards liberty is hazardous and has profound repercussions. The only way to escape the future laid before her by her parents was to agree to Friar Lawrence’s plan, as it was the only way to obtain her goal. Ultimately, we know what a terrible (yet ironic) result this arises to.
Here, a Shakespearean audience may have had more sympathy for Capulet than a modern audience, but they would still understand why Juliet acts the way she does.
The relationship between Juliet and her parents stayed formal and distant. The relationship was respectful, reverential, courteous, dutiful, acquiescent, subservient, submissive and compliant. It was an isolated outlying bond that she had with her parents, however, this relationship changed subsequent to meeting Romeo. It started to gradually become less reverential. Juliet started to gradually defy, rebel and flout her parents. This became stronger, until the relationship broke down to antagonism, anger, aversion, disgust, and callousness and was compassionless. This is due to the depth of the love that Juliet had with Romeo. Once Juliet had been believed to die, the relationship started to slide to being compassionated, affectionate, and cherished.
This behaviour became more evident as the play advanced. As situations arose, Juliet had to use new techniques to deal with them. In some cases, these techniques were ones that she already possessed but needed strength added to them.
There is a very dramatic change in Lord Capulet's personality. He goes from a loving father to a fuming hothead, all this from a refusal. In his time this would not be uncommon. Some might even say it is what Juliet deserved, but in our time this is seen as brutal, and inconsiderate. All in all the relationship between Juliet and her parents completely disintegrates as a consequence of Juliet's forbidden love. In those days her parents' reaction would not be uncommon and would be quite expected. The language used to convey this is a mixture of expression and cleverly chosen imagery.
In Act 4 Scene 5 the Nurse, Lady Capulet, and Capulet have discovered Juliet in her bedroom and believe her to be dead. Capulet says “Death lies upon her life an untimely frost, upon the sweetest flower of all the field.” This shows that he thought she was a beautiful girl, and better looking than all the others. This shows his compassion and loving care for Juliet and how highly he thought of her. He then goes on to say: “Death hath tane her hence to make me wail.” We can tell from this that he will grieve, and mourn over Juliet as he thinks fate has done this to him to make him 'wail'. This shows he had affection for Juliet, he cared for her and devoted love to her. This shows the relationship between Juliet and her parents as being loving, caring, affectionate, and cherished.
In the play, Shakespeare tries to put forward the image that feuds within the family must not be allowed to grow momentum under any circumstance. In this case, we see that eventually, these arguments act as a catalyst working against us. In the play, two tragic deaths occur; in modern times though, divorce is the main contribution to the break up of families.
A modern day audience’s view will differ from the view of an audience from Shakespeare’s time. Today, we empathise with Juliet because of the perceived lack of freedom she endured – in comparison to that of today’s standards. Since Shakespearean times, society has changed significantly. The audience of then would have thought that Juliet had a defiant streak, and would have sympathised with Capulet for having such a disobedient daughter, whose actions eventually lead to the destruction of her, her lover and her family. Capulet’s actions would have then been a far more common practice, and so a refusal of his hard work would create as much sympathy for him as for Juliet’s misfortunes. The one good thing that comes out of the tragedy of the suicides of Romeo & Juliet is that the misfortune succeeds in bringing together the Montague and Capulet families, ensuring that another tragedy would not happen again.
