How central is Mercutio to the reader's enjoyment of Romeo and Juliet?

Romeo and Juliet

How central is Mercutio to the reader’s enjoyment of Romeo and Juliet?

Romeo and Juliet is a tragic tale of a pair of doomed lovers who come from opposing families. Due to the ongoing feud between their kin, they are forced to marry in secret and from here; one of the most memorable love of stories of all time unfolds. Its timeless story has sprung numerous interpretations, both in the theatre and on the silver screen. However, of all films and plays that have been made, Baz Luhrman’s version is by far the best. He has modernised Shakespeare’s masterpiece to suit the modern audience, and where as in many film versions the true essence of the story is lost, Luhrman manages to keep Romeo and Juliet every bit as enchanting as it was when Shakespeare first put pen to paper.

When reading the script of Romeo and Juliet, there is much to enjoy, the epic tale of love, the beautiful language and the riveting action scenes. In the film, some of the language is lost, but, in its place comes some very impressive gun fights and many comical appearances, seeing Mercutio in drag being something that many viewers remember after having watched the film, and with good reason, it is a genuinely funny moment. Though some of the artistic language is lost during the translation to film, the theme of romance remains constant throughout. If one was to analyse both the play and the film thoroughly they would almost certainly make a note of the fact that one character is essential to developing all themes, whether they be common between the play and the film or unique to each presentation. That character is Mercutio.

When Mercutio first enters the play he is with the Montagues when they are about enter the Capulet’s party, he has an instant impact on Romeo by attempting cheer him up by helping him forget about Rosaline. Mercutio’s personality also becomes evident in his first scene in the play. Firstly, it is clear that Mercutio is hostile towards love. When Romeo refuses to dance, Mercutio makes fun of him, telling him to, “borrow cupid’s wings”. Romeo dismisses this remark and says that love is, “too rough”, and that it “pricks like thorn”. Mercutio replies by saying, “if love be rough with you be rough with love”. This is a very strange comment to associate with something as tender as love and shows that Mercutio has some negative feelings towards love, though what they are and what the cause is, we will never know. This theme of hatred of love is apparent throughout Mercutio’s time in the play.

Shakespeare also makes use of iambic pentameter to show the deep friendship between Mercutio and Romeo. This is done by making them finish each others Iambic Pentameter. For instance, on line 50-51, Romeo’s speech has six beats and Mercutio ends it with four beats.

Finally, Shakespeare shows off Mercutio’s intelligence in the form of the Queen Mab speech. There are currently no records of a fictional dream fairy called Queen Mab and so we can assume that it is a figment of Mercutio’s imagination. His superbly detailed description is amazing considering the speed at which he has comes up with it. He generally uses stylish language with metaphors playing a large part in his description of Queen Mab. “She is the fairies midwife”. This once again shows Mercutio's intelligence. When presented on stage during the fifteenth to sixteenth century this sort of intelligent language would have a strong appeal to the upper classes. This is not the only time that Mercutio makes use of his language to showcase his intelligence. In Shakespearean times, using foreign language is a great sign of intelligence and Mercutio does this by using French words such as, “Bonjour”. Mercutio also shows his love of being the centre of attention. In the text, this is mainly shown by giving Mercutio most of the speech whenever is in a scene. For instance in Act 1 Scene 4 he takes up more than a page with his Queen Mab Speech alone.

This is a preview of the whole essay

However, when presenting this same scene, Baz Luhrman decides to use Mercutio’s appearance and actions to show what his language does in the text. The first thing that strikes the viewer about Mercutio is that he is black. This may seem obvious but traditionally, black people do not appear in any of Shakespeare’s plays. This was mainly the case during the fifteenth to sixteenth century, however, even in modern times a black person starring in a interpretation of Shakespeare’s plays is highly uncommon. This makes Mercutio the centre of attention from the instant that he is introduced and so it has a similar effect to that of his domination of text. Another striking feature of Mercutio’s presentation is that he is in drag. This is a very bold and uncommon way to introduce a character and once again links in with Mercutio’s love of being the centre of attention. Unfortunately, the wonderful Queen Mab speech somewhat loses its power and appeal in the transition to the silver screen. Where as the text puts the speech down to Mercutio’s strange but intelligent humour, the film shows it to be a result of drugs. I believe that this is a false interpretation, but, it does contribute heavily to another part of Mercutio’s personality. His ability to lighten the mood and be funny. His speech makes everyone around him, including Romeo, laugh and relax and this is very important to the viewers enjoyment of the film. Upon entering the party, Mercutio shows no sign of slowing up and so he begins dancing in drag. Once again he is the centre of attention but his hilarious dance is very enjoyable and entertaining and is certainly vital to the audience’s enjoyment of the film.

Mercutio also brings humour to both Baz Luhrman’s and Shakespeare’s versions but make rude, sexually orientated jokes such as, “oh that she were an open arse; thou a poperin-pear”. If these jokes were to be presented during Shakespearean times then they would certainly appeal to the lower classes. However, Mercutio is not the only character to make rude jokes. The nurse also makes the occasional joke. For instance, “thou wilt fall backwards when thou com’st of age. These crude jokes may not be as obvious as Mercutio’s but they would certainly provide the audience with a few laughs. Once again this will appeal to the lower class audience of Shakespearean times as well as the younger audience of today. Luhrman also chooses to make Lady Capulet’s actions comical by speeding up her movement and making her act hysterical. Shakespeare even makes the battling servants at the start of the play make rude jokes so as to entertain the groundlings. “I am a pretty piece of flesh”. Also the fact that the servants are fighting appeals to the groundlings while the entrance of Benvolio and Tybalt, both of whom are of a higher status, attracts an upper class audience.

So far, I have discussed how Mercutio’s unique personality intrigues the viewer, and also, how other things may have a similar effect. However, I am yet to discuss a part of the story that is completely essential to the audience’s enjoyment. An aspect that would leave the story flat and boring were it to be removed. This is the excellent fighting scenes. Mercutio is a very energetic person who loves to stir and who would gladly fight to defend the honour of his friends, and this is what he does. In Act 3 Scene 1, Tybalt seeks Romeo for vengeance after having spotted his intrusion of the Capulet party. Prior to the fight (Act 2 Scene 4), we see Benvolio and Mercutio discussing Tybalt and when Mercutio is asked what is so special about Tybalt he labels him the Prince of Cats. Even though this may some to be nothing, it does enable Mercutio to use some very clever language when he faces Tybalt later. The scene remains unchanged in the film.

In Act 3 Scene 1 we see Mercutio and Benvolio are speaking when Tybalt arrives in search of Romeo. Tybalt tries to speak with Mercutio but he continuously makes jokes. This is very interesting that even in the face of adversary; Mercutio is able to remain relaxed and humorous. Eventually, Romeo arrives. Tybalt challenges Romeo but Romeo backs down, saying that he loves the name Capulet as dearly as his own and so he should be “satisfied”. Mercutio is outraged by Romeo’s actions, “O calm, vile, dishonourable submission!” Mercutio then proceeds to show off his intelligence by using Italian fencing language, “Alla stoccata”, to name Tybalt. Mercutio then challenges Tybalt to a fight. At this point Romeo tries to intervene, but he is unable to stop Mercutio becoming wounded. Benvolio then asks Mercutio if he is hurt and he replies, “a scratch a scratch”. This is remarkable. A man on his death bed is still able to make intelligent jokes. In this case, the scratch is relating to the name of Prince of Cats that was given to Tybalt previously by Mercutio himself. Mercutio then goes on to talk about how he is about to die, “Ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man”. However, he never slips away from his intelligent use of language and this suggests that he has a lot of pride. Mercutio’s final words then prophesise the tragedy that is about to take place for the two households. “A plague on both your houses”. This death scene is possibly the best in the entire story. It has everything, action, tragedy and humour. All of these aspects are due to Mercutio. Had he not fought Tybalt, there would have been no action, had he not been killed, there would have been no tragedy, and most importantly, had he not been present, no other character would have been able to bring humour to such a grim situation. In this aspect, Mercutio is certainly the most important character for the reader’s enjoyment of the play.

Baz Luhrman’s version of Romeo and Juliet portrays this scene in a very similar way. However, some text is cut out but this is purely for cinematic reasons. If Luhrman had chosen to include the entire text of Romeo and Juliet the film would be over four hours long and few people have the concentration to watch a film for so long. Also, a lot of the text cut out would not appeal to our modern audience and would mainly make references to the Shakespearean times and use colloquial language. Personally, I believe that his interpretation of Mercutio’s death is superb. The essence of the story is captured perfectly and Mercutio gives an excellent final performance. In fact, in the film version, his humour shines through in all its glory, with his actions supporting his various wisecracks flawlessly. Luhrman also emphasises his final words with the help of echoes. This is vital to our modern audience who would otherwise not understand the significance of his comments.

Finally, Mercutio, even in death, has a huge effect on the story. His passing acts as a catalyst for the final tragedy that will take place. His death results in Romeo killing Tybalt. Consequently, he is banished from Verona. Juliet is distraught by this and so, she decides to fake her own death so that she may be with Romeo. However, the note sent to Romeo telling him about Juliet’s plan does not reach its destination and so Romeo truly believes that Juliet is dead and when he sees her body he is overcome with sorrow and so he takes his own life. Juliet then awakes to see her lover dead and so she too takes her life and there they lay, together at last. So as you can see, Mercutio is not only important to the audience’s enjoyment but he is also vital to the development of the tale. Everything is holistic, but without Mercutio this would not be the case.

However, despite all of the afore mentioned features of Mercutio. He is not the only character to bring various qualities to the story. I mentioned earlier that Mercutio brings a lot of action to the story, but I failed to say that Tybalt also brings action to the story. In fact, he is involved in every scene of violence. From the opening fight between the Montague's and the Capulet's, to the final showdown between Romeo and himself. From this point of view, Tybalt is very important to the audience’s enjoyment of the story.

Another aspect of Mercutio’s role is also shared by three other characters. This is his ability to prophesise the forthcoming tragedy, “a plague on both your houses”. Romeo is the first to foresee the devastating future. This occurs when he is about to enter the Capulet part and so meet Juliet for the first time. He states, “My mind misgives some consequence yet hanging in the stars/ shall bitterly begin its fearful date with this nights revels”. This is perhaps the most accurate of all predictions as his meeting with Juliet is the ultimate cause of all the heartbreak that is soon to follow. Once again, Tybalt also takes on this role of foreseeing the future when he say’s, “this intrusion shall, now seeming sweet convert to bitterest gall”. This symbolises the inevitable fight between Romeo and himself. Friar Lawrence then makes the final prophecy when he says that Romeo and Juliet are, “wedded to calamity”. It is also ironic that it is his potion that is the final cause of Romeo and Juliet taking their lives.

So far, I have discussed the importance of the characters to the reader’s enjoyment of the play. However, there are also many other areas of presentation that are very important. For instance the use of motifs, most of which are exclusive to the film, are significant when it comes to appreciating the finer points of this timeless fable. For instance, the fact that both Juliet and Romeo are associated with water is very important. When we first see Juliet she is under water. This is traditionally associated with being lost (hence the saying lost at sea). Romeo also puts his head into a bowl of water when he is at the party and so this shows a link between himself and Juliet. Then, when Romeo and Juliet meet they are divided by a fish tank fill with water. This use of imagery is then extended even further by the fact that they both fall into the water together when Romeo goes to meet her. It is this excessive use of water that allows me to label it as a motif. Another motif that is used throughout the play is that the light always shines on Juliet. This shows her purity and innocence. Romeo even labels her as the sun.

Baz Luhrman also uses the party as a very clever way of portraying each characters personality and role in the film. This is done by the use of costumes. Romeo is shown to be a Knight in shining armour and Juliet is portrayed as an angel. Pure, innocent and waiting to be rescued. Tybalt is the devil. This symbolises his love of fighting and the fact that he is always the cause of violence and death. Finally, Mercutio is in drag. This shows his insecurity, but also his love of being the centre of attention.

Also, Luhrman uses street and building names to emphasise various aspects of the story. For instance, in the opening scenes, the camera zooms in on the skyscrapers with the names Capulet and Montague on them. Also, when at the petrol station, the camera focuses on a sign that says, ‘add more fuel to your fire’. This shows that the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues has been ignited. Another sign that I found very clever and interesting was that when we first see Romeo, he is depressed under a sycamore tree whilst thinking about Rosaline. However, when he meets his true love Juliet, he is in a street called Sycamore Grove. This may seem irrelevant but it is these small details that make a film truly enjoyable.

Last, but most certainly not least, the romance theme will undoubtedly appeal to the masses. This theme is, in terms of language far more evident in Shakespeare’s written play. For instance, we know that Mercutio and Romeo are very close, and so they finish each others Iambic Pentameter and also able to easily speak about the same subjects whilst using the same similes and metaphors. Nevertheless, this close friendship developed over a long time. Romeo and Juliet on the other hand are like this from the instant that they meet and so this shows that they are soul mates. For example, when speaking with each other for the first time, they both talk based on the subject of “pilgrims” and “lips”. Also they complete each others Iambic Pentameter from their first words to each other. In Act 2 Scene 2, on line 112-113. Romeo’s speech has 5 beats and so does Juliet’s. This also shows their equality as they both have an even number of beats where as Mercutio usually has one or two more that Romeo to give emphasis to his domination of all other characters.

In conclusion, Mercutio is by far the most influential character in both the film and the play. He is vital to the development of themes, stories and is vital to the humorous and action scenes in the play. Though he may not be the only character to bring these various qualities to the play, he is the only one that unites all of these features into one unique personality that leaves the audience both content and yet strangely dissatisfied. The absence of Mercutio would be truly criminal, he is a fantastic character that breathes new life into an otherwise tired genre of romance. Saying that he is central to the readers enjoyment does not do his role justice, and no amount of adjectives could possibly describe the significance of Mercutio to Romeo and Juliet.