Benvolio tries to stop a brawl but does not succeed and the two characters clash. When blood has been spilt you see the prince for the first time declaring that this will be the last brawl on the streets of Verona between Montague’s and Capulets or their life’s will pay the forfeit.
Before Act 3 Sene1 we, the audience are taken through a series of events which will alter the play significantly.
Mercutio convinces Romeo to attend the Capulet ball where Romeo hopes to meet Rosaline but ends up leaving that evening with a completely different woman, Juliet.
Also at the ball is Tybalt, an extremely honourable Capulet, who spies Romeo. He takes offence and prepares to fight him for his families name “fetch me my rapier boy”. This once again lets the audience know of Tybalts ambitions and aggression. But master Capulet stops him saying he will not have blood spilt at his ball and to lay down his sword, but Tybalt is too enraged to forgive this disgrace and swears to get Romeo back for it saying “I will withdraw: but this intrusion shall Now seeming sweet convert to bitterest gall”. This is crucial to the play as it builds the foundations for the fight of Act 3 Scene1 and shows that it is not over between the two opposing families and there will be confrontation again.
Whilst Tybalt is still fuming, the protagonist, Romeo, spots Juliet over the floor and instantly falls in love with her and forgets about Rosaline.
They quickly fall in love and Romeo asks Friar Laurence, an old friend of Romeo’s to marry them. He does this reluctantly and warns Romeo of the consequences, but marries them because he thinks it will end the families feud
“In one respect I'll thy assistant be; for this alliance may so happy prove, to turn your households' rancor to pure love.” The friar does this as he thinks it will be the best for everyone, he does not do it for selfish reasons, but thinks of the city and how many lives maybe saved from the war between the families stopping.
We then go to Act3 Scene 1 where this essay focuses on.
At the start of Act 3 Scene1 we see Benvolio saying about it being a hot day and capulets are probably out and if they meet they shall not escape a brawl “The Capulet’s are abroad and if we meet we shall not ‘scape a brawl”.
.Mercutio on the other hand tells benvolio to let them come and straight away you see his sense of humour and dry wit shinning through.
We see Benvolio unsuccessfully try to stop a brawl in the first scene and the Elizabethan audience hope that it will happen again (the audience loved action sequences and fights).
The audience also link the prologue and due to Shakespeare well co-ordinated and tactical hints sublimely dropped make the audience aware that a big fight scene is imminent.
Tybalts entrance to the scene gives the audience a look at a completely different side of him not wanting to fight with anyone other than Romeo.
But due to Mercutios skilful word play and dry wit he manages to wind Tybalt up.
“Thou consort with Romeo” Tybalt
“Consort! What dost thou make us minstrels? And thou makes minstrel of us, look hear nothing but discords.
Here’s my fiddle stick” Mercutio .
Once again some tactical word play is shown by Mercutio. He does this by using the second meaning of consort, minstrel, and makes out that Tybalt is calling him a beggar or a poor person who are at the bottom of the social status. Then to try and prompt Tybalt into a fight proclaims here’s my fiddle stick and lunges for his sword in at his side.
After this skilful word play Romeo enters the scene, and as soon as that happened the Tybalt that the audience were expecting came back to life.
He attacks Romeo with a barrage of insults but Romeo only replies he has only love for his old enemies. Tybalt requests a duel of Romeo of which Romeo denies and after many request Mercutio buts in and dual Tybalt himself.
After a long drawn out fight Mercutio is fatally wounded under Romeo’s arm after he tries to convince them both to stop. Mercutio dies a couple of minutes later not before he curses both their houses “a curse on both your houses” he shouts again and again which in Elizabethan times who were dreadfully superstitious , a dying mans curse was the worst curse you could have placed on you .
Tybalt thinks he has only wounded Mercutio with the slightest scratch and runs away afraid of what the prince will do after what he said after the last brawl.
After Mercutio dies Romeo chases Tybalt down and fights him killing him and taking revenge for his friend’s death.
The prince is astonished there has been a brawl after what he said after their last fight and rather than carry out his threat of there life forfeit he exiles Romeo and banished him from the city.
The fact that the audience know of Romeo and Juliets marriage and yet Tybalt does not and the fact that the audience know there will not be a happy ending and that the characters do not is called dramatic irony.
After act 3 scene1 Romeo is exciled and Ffriar Lawrence and Juliet hatch a plan to get them back together and for julliet to not have to marry Paris.
This is the start of the demise of the “two star crossed lovers” and their tragic deaths in which they take their own lives.
Written by Daniel Owen
