The role of the women at the time of the play was written were very different from today. They were expected to stay at home and look after the family, while the man went out to earn a living. However, in addition it was common for noble marriages to be arranged as shown in ‘Romeo and Juliet’ by Paris’ request to marry Juliet. “My child is yet a stranger in the world; she hath not seen the change of fourteen years; Let two more summers wither in their pride ere we may think her ripe to be a bride.” Lord Capulet considers Juliet too young to marry Paris, even though at the time, some girls got married at the age of twelve. In contrast to the period and status, Juliet is being given a choice. Lord Capulet says she must agree to the marriage aswell. This links to Act 3 Scene 1, as after Tybalt’s death The Capulets want a celebration and Lord Capulet insists she marries Paris.
When Romeo and Juliet first met at the Capulet’s ball it was love at first sight. Romeo says “…let lips do what hands do.” He is using romantic language and it contrasts with his state of mind when he thought he was in love with Rosaline. There is no confusion now! “You kiss by the book”, comments Juliet who uses the same romantic language and is basically saying that he knows the rules of love. When Tybalt sees Romeo at the ball he says “This by his voice, should be a Montague. Fetch me my rapier boy.” This indicates how aggressive he is even thought Romeo is doing no harm. “I would not, for all the wealth of all this town, here in my house do him disparagement; he shall be endured.” Lord Capulet, despite the ‘ancient grudge’, is prepared to allow Romeo to stay. This contrasts with Tybalt because he is not as aggressive. However, Tybalt won’t forget and will get his revenge on Romeo. “I will withdraw, but this intrusion shall, now seeming sweet, convert to bitterest gall.” This links to Act3 Scene 1 as this is when he tries to Romeo back and Tybalt wanting to fight changes everything for Romeo and Juliet. There’s a rhyming couplet and adds emphasis to Tybalt's intentions. Due to the ‘ancient grudge’, Romeo and Juliet decide to get married in secret. Friar Lawrence agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet in an attempt to stop the ‘ancient grudge’. “For all this alliance may so happy prove to turn your households’ rancour to pure love.” If it wasn’t for Act 3 Scene 1 it might have worked.
In Act 3 Scene 1 there is a fight but, before the fight, and before Romeo arrives, Benvolio is feeling very uneasy. “The day is hot, the capels are abroad, and if we meet we shall not scape a brawl.” This comment backs him up as a peacemaker and indicates that something may happen later on in the scene. Mercutio’s mood was very odd. He was acting loudly and was clearly affected by the heat. When the Capulets arrive on the scene, Mercutio says “By my heel, I care not.” It’s not the reaction you would expect when he sees a Capulet, he’s considered normally to be lighthearted and jokey. When he says “I will not budge for no man’s pleasure”, he almost sounds aggressive. When Tybalt says “Gentlemen, good den; a word with one of you”, he is surprisingly polite and quite the opposite of what we have come to expect. However, we still know he wants revenge on Romeo for being at the Capulet’s ball. There is a build up of tension before Romeo appears as Tybalt and Mercutio are acting strangely and Benvolio has already suggested there could be trouble.
When Romeo enters the scene he is challenged by Tybalt and refuses to fight him because he has just married his cousin, Juliet, and is now related to him. He tries to calm Tybalt down by saying “I do protest I never injured thee, but love thee better than thou canst devise.” The reason Mercutio fights is because he feels that Romeo not fighting is a slur on the Montague name. “O calm, dishonorable, vile submission.” The fight could have been avoided because they could have walked away; Perhaps Romeo shouldn’t have gone to the party. Possibly Mercutio should have taken Benvolio’s advice and left or Romeo could have told Tybalt the truth about his marriage.
In the two filmed versions of the fight they show the situation differently. In Zeffirelli’s version the setting is in Old Verona and the characters are traditional but contemporary for the time. They only play music, when Romeo goes after Tybalt and the atmosphere is mainly filled with laughter and the fight seems like a joke. The weapons used are the traditional swords and the weather is sunny as it adds to better atmosphere. Tybalt’s death in Zeffirelli’s version is more accidental as he falls on Romeo’s sword and Mercutio’s death by the sword was seen as a joke, Tybalt didn’t even know about Mercutio’s death until Romeo chased him. In Luhrmann’s version the setting is at Verona Beach and the costumes are modern. The characters are contemporary for today and the music adds tension. The fight was much more serious and the weapons were guns named after the traditional swords e.g. Rapier, Dagger and Longsword. The weather is stormy as it’s more negative. As Mercutio is black in this version, it makes it obvious he’s not related to the Capulets or the Montagues. There’s a long car chase and the fights seem more deliberate. Mercutio’s death by glass is taken more seriously as Tybalt is very shocked.
When Tybalt killed Mercutio Romeo was furious because he didn’t fight. “O sweet Juliet.” Romeo wants revenge and this contrasts with how he didn’t fight at the start of the scene. “And fire eyed fury be my conduct now.” Romeo makes a prediction. “This but begins the woe others must end.” He knows that this will all end badly. Tybalt’s death wasn’t necessary because Romeo could have told the Prince that Tybalt killed Mercutio and so Tybalt would have been sentenced to death. The outcome of the play could have been changed at this point if he had acted differently because if he had told the Prince, he wouldn’t have been banished and would still be able to see Juliet.
In Zeffirelli’s version of the play, Romeo was more in shock, upset and that he killed wanting revenge and it was pure instincts. In Luhrmann’s version of the play Romeo is purely furious and deliberately chases after Tybalt and kills him.
The Prince’s judgment is banishment. “Immediately we do exile him hence.” It’s banishment instead of death as Romeo didn’t start the fight and only killed Tybalt in revenge.
One of the consequences of the death of Tybalt and the banishment of Romeo is a change in the relationship between Romeo and Juliet because they can’t see each other and Lord Capulet wants Juliet to marry Paris. However, they still have the same feelings for each other. “Is father, mother, Tybalt, Romeo, Juliet, all slain, all dead. Romeo is banished, there is no end, no limit, measure, bound, in that word’s death; no words can that woe sound.” Juliet knows what’s happened. She loves Romeo so much that her entire family might aswell be dead. She is distraught. Romeo’s in hell. Juliet’s his life and he can’t live without her. “Ha, banishment? Be merciful, say ‘death’.” There is some hope left as Juliet could tell the truth, she could run away to Mantua to be with Romeo or she could marry Paris and forget Romeo. Lord and Lady Capulet react to the death of Tybalt by having a celebration and insisting that Juliet marries Paris. Their attitude changes. Before, they considered Juliet to be too young for marriage and she had a choice in the matter. Now she is being ordered. “O, Thursday. Tell her she shall be married to this noble Earl.” Lady Capulet reacts by telling Juliet straight away as she doesn’t have a say in the matter as she is a woman and men ruled the house. Juliet is shocked and depressed when she hears about it because she loves Romeo and wants to be with him, not Paris and she is even more upset when her Mother won’t say anything to her Father and even the nurse is agreeing to the marriage. “Methinks I see thee, now thou art so low, as one dead in the bottom of a tomb.” This is foreshadowing as Juliet will find Romeo dead in the bottom of a tomb. Shakespeare is giving us a hint of what will happen.
Juliet goes to see Friar Lawrence because she can see no way out of her situation. She’s prepared to kill herself if she can’t be with Romeo so she’s going to see the only person who hasn’t rejected her. Friar Lawrence had a plan. He would giver Juliet a potion to make her appear dead for forty two hours; she would be put in the Capulet tomb and when she wakes Romeo will find her there. “And in this borrowed likeness of shrunk death thou shalt continue two and forty hours.” He also has a plan to write Romeo a letter to let him know when Juliet will wake. “…Romeo by my letters know our drift and hither shall he come.” Friar Lawrence suggested this plan because Juliet didn’t want to marry Paris and Friar Lawrence wouldn’t have married them as she was already married to Romeo and she also wanted to be with Romeo. The plan goes wrong because the monastry that the Friar was in had the plague so they couldn’t let anyone in or out. “I could not send it-here it is again-.” Although this doesn’t link with Act 3 Scene 1 it is a reaction to those events and ultimately ends in the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
As a result of Act3 Scene 1 many people died. If it was not for Act 3 Scene 1, Tybalt and Mercutio would still be alive because they had the fight in the first place, which caused everyone else’s deaths. Paris’ death could have been avoided because Romeo kills him for no reason. “Come, cordial, and not poison, go with me to Juliet’s grave, for there must I use thee.” Lady Montague’s death could have been avoided because she died because she was upset at Romeo’s banishment, so if he didn’t get banished she would still be alive. Romeo’s and Juliet’s deaths could have been avoided if Friar Lawrence’s plan had gone well. Tibet and Mercado’s link back to Act 3 Scene 1 because they had the fight and Tibet killed Mercuric and Romeo killed Tibet out of pure revenge. Paris’ death links back to Act 3 Scene 1 because if it was not for Romeo’s banishment then Romeo wouldn’t be there in the first place. Lady Montague’s death links back to Act 3 Scene 1 because if Romeo wasn’t banished she wouldn’t have been upset and died. Romeo’s death links back to Act 3 Scene 1 because if he wasn’t banished then Juliet wouldn’t have taken the potion and he wouldn’t have thought she was dead in result to killing himself. Juliet’s death links back to Act 3 Scene 1 because she wouldn’t have taken the potion and Romeo wouldn’t have killed himself so she wouldn’t have killed herself with his dagger. “Oh happy dagger, this is my sheath.” So in all the consequence of the tragedy were Tybalt, Mercutio, Paris, Lady Montague, Romeo and Juliet dying. There was, however, some good out of the tragedy because it ended the ‘ancient grudge’. At the end the Prince says “For never was story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo.” The rhyming couplet brings the play to a close.