How Does Shakespeare Use Juxtaposition In Romeo And Juliet

Romeo and Juliet appear to be conflicting characters as shown in a scene where Romeo finds himself outside Juliet’s window. Juliet asks Romeo “[h]ow comest thou hither, tell me, and wherefore? [t]he orchard walls are high and hard to climb” (2.2.67-68), but Romeo replies “[w]ith love’s light wings did I o’erperch these walls” (2.2.71). Juliet acts in a more realistic and mature manner, whereas Romeo’s unrealistic behavior contrasts with Juliet’s character. By portraying the characters as opposites, Shakespeare conveys the idea of balance. This idea can be found in a certain character as well. Romeo’s character of good and evil is depicted during the fight with Tybalt. When Tybalt instigates Romeo by saying “thou art a villain” (3.1.62), Romeo remains calm and declares “Villain am I none. Therefore farewell” (3.1.65-66), displaying his good character. Later on, after Tybalt kills Mercutio, Romeo craves revenge and decides to avenge his friend, allowing his negative side to take over. This internal conflict of good and evil in a character is another example of the idea of equilibrium in the play. Characters and their characterization are significant additions to the idea of harmony.

Throughout the years, many have been taught that “actions speak louder than words.” However, in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, he doesn’t include many stage directions, forcing the readers to decipher character’s intentions through their dialogue. While Shakespeare does make it clear as to what some characters animus are, others are hard to fathom, like Benvolio, Romeo’s close friend. Even so, through the use of crude verbal irony, gruesome symbolism, and apparent juxtaposition, Shakespeare insinuates that Benvolio is a reasonable and peaceful being.

Romeo is a character who shows pain, grief, and empathy towards many characters. For example, when Benvolio asks Romeo what is wrong, Romeo states, “This love that thou hast shown / Doth add more grief to too much of mine own” (1.1.188-189). Romeo’s caring and loving and is revealed in these lines. The way Romeo acts when Benvolio cries displays an empathetic side of Romeo. In addition, when Romeo explains to Benvolio all he has done by stating that, “ She will not stay the siege of loving terms, / Nor bide th’ encounter of assailing eyes, / Nor ope her lap to saint-seducing gold” (1.1.214-216). These lines help understand the determination of Romeo and all he does to get something or someone he wants. The way he offers his love words and

Have you ever heard the word Juxtaposition? Sounds different doesn’t it. The meaning of it is crazy and makes a lot of sense. A juxtaposition is the comparison of one thing to another. For an example light to darkness. It is put in ways or forms that may or may not be noticeable or easy to find. Juxtapositions are used in many books and novels that are popular or well known. The play by William Shakespeare “Romeo and Juliet” uses the juxtaposition of light and darkness repetitively. One thing about juxtapositions are they help a writer a lot for writing novels and books to show the lesson that is shown at the end of the book. They could also give hints early in the story or open your eyes to a different point of view the book is showing. There

Romeo’s character shows deep emotion and extemporaneous actions, even if it was for his youth and immaturity. He was sure of his infatuation with Rosaline at the time, but he quickly turns around and proclaims his love for Juliet. Romeo says, “My name, dear saint, is hateful to myself/ Because it is an enemy to thee. / Had I it written, I would tear the word” (2-2 [55-57]). Romeo’s not thinking about the consequences of his actions or what he’s saying; all he cares about is

Duality is the nature in which anything and everything bear antithetical complexion, all of which are true. In our perspective, the Earth is an enormous planet; however, it’s also a speck of dust suspended in space. The villain and the hero of a story are one individual, just perceived differently; for example, Batman is nothing without Joker. Besides, how boring would it be to watch a Batman movie if there were no villains? Thus, you have no hero until you have a villain. Duality can also be characterized as the humanized form of good and evil, love and hate, fear and courage, or life and death. First of all, in Romeo and Juliet “fate” plays an immense role. Most conspicuously in Friar Laurence’s soliloquy, “In man as well as herbs–grace

In Romeo and Juliet, the main character Romeo has a very melancholic temperament. Throughout the play he is a character who is dominated by his emotions. In the first scene where Romeo is introduced, he is in despair over Rosaline. He states, “Ay me, sad hours seem long” (1.1.166). His melancholic disposition is immediately apparent and stays with him throughout the play as he is constantly overtaken by his emotions.

Back in the late 1600s, Shakespeare pokes fun at the poems and sonnets of his time that paint love as a symbol of a perfect and steady relationship, rather than the raw and unpredictable force that can cause both sorrow and euphoria. In Shakespeare’s play Romeo & Juliet, he displays how dynamic Romeo’s character is through his speech and actions as Romeo matures into Juliet’s devoted lover, which Shakespeare uses to drive the story forward in such a small time frame. Initially, Romeo is excessively dramatic, using poetic language to describe his emotions, revealing his immaturity as a lover. Subsequent to Rosaline’s rejection, Romeo describes his feelings to Benvolio through a series of contradictions or oxymorons. Romeo desperately asks

“Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs; Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vexed a sea nourish'd with loving tears:What is it else? a madness most discreet, A choking gall, and a preserving sweet”(Act I.Scene i. Lines 190-194).Romeo is most commonly known as just being a character who is desperately in love, but there are other sides to him as well. In Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare the main character, Romeo undergoes a change in himself. Romeo goes through a phase in the beginning where he is sad and in the middle loved, and by the end he feels arrogant and hopeless.

Duality is displayed throughout the play of Romeo and Juliet. The things characters in the play say, the characters, and actions of the characters are ways duality is explored in the play. For example, when Friar Laurence is picking herbs he explains how the certain herb he picked could be both poison and medicine. Duality in the play is also explored by love and hate. In the play Shakespeare uses the love, hate duality to show how powerful love is. During the play, Juliet says ”My only love sprung from my only hate! Too early seen unknown, and known too late! Prodigious birth of love it is to me. That I must love a loathèd enemy.”

From the moment we first hear about Romeo, it is in the context of his suffering at the hands of love. Romeo’s father, Montague, perplexed by his son’s behavior states that, “Many a morning hath he there been seen, / With tears augmenting the fresh morning’s dew, / Adding to clouds more clouds with his deep sighs” (1.1.124-26). While this may be the first time we encounter Romeo’s melancholy humour, it certainly isn’t the last. In fact, one of the primary sources of our infatuation with Romeo rests in our sympathy for him. From the very start this poor boy is plagued by affections for girls that fate, it seems, will not let him be with. At first, it’s Rosaline, a girl who has “sworn that she will still live chaste” (1.1.210), a vow that sets Romeo reeling and complaining because “from love’s weak childish bow she lives unharmed” (1.1.204). His depression over Rosaline is enough to draw the attention of his father, Montague, who has observed that Romeo shuts himself up in his room all day in order to wallow in the darkness. These are the actions of someone who is undeniably quite

In Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Romeo illustrates the qualities of a dramatic person. For example, while describing what love feels like to Benvolio, Romeo claims , “Being vex’d, a sea nourish’d with lovers’ tears” (1.1.192). By comparing nature to love, Romeo believes love is a powerful, uncontrollable force that can make a person think they are in heaven or in hell. A sea is a place with a huge amount of water, thus it would be an impossible feat to cry that much and a human body cannot support that much water leakage. Moreover, when Benvolio wishes to come along, Romeo exclaims, “This is not Romeo, he’s some otherwhere” (1.1.199). Love has the power to do almost anything, but it does not have the power to completely change someone

In the play Romeo & Juliet, William Shakespeare utilizes opposites in both the thoughts and actions of the characters in Romeo and Juliet. Outlined are contrasts of crime and violence versus peace and law, love versus hate, and young versus old.

Juxtaposition can be defined as the use of two opposite ideas or topics placed near one another. In William Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, juxtaposition plays a huge role, when diminishing absolute power versus powerless. This unique use of juxtaposition can be seen through Egeus and Hermia, where Egeus represents absolute power and Hermia represents the powerless. Egeus, who is Hermia’s father, strictly forbids Hermia from marrying Lysander, and marry Demetrius instead. Hermia, on the other hand, wanted to marry Lysander, but knew she would have to do it in a hidden fashion, and as far away from her father as possible because if word got out to him, he would have her killed. This imbalance in power, and powerless through Egeus

In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses the theme of Duality for the representation of Good versus Evil to learn about each character. The Montagues and the Capulets are introduced as two families who have had a long past of abhorring one another for a reason not specified. Juliet reveals to the audience of the friction between the families by saying “Prodigious birth of love it is to me/That I must love a loathed enemy!” (I v 154-155.) Juliet states this quote after she realizes that Romeo is a Montague, which is who she is supposed to hate, but she actually loves, which supports the love and hate category in duality. Later in the play, in Scene 2, we are drawn to a scene where Friar Lawrence is giving a monologue which he states, “Within the infant rind of this small flower /Poison hath residence and medicine power: /For this, being smelt, with that part cheers each part; /Being