Romeo And Juliet Mercutio Foil

Without the masterful foils, <Romeo and Juliet> would not be the archetype of love tragedy. Among all the character’s foils, foils between Romeo and Paris is not as obvious as foils between Benvolio and Mercuitio or between the nurse and Lady Capulet, but they are the linchpins of the whole play, reflect why and how does Juliet choose Romeo over Paris. Foils between Romeo and Paris are shown as their attitude toward courtship, which Paris formally asks Capulet for Juliet’s hand but Romeo’s secretive about his forbidden plan; their languages, which Paris is wooden and stilted- laced and Romeo is articulate and good at using cajolery; their responses gotten from Juliet, which Juliet loves Romeo so much but treats Paris with apathy.

In one if William Shakespeare's plays, "Romeo and Juliet", Mercutio, Romeo's best friend, makes a speech, the Queen Mab speech. According to Mercutio, Queen Mab is a tiny, mischievous fairy that rides around in an "empty hazelnut" as a chariot, drawn by a "team of little atomi" (I.IV. 59-69) and makes sleepers dream about good or bad things, for example, love. “Through lovers’ brains, and then they dream of love; On curtsies straight; o’er lawyer’ fingers, who straight dream of fees: o’er ladies’ lips, who straight on kisses dreams…” (I.IV.74-77)

In Act 2, Scene 1 of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” Mercutio states, “He (Romeo) heareth not, he stirreth not, be moveth not; the ape is dead, and I must conjure him. I conjure thee by Rosaline’s bright eyes. By her high forehead and her scarlet lip, by her fine foot, straight leg, and quivering thigh” (2. 1. 16-21). This quote shows that Mercutio still thinks Romeo is hung up on Rosaline, and he is being obnoxious and joking around by saying the only way they’ll find Romeo or summon him is by Rosaline. However, the dramatic irony in this is that we, the audience, know that Romeo is now in love with Juliet, not Rosaline. Romeo overhears Mercutio joking around and states, “He jests at scars that never felt a wound” (2. 2. 1). What Romeo means by this is that Mercutio shouldn’t be poking fun at him when he’s never felt his pain or been in his position of pain when it came to love.

Romeo replies by saying "I am to sore empierced with his shaft." Mercutio can represent a number of comparisons and contrasts to other characters by means of his quick wit and optimistic attitude. Mercutio begins to mock Romeo with witty wordplay and sceptics when Romeo talks about having had a "dream"; Mercutio delivers a nonsensical speech on "Queen Mab" "being"

He mopes, “Give me a torch. I am not for this ambling./ Being but heavy, I will bear the light” (I.iv.11-12), and, “I have a soul of lead./ So stakes me to the ground I cannot move” (I.iv.15-16). The first attempts to cheer him up weren’t successful at all, so Mercutio thought up of the tale of Queen Mab. He then turns it into a speech that didn’t seem like much at first, but it unraveled to showcase the fact that the dreams Romeo had were meaningless and that he needed to let himself be happy. When Mercutio’s monologue is abruptly cut off by Romeo telling him that he “talk’st of nothing” (I.iv.95-96), Mercutio replies in a predicted sardonic tone, “True. I talk of dreams” (I.iv.97). This refers back before the speech when Romeo announced he had a dream. Mercutio wants to try and let the dream pass by as if it were nothing and just enjoy the party. He taunts Romeo for not being able to choose whether he should be happy or depressed over something as meaningless as a

In Shakespeare’s critically acclaimed play Romeo and Juliet, the Nurse and Lady Capulet are foil characters. Shakespeare uses the Nurse and Lady Capulet to portray that the morals of a person, can affect another person’s actions.

When Romeo finds out about Juliet’s “death” he believes he has all the facts. He suddenly makes the decision to kill himself, aided by poison. “Romeos best speech is perhaps the one he delivers in the tomb; with it he gives dignity, meaning, and finality to the one act he plans and executes” (Huntley). The speech and characters of the play have been depicted all throughout music, literature, dance, and theater. There’s a certain musical flow and intense alternation of mood that enliven the speech. Mercutio is a big part of this. When Romeo needs guidance, Mercutio is there quickly giving him advice worth hearing. In fact, some believe the wisest words in the entire play are said by him.

When Romeo is low-spirited, Mercutio is happy, positive, and ready to enjoy life. In the beginning of “Romeo and Juliet,” Romeo is depressed. Romeo’s father, Lord Montague asks Benvolio to find out what is upsetting his son. At this time, the Capulets, the family that the Montagues have been feuding with for a very long time, is throwing a party. Mercutio and Benvolio plan to take Romeo to the Capulets’ party to help him find happiness. Mercutio does his best to attempt and raise his friend’s spirits by saying “… gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.” Romeo responds “Not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes with nimble soles; I have a soul of lead so stakes me to the ground I cannot move.” Then Mercutio says “You are a lover. Borrow Cupid’s wings and soar with them above a common bound.” (A1SIV) As Romeo states more reasons why he should not go to the party, Mercutio tells Romeo to

Jalen Cai English 1 Honors Period 4 4 March 2024 Brothers in Arms: Comparing Romeo and Benvolio's Unique Characters Your family is often the most similar and most different from you, and Romeo and Benvolio are no exceptions to this. In their tragedy, Romeo and Benvolio are compelling foils, showing both similarities and differences in their personalities and behaviors. While Romeo is known for his impulsiveness and intense emotions, Benvolio emerges as a voice of reason and moderation. The contradictions between these two characters emerge through their interactions and dialogue, shedding light on why they respond the way they do. This essay will look at the parallels and disparities between Romeo and Benvolio, and their approach to love, conflict,

This results in Romeo’s fate to be darkened. Second, Mercutio shows how Romeo is constantly dreaming. Mercutio’s realism contrasts Romeo’s head in the clouds. This is revealed when Mercutio says “True, I talk of dreams, which [is] the [child] of an [inactive] brain,” (1.4, 96-97). This quote exemplifies that dreaming cannot be a portent, and that it can change just like the wind. This also shows that Mercutio has a flamboyant imagination, while demonstrating his mocking side. This quote also acts as foreshadowing in which shows that if Romeo keeps his head in the clouds he will make mistakes in life, such as him quickly marring Juliet. Moreover, this quote reveals that Mercutio is an important foil character because his view on love contrasts that of Romeo. Mercutio’s view on love is that it is futile, however Romeo thinks of it as a key component to life. Mercutio’s mocking of the hopeless love, makes Romeo’s view look stronger and more passionate. Third, Mercutio shows how serious Romeo is. Mercutio always talks in a witting and light-hearted way, in which contrasts to Romeo’s seriousness. Mercutio always uses clever wordplay and puns to mock people and bring comic relief into the play. This is emphasized when Mercutio says “And but one word with one of us? ... Make it a word and a blow,” (3.1, 40-41). This quote illustrates the comedy that Mercutio brings. At the edgy moment when Tybalt was about to fight, Mercutio still made a mockery of him.

In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Mercutio plays a very important role because of his impulsivity and loyalty to his friends. The first picture I used to illustrate Mercutio’s role in the story was a picture of a dog, because dogs are a very common symbol of loyalty, and the one of the main aspects of Mercutio’s personality is his loyalty to Romeo. In act three, Mercutio believes that Tybalt is insulting Romeo and attempts to defend his friend, leading to his own death. The second picture I chose was that of a smiling joker. I chose this because Mercutio is a very facetious character without a serious bone in his body. Most of his dialogue is joking around, for example, when he says “to hide her face, for the fan’s/ the fairer of the two”

In Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, he uses foils to further isolate key aspects in a main character’s personality. He has three examples of this literary element: Romeo and Mercutio; Tybalt and Benvolio; and the Nurse and Lady Capulet. The curt, imperious Lady Capulet and her foil, the somewhat crude, suggestive Nurse, are the topics of this paper. Lady Capulet is very different from her foil in many ways, but they are also similar in some ways.

Mercutio is a funny character who is made to entertain the audience with his sarcasm, wit, and banter. In all of his scenes he is never very serious, almost always making jokes, even in his final moments as he is dying he continues to make puns. He also has a feisty, hotheaded side which is shown when he challenges Tybalt to a duel. Mercutio is very much the antithesis of Romeo. Romeo is a sweet, passionate romantic which contrasts Mercutio’s sarcastic personality and cynical views on love.

Mercutio is a relative of the prince and friend to Romeo. He is an eloquent man and becomes the center of attention whenever he appears in the play. It seems like he dominates Romeo with his teasing and irony. He mocks Romeo as he thinks he is too sentimental and tells him how foolish he is; he turns all of Romeo’s thought about love into sexual metaphors.

In William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the character Mercutio is a foil for Romeo. They are both young men who enjoy each other's company and meet their death in this tragedy. Romeo is an impulsive, hopelessly dramatic romantic who overreacts to most life events. While Mercutio is more realistic, grounded, carefree and serious, although he can be impulsive. With Mercutio being a foil for Romeo, it is easy to see Romeo's dramatic and tragic life story as compared to the more calmer tragic ending for Mercitio.