How Does Shakespeare Use Imagery In Romeo And Juliet
The use of imagery in Romeo and Juliet
The themes of forbidden love, tragedy, loss and isolation are closely interlinked in “Romeo and Juliet”. Shakespeare uses imagery throughout the play to highlight their importance. The forbidden love of Romeo and Juliet is described using religious language, imagery of contrasting light and darkness, and nature; tragedy is emphasised by the imagery of death throughout the play; isolation can be seen in the language and actions of both the central characters, and loss is experienced in terms of both lost love, and loss of life, adding to the weight of the tragedy.
The theme of forbidden love is introduced in the Prologue, with celestial imagery which suggests that the lovers are doomed from the start by saying "star-crossed lovers"(Prologue.5). Later, just before he meets Juliet, Romeo has a strange premonition that his "mind misgives”.
Some consequence yet hanging in the stars…
By some vile forfeit of untimely death”
I.iv.105-109
Constant references to the stars throughout the play point to their fates already being sealed and doomed. When they first meet, Shakespeare uses a sonnet which is heavily laden with religious imagery using words like:"profane"; "holy shrine";"pilgrims";"devotion"; "palmers"; "faith". This suggests they have God on their side, which adds a …show more content…
sense of purity and intensity to their love. The way in which the lines of the sonnet are divided between both Romeo and Juliet, adds a sense of balance and equality. Their love for each other is mutual, which deeply contrasts with the one-sided love Romeo experienced with Rosaline. Later, in Act 2, religious imagery again symbolises the purity of their love in "a bright angel...heaven.....baptised....dear saint" and continues this theme from Act one, indicating the strength of their love. It also enables us to take Romeo more seriously in his intentions towards Juliet, because otherwise, he could appear fickle, due to how quickly he has fallen out of love with Rosaline. Even Friar Lawrence claims
Holy Saint Francis, what a change is here!...
So soon forsaken?
II.ii.65-67
In the other hand, the Friar does point out, that Rosaline saying the following quotation,
"... knew well/ Thy love did read by rote, that could not spell" (II.iii.87), suggesting this 'love' was simply quoted from books, rather than expressing what was truly in his heart.
Additionally, Shakespeare makes many references to light and darkness in scenes which focus on Romeo and Juliet. When Romeo first sees Juliet, he uses imagery of light to describe her,
".... she doth teach the torches to burn bright"
(I.iv.157)
"as a rich jewel in an Ethiop's ear a snowy dove trooping with crows”
(I.iv.159-161)
Which indicate the transformation love brings to Romeo's life. This contrasts with the dark imagery which follows them throughout the play. Symbolic of the secret nature of their forbidden love and which foreshadows the ending, where, just as when he first meets her, "Her beauty makes this fault a feasting presence full of light" (5.v.85), symbolising the purity of their love and which gives their love a spiritual quality. Being with Juliet literally brings light into Romeo's life, where his previous love for Rosaline only brought misery, symbolised by darkness. Before we are even introduced to Romeo, in Act 1.i, Lady Montague uses imagery of "clouds" and "shady curtains" to describe Romeo's mood to Benvolio and claims he,
"Away from light steals home ... And makes himself an artificial night”
(I.i.133-136)
Which symbolise the deep depression in which he finds himself, and which is miraculously lifted by Juliet's presence. Rosaline represents the theme of loss of love and we see Romeo's emotional torment. Shakespeare uses oxymoron to highlight Romeo's tormented state of mind,
"O brawling love, O loving hate...
Feather of lead bright smoke, cold fire, sick health" (I.i.168-171)
Highlighting how distraught he is at Rosaline's unrequited love, but also how immature he is by indulging his feelings to this extent. The use of oxymoron give a feeling of chaos and disorder, as the opposite ideas and feelings are thrown together to create a sense of confusion which demonstrate his torment.
In the balcony scene, light and dark imagery is used. The metaphor of "the sun" is used to describe Juliet, which greatly outshines the "envious moon" (II.i.47). The moon is a traditional symbol of femininity and love, but the metaphor of the sun here generates a sense of power and energy. The sun is a life-giving force, and plus the effect love has on Romeo. In contrast, Romeo is hiding in the shadows, and the scene takes place at night. Both these factors highlight the secretive, forbidden nature of their relationship. The cover of darkness gives Juliet the freedom to speak her innermost thoughts, and leaves her embarrassed at being discovered,
“Thou knowest the mask of night is on my face…
For that which thou hast heard me speak tonight”
(II.i.128-131)
However, she uses dark and light imagery to convince him of her sincerity in which reveals a vulnerable and touching side to her character, adding to the inevitable tragedy to come.
" ...not impute this yielding to light love,
Which the dark night hath so discovered"
(II.ii.105)
"afeared,
/Being in night, all this is but a dream"
(II.ii.140),
.
In the bed chamber scene, light and dark imagery alongside natural imagery, reinforces the good that their love represents. Juliet is adamant that "It was the nightingale, and not the lark.” (III.v.2) that they can hear, because night, represented by the nightingale, is their friend, and its departure, replaced by the lark, "the herald of the morn"(III.v.6), signifies their parting. Repeated references to both birds serve to highlight the transition of night into day. The morning is personified in "Night's candles are burnt out and jocund day/ Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops"(III.V.10-11) adding to the pressure of Romeo's departure, and both characters try to persuade each other that morning is not dawning, as they hold onto the last precious moments together. Finally Juliet admits "more light and light it grows" and Romeo sums up their plight metaphorically, using repetition to intensify it, in "More light and light, more dark and dark our woes" (III.V.36). As Romeo descends from Juliet's bedroom, she has a disturbing image of Romeo "As one dead, in the bottom of a tomb ... pale" (III.v.56-57). This imagery of death foreshadows the play's tragic end, when the next time the lovers will meet will in fact be the Capulet tomb.
To symbolise their love, Juliet uses images taken from nature in bloom.
The symbol of a rose, a traditional symbol of love, is used by Juliet to highlight the obstacle to their potential love caused by the "ancient grudge" of their families: "That which we call a rose… By any other name would smell as sweet" (II.i.86-87). Further images of growth in nature are used as symbols of their love in "fruit-tree tops"(II.ii.108).She uses the extended metaphor of a "bud of love ... summer's ripening breath....beauteous flower" to describe her feelings. Romeo matches this with nature imagery of his own to convince her of the power and sincerity of his
love:
My bounty is as boundless as the sea…
The more I have, for both are infinite
(II.i.176-178)
The atmosphere of love in the play is short lived, however, as tragedy quickly follows the lovers after the death of Mercutio and then of Tybalt at Romeo's hands. The themes of tragedy, loss and isolation are closely interlinked here. Romeo is isolated from his old life and values now that he is married to Juliet. His refusal to fight in Act 3 Scene 1 is not understood by either Tybalt or Mercutio, both of whom see his reluctance as unmanly. Romeo's claim that he "loves thee better than canst devise”(III.i.68)is regarded by Mercutio as "dishonourable, vile submission" (III.i.72) and ironically, it is Romeo's attempts to avoid fighting that prompt Mercutio to act on his behalf, thus causing the tragedy of his death:
"Why the devil came you between us?
I was hurt under your arm!"
(III.i.102-103)
We can appreciate Mercutio´s punning language as he dies reflects his use of humour throughout the play, "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man"(III.i.97-98) but his speech is undercut with anger in the repetition of "A plague a'both your houses"(III.i.106) as he curses the "ancient grudge" that has brought about his downfall. He also uses animal imagery, referring to the fighters as "... a dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat to scratch a man to death!" (III.i.100-101), which dehumanises them and suggests their wild behaviour is governed by instinct, lacking any moral code.
Moreover, Romeo acts hastily, and in anger, hurt at the sudden death of his friend who has got this mortal hurt//In my behalf, and because the love between Romeo and Juliet remains forbidden and therefore secret, both Mercutio and Tybalt die without realising that Tybalt "Hath been (Romeo's) cousin" (III.i.113). He declares "Either thou or I, or both, must go with (Mercutio)" (III.i.129), but immediately regrets his rash action, and his language again links his doomed destiny to fate with the line "O I am fortune's fool" (III.i.136). He is so overcome with guilt at being the unwitting cause of Mercutio's death that he allows his anger and rage to take over. Without thinking about the consequences of his actions, or the effect they will have on his relationship with Juliet, he realises he could face death, as proclaimed by Prince in
"If ever you disturb our streets again,
Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace"
(I.i.92-93)
All potential hope of reconciliation between the families seems lost at this moment in the play.
Concerning to the theme of isolation, in Act III.ii, when Juliet hears of Tybalt's death at the hands of Romeo, both characters are isolated - Romeo physically, by being banished, and Juliet emotionally, by having to decide with which of the feuding families her loyalties lie. The scene opens with much imagery of darkness, because the secretive nature of their love means they can only meet during the night. The word "night" is heavily repeated in lines 17-29, and is accompanied by the personification of night as,
“Come, civil night…
Come loving black-browed night”
(III.ii.10-20)
presenting it as a friend to the lovers. Light imagery is used to identify Romeo who is described as "... day in night ... /Whiter than new snow... "(17-19), which mirrors his language towards her when he first sees her in Act 1 Scene V, and represents how metaphorically, they have brought light into each other's otherwise dark worlds. Her use of light imagery in "... when I shall die/ take him and cut him out in little stars ..." (III.ii.21-22) does, however have a prophetic tone, as they remind us that these lovers are "star-crossed" and therefore doomed to a tragic end.
In scene, Juliet's feelings towards Romeo swing violently from initial hatred when she hears of his crime, to deep sadness when she realises that his actions will part them forever. Initially, she uses a combination of oxymoron and animal imagery to express her anger and disgust at what Romeo has done:
“Serpent heart, hid with a flow'ring face!...
A, an honourable villain!”
(III.ii.73-79)
The use of oxymoron produces much the same effect as in Romeo's speech about Rosaline (Act I.i). And show her emotions in a state of turmoil and confusion at discovering the death of her cousin at the hand of her husband. The animal imagery has a dehumanising effect, making Romeo's actions seem all the more callous and instinctive, entirely without reason. When the nurse concurs with her, Juliet becomes aware of her dual loyalties; on the one hand, to her family and the name of Capulet, but now also to her husband and the Montagues. The nurse's question "Will you speak well of him that killed your cousin?" prompts the questioning reply "Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?"(III.ii.96-97)which highlights her dual loyalties and her need to choose between them.
Death imagery dominates Act IV.iii, where Shakespeare gives Juliet a very powerful soliloquy which highlights her total isolation. Having been abandoned by her family and even her trusted nurse, Juliet has no one to confide in. She is physically isolates herself from her mother and nurse on the eve of her wedding to Paris in order to begin her new life with Romeo. One final hurdle must be overcome. Does she trust implicitly in the Friar's potion and his plan to reunite her with Romeo, or should she question his motives for giving her the "poison" which could be a ploy to free him from the crime of performing two marriages "... the Friar /Subtly hath ministered to have (her) dead" (IV.iii.15) Juliet must think for herself and make her own decision. Juliet's soliloquy (IV.iii.14) is filled with imagery of death in a cold tomb which highlights her fears of being buried alive. She claims "I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins/ That almost freezes up the heat of life" (IV.iii.15-16) which is a premonition of her own death. She fears being " laid into the tomb" alone and " stifled in the vault....strangled....Where, for these many hundred years, the bones of all my buried ancestors are packed"(IV.iii.39-40) but a greater "terror" is of being buried alive near the recently dead corpse of Tybalt, makes her say, "yet but green in earth ... fest ring” (IV.iii.41-42) and "with loathsome smells, and shrieks"(IV.iii.45-46).
The lovers are reunited in the final scene, which draws together all four themes. Romeo uses animal imagery to keep Balthazar away from the tomb in,
“I will tear the joint by joint,
Than empty tigers or the roaring sea”
(V.iii.35-39)
which demonstrate how intently focused he is on dying. The Capulet tomb is then personified as a devouring creature with "detestable maw ... Gorged with the dearest morsel” (Act V.iii.45-46)" whose "rotton jaws" as Romeo prepares to die at Juliet's side. The isolation of both characters at this point in the play is complete. All the adult influences in their lives have let them down. This scene is filled with dramatic tension, as Romeo is unaware that Juliet still lives. Paris interrupts Romeo's plan, thinking he has come only to "do some villainous shame" (V.iii.52) and the tragedy and loss become greater, as Paris, who has been innocent throughout and genuinely appears to have loved Juliet, dies. In recognition of Paris's good character, Romeo vows to bury him in the tomb also.
Light and dark imagery in Romeo's death speech portrays Juliet's beauty as making "This vault a feasting presence full of light"(V.iii.86). Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to highlight the tragedy of Romeo's impending death by poison as Romeo describes Juliet looking alive, which, of course she is:
“Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath…
Why art thou yet so fair? Shall I believe”
(V.iii.92-102)
When Juliet awakes, only moments later to discover Romeo dead, the tragedy is further heightened by her simple statement "Thy lips are warm" (V.iii.167). As determined as Romeo was never to be parted from Juliet again, she too takes her own life, with a dagger, and the consequences of their forbidden love are sealed.
The themes of tragedy and loss, as a direct consequence of the forbidden love of Romeo and Juliet, are very clearly seen in the final lines of the play. Both families are united by their grief at the loss of life of their children and their "enmity" (V.iii.304) is finally over. This new state of affairs, and the precious nature of Romeo and Juliet's love, are symbolized by the statues of "pure gold" (V.iii.299) which each family promise to erect in honour of the other's child. The families finally recognize the futility of their actions, and the play ends with a reconciliation, but the human cost that has brought about that new understanding is the ultimate tragedy.
The themes of forbidden love, tragedy, loss and isolation are closely interlinked in “Romeo and Juliet”. Shakespeare uses imagery throughout the play to highlight their importance. The forbidden love of Romeo and Juliet is described using religious language, imagery of contrasting light and darkness, and nature; tragedy is emphasised by the imagery of death throughout the play; isolation can be seen in the language and actions of both the central characters, and loss is experienced in terms of both lost love, and loss of life, adding to the weight of the tragedy.
The theme of forbidden love is introduced in the Prologue, with celestial imagery which suggests that the lovers are doomed from the start by saying "star-crossed lovers"(Prologue.5). Later, just before he meets Juliet, Romeo has a strange premonition that his "mind misgives”.
Some consequence yet hanging in the stars…
By some vile forfeit of untimely death”
I.iv.105-109
Constant references to the stars throughout the play point to their fates already being sealed and doomed. When they first meet, Shakespeare uses a sonnet which is heavily laden with religious imagery using words like:"profane"; "holy shrine";"pilgrims";"devotion"; "palmers"; "faith". This suggests they have God on their side, which adds a …show more content…
sense of purity and intensity to their love. The way in which the lines of the sonnet are divided between both Romeo and Juliet, adds a sense of balance and equality. Their love for each other is mutual, which deeply contrasts with the one-sided love Romeo experienced with Rosaline. Later, in Act 2, religious imagery again symbolises the purity of their love in "a bright angel...heaven.....baptised....dear saint" and continues this theme from Act one, indicating the strength of their love. It also enables us to take Romeo more seriously in his intentions towards Juliet, because otherwise, he could appear fickle, due to how quickly he has fallen out of love with Rosaline. Even Friar Lawrence claims
Holy Saint Francis, what a change is here!...
So soon forsaken?
II.ii.65-67
In the other hand, the Friar does point out, that Rosaline saying the following quotation,
"... knew well/ Thy love did read by rote, that could not spell" (II.iii.87), suggesting this 'love' was simply quoted from books, rather than expressing what was truly in his heart.
Additionally, Shakespeare makes many references to light and darkness in scenes which focus on Romeo and Juliet. When Romeo first sees Juliet, he uses imagery of light to describe her,
".... she doth teach the torches to burn bright"
(I.iv.157)
"as a rich jewel in an Ethiop's ear a snowy dove trooping with crows”
(I.iv.159-161)
Which indicate the transformation love brings to Romeo's life. This contrasts with the dark imagery which follows them throughout the play. Symbolic of the secret nature of their forbidden love and which foreshadows the ending, where, just as when he first meets her, "Her beauty makes this fault a feasting presence full of light" (5.v.85), symbolising the purity of their love and which gives their love a spiritual quality. Being with Juliet literally brings light into Romeo's life, where his previous love for Rosaline only brought misery, symbolised by darkness. Before we are even introduced to Romeo, in Act 1.i, Lady Montague uses imagery of "clouds" and "shady curtains" to describe Romeo's mood to Benvolio and claims he,
"Away from light steals home ... And makes himself an artificial night”
(I.i.133-136)
Which symbolise the deep depression in which he finds himself, and which is miraculously lifted by Juliet's presence. Rosaline represents the theme of loss of love and we see Romeo's emotional torment. Shakespeare uses oxymoron to highlight Romeo's tormented state of mind,
"O brawling love, O loving hate...
Feather of lead bright smoke, cold fire, sick health" (I.i.168-171)
Highlighting how distraught he is at Rosaline's unrequited love, but also how immature he is by indulging his feelings to this extent. The use of oxymoron give a feeling of chaos and disorder, as the opposite ideas and feelings are thrown together to create a sense of confusion which demonstrate his torment.
In the balcony scene, light and dark imagery is used. The metaphor of "the sun" is used to describe Juliet, which greatly outshines the "envious moon" (II.i.47). The moon is a traditional symbol of femininity and love, but the metaphor of the sun here generates a sense of power and energy. The sun is a life-giving force, and plus the effect love has on Romeo. In contrast, Romeo is hiding in the shadows, and the scene takes place at night. Both these factors highlight the secretive, forbidden nature of their relationship. The cover of darkness gives Juliet the freedom to speak her innermost thoughts, and leaves her embarrassed at being discovered,
“Thou knowest the mask of night is on my face…
For that which thou hast heard me speak tonight”
(II.i.128-131)
However, she uses dark and light imagery to convince him of her sincerity in which reveals a vulnerable and touching side to her character, adding to the inevitable tragedy to come.
" ...not impute this yielding to light love,
Which the dark night hath so discovered"
(II.ii.105)
"afeared,
/Being in night, all this is but a dream"
(II.ii.140),
.
In the bed chamber scene, light and dark imagery alongside natural imagery, reinforces the good that their love represents. Juliet is adamant that "It was the nightingale, and not the lark.” (III.v.2) that they can hear, because night, represented by the nightingale, is their friend, and its departure, replaced by the lark, "the herald of the morn"(III.v.6), signifies their parting. Repeated references to both birds serve to highlight the transition of night into day. The morning is personified in "Night's candles are burnt out and jocund day/ Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops"(III.V.10-11) adding to the pressure of Romeo's departure, and both characters try to persuade each other that morning is not dawning, as they hold onto the last precious moments together. Finally Juliet admits "more light and light it grows" and Romeo sums up their plight metaphorically, using repetition to intensify it, in "More light and light, more dark and dark our woes" (III.V.36). As Romeo descends from Juliet's bedroom, she has a disturbing image of Romeo "As one dead, in the bottom of a tomb ... pale" (III.v.56-57). This imagery of death foreshadows the play's tragic end, when the next time the lovers will meet will in fact be the Capulet tomb.
To symbolise their love, Juliet uses images taken from nature in bloom.
The symbol of a rose, a traditional symbol of love, is used by Juliet to highlight the obstacle to their potential love caused by the "ancient grudge" of their families: "That which we call a rose… By any other name would smell as sweet" (II.i.86-87). Further images of growth in nature are used as symbols of their love in "fruit-tree tops"(II.ii.108).She uses the extended metaphor of a "bud of love ... summer's ripening breath....beauteous flower" to describe her feelings. Romeo matches this with nature imagery of his own to convince her of the power and sincerity of his
love:
My bounty is as boundless as the sea…
The more I have, for both are infinite
(II.i.176-178)
The atmosphere of love in the play is short lived, however, as tragedy quickly follows the lovers after the death of Mercutio and then of Tybalt at Romeo's hands. The themes of tragedy, loss and isolation are closely interlinked here. Romeo is isolated from his old life and values now that he is married to Juliet. His refusal to fight in Act 3 Scene 1 is not understood by either Tybalt or Mercutio, both of whom see his reluctance as unmanly. Romeo's claim that he "loves thee better than canst devise”(III.i.68)is regarded by Mercutio as "dishonourable, vile submission" (III.i.72) and ironically, it is Romeo's attempts to avoid fighting that prompt Mercutio to act on his behalf, thus causing the tragedy of his death:
"Why the devil came you between us?
I was hurt under your arm!"
(III.i.102-103)
We can appreciate Mercutio´s punning language as he dies reflects his use of humour throughout the play, "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man"(III.i.97-98) but his speech is undercut with anger in the repetition of "A plague a'both your houses"(III.i.106) as he curses the "ancient grudge" that has brought about his downfall. He also uses animal imagery, referring to the fighters as "... a dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat to scratch a man to death!" (III.i.100-101), which dehumanises them and suggests their wild behaviour is governed by instinct, lacking any moral code.
Moreover, Romeo acts hastily, and in anger, hurt at the sudden death of his friend who has got this mortal hurt//In my behalf, and because the love between Romeo and Juliet remains forbidden and therefore secret, both Mercutio and Tybalt die without realising that Tybalt "Hath been (Romeo's) cousin" (III.i.113). He declares "Either thou or I, or both, must go with (Mercutio)" (III.i.129), but immediately regrets his rash action, and his language again links his doomed destiny to fate with the line "O I am fortune's fool" (III.i.136). He is so overcome with guilt at being the unwitting cause of Mercutio's death that he allows his anger and rage to take over. Without thinking about the consequences of his actions, or the effect they will have on his relationship with Juliet, he realises he could face death, as proclaimed by Prince in
"If ever you disturb our streets again,
Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace"
(I.i.92-93)
All potential hope of reconciliation between the families seems lost at this moment in the play.
Concerning to the theme of isolation, in Act III.ii, when Juliet hears of Tybalt's death at the hands of Romeo, both characters are isolated - Romeo physically, by being banished, and Juliet emotionally, by having to decide with which of the feuding families her loyalties lie. The scene opens with much imagery of darkness, because the secretive nature of their love means they can only meet during the night. The word "night" is heavily repeated in lines 17-29, and is accompanied by the personification of night as,
“Come, civil night…
Come loving black-browed night”
(III.ii.10-20)
presenting it as a friend to the lovers. Light imagery is used to identify Romeo who is described as "... day in night ... /Whiter than new snow... "(17-19), which mirrors his language towards her when he first sees her in Act 1 Scene V, and represents how metaphorically, they have brought light into each other's otherwise dark worlds. Her use of light imagery in "... when I shall die/ take him and cut him out in little stars ..." (III.ii.21-22) does, however have a prophetic tone, as they remind us that these lovers are "star-crossed" and therefore doomed to a tragic end.
In scene, Juliet's feelings towards Romeo swing violently from initial hatred when she hears of his crime, to deep sadness when she realises that his actions will part them forever. Initially, she uses a combination of oxymoron and animal imagery to express her anger and disgust at what Romeo has done:
“Serpent heart, hid with a flow'ring face!...
A, an honourable villain!”
(III.ii.73-79)
The use of oxymoron produces much the same effect as in Romeo's speech about Rosaline (Act I.i). And show her emotions in a state of turmoil and confusion at discovering the death of her cousin at the hand of her husband. The animal imagery has a dehumanising effect, making Romeo's actions seem all the more callous and instinctive, entirely without reason. When the nurse concurs with her, Juliet becomes aware of her dual loyalties; on the one hand, to her family and the name of Capulet, but now also to her husband and the Montagues. The nurse's question "Will you speak well of him that killed your cousin?" prompts the questioning reply "Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?"(III.ii.96-97)which highlights her dual loyalties and her need to choose between them.
Death imagery dominates Act IV.iii, where Shakespeare gives Juliet a very powerful soliloquy which highlights her total isolation. Having been abandoned by her family and even her trusted nurse, Juliet has no one to confide in. She is physically isolates herself from her mother and nurse on the eve of her wedding to Paris in order to begin her new life with Romeo. One final hurdle must be overcome. Does she trust implicitly in the Friar's potion and his plan to reunite her with Romeo, or should she question his motives for giving her the "poison" which could be a ploy to free him from the crime of performing two marriages "... the Friar /Subtly hath ministered to have (her) dead" (IV.iii.15) Juliet must think for herself and make her own decision. Juliet's soliloquy (IV.iii.14) is filled with imagery of death in a cold tomb which highlights her fears of being buried alive. She claims "I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins/ That almost freezes up the heat of life" (IV.iii.15-16) which is a premonition of her own death. She fears being " laid into the tomb" alone and " stifled in the vault....strangled....Where, for these many hundred years, the bones of all my buried ancestors are packed"(IV.iii.39-40) but a greater "terror" is of being buried alive near the recently dead corpse of Tybalt, makes her say, "yet but green in earth ... fest ring” (IV.iii.41-42) and "with loathsome smells, and shrieks"(IV.iii.45-46).
The lovers are reunited in the final scene, which draws together all four themes. Romeo uses animal imagery to keep Balthazar away from the tomb in,
“I will tear the joint by joint,
Than empty tigers or the roaring sea”
(V.iii.35-39)
which demonstrate how intently focused he is on dying. The Capulet tomb is then personified as a devouring creature with "detestable maw ... Gorged with the dearest morsel” (Act V.iii.45-46)" whose "rotton jaws" as Romeo prepares to die at Juliet's side. The isolation of both characters at this point in the play is complete. All the adult influences in their lives have let them down. This scene is filled with dramatic tension, as Romeo is unaware that Juliet still lives. Paris interrupts Romeo's plan, thinking he has come only to "do some villainous shame" (V.iii.52) and the tragedy and loss become greater, as Paris, who has been innocent throughout and genuinely appears to have loved Juliet, dies. In recognition of Paris's good character, Romeo vows to bury him in the tomb also.
Light and dark imagery in Romeo's death speech portrays Juliet's beauty as making "This vault a feasting presence full of light"(V.iii.86). Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to highlight the tragedy of Romeo's impending death by poison as Romeo describes Juliet looking alive, which, of course she is:
“Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath…
Why art thou yet so fair? Shall I believe”
(V.iii.92-102)
When Juliet awakes, only moments later to discover Romeo dead, the tragedy is further heightened by her simple statement "Thy lips are warm" (V.iii.167). As determined as Romeo was never to be parted from Juliet again, she too takes her own life, with a dagger, and the consequences of their forbidden love are sealed.
The themes of tragedy and loss, as a direct consequence of the forbidden love of Romeo and Juliet, are very clearly seen in the final lines of the play. Both families are united by their grief at the loss of life of their children and their "enmity" (V.iii.304) is finally over. This new state of affairs, and the precious nature of Romeo and Juliet's love, are symbolized by the statues of "pure gold" (V.iii.299) which each family promise to erect in honour of the other's child. The families finally recognize the futility of their actions, and the play ends with a reconciliation, but the human cost that has brought about that new understanding is the ultimate tragedy.