Romeo and Juliet: How Romeo Changes

Romeo changes throughout the play as he is constantly maturing. In the beginning he was an immature boy who thought he loved a girl called Rosaline, but was mournful when he found out the feeling wasn’t mutual. He sat under a tree “adding to clouds more clouds with his sighs”; he locked himself in his room and made himself an “artificial night”. It is only when Benvolio, Romeo’s cousin, asks him to attend the Capulet ball, so he may compare Rosaline’s beauty with others to make “thy swan a crow”, that we see a change in Romeo’s character as he meets Juliet. He falls in love with the daughter of “thine enemy” rich Capulet, instantly. He can still be described as immature as he completely forgets about Rosaline the girl he loved so much and how he falls in love with Juliet at first sight,
“Did my heart love till now? Forswear it sight, For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.”
He serenades Juliet in the balcony scene and shows his passion by putting his life on the line by risking being caught by the Capulet guards. They agree to marry each other, he has to mature as marriage is a lifelong commitment and he needs to provide for her.
After the marriage, Romeo tries to make peace with the fiery Tybalt and refuses to fight him even after Tybalt antagonises him by calling him a “villain”.
Mercutio accepts Tybalt’s challenge to Romeo for a duel as he thinks Romeo’s decline is the choice of a coward. When he is slain by Tybalt, Romeo loses his temper and looks for revenge; immaturity shows as he thinks short term and doesn’t think of the consequences. He is banished by the prince and is made to flee Verona. He describes his banishment as a punishment worse than death as he can never set eyes on Juliet again but everything living thing in Verona can.
When Juliet fakes her death Romeo visits her in the Capulet tomb, when he sees her he takes his own life to with his one true love.
Romeo changes throughout the play