Romeo and Juliet - Love Theme
Love is the driving force behind the events in Romeo and Juliet, particularly the romantic forbidden love between the two characters. Its significance is immediately established when they first meet and the realisation occurs that they are from opposing houses. Juliet’s dialogue ‘My only love spring from my only hate,’ symbolises the depth of the chasm between the 2 houses with the emotive use of “love” and “hate”.
The issue of forbidden love reaches its peak when Juliet is forced to marry Paris against her wishes since, without the knowledge of her family, she has secretly married Romeo. Juliet’s dialogue ‘Oh bid me leap, rather than marry Paris...’ symbolises that Romeo is Juliet’s only one and that nothing at all could break that special bond. An example of dedication of their love is when Friar Laurence tells Juliet that Romeo is dead. Juliet is shocked; she doesn’t know what to do. Her only love is dead. Juliet’s dialogue “What’s here? A cup, closed in my true love’s hand? Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end. O churl, drunk all, and left no friendly drop. To help me after? I will kiss thy lips. Haply some poison yet doth hang on them, to make me die with a restorative shows that Juliet instantly knows that the only way she can go on is to kill herself so she can be with Romeo in another life.
Another theme of forbidden love is when Juliet dialogue ‘Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.’ Juliet desires to be with Romeo and wishes that he was not a Montague; Juliet wants to know if Romeos love for her is real, then she’ll stop being a Capulet.
‘Love’ in itself is seen very differently for different characters. For example Romeo's friend Benvolio, encourages Romeo to go to the Capulet's feast and predicts that Romeo will find other girls more attractive than Rosaline. This was highlighted when Benvolio said "Compare her face with one that I show and I will make thee think thy
The issue of forbidden love reaches its peak when Juliet is forced to marry Paris against her wishes since, without the knowledge of her family, she has secretly married Romeo. Juliet’s dialogue ‘Oh bid me leap, rather than marry Paris...’ symbolises that Romeo is Juliet’s only one and that nothing at all could break that special bond. An example of dedication of their love is when Friar Laurence tells Juliet that Romeo is dead. Juliet is shocked; she doesn’t know what to do. Her only love is dead. Juliet’s dialogue “What’s here? A cup, closed in my true love’s hand? Poison, I see, hath been his timeless end. O churl, drunk all, and left no friendly drop. To help me after? I will kiss thy lips. Haply some poison yet doth hang on them, to make me die with a restorative shows that Juliet instantly knows that the only way she can go on is to kill herself so she can be with Romeo in another life.
Another theme of forbidden love is when Juliet dialogue ‘Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.’ Juliet desires to be with Romeo and wishes that he was not a Montague; Juliet wants to know if Romeos love for her is real, then she’ll stop being a Capulet.
‘Love’ in itself is seen very differently for different characters. For example Romeo's friend Benvolio, encourages Romeo to go to the Capulet's feast and predicts that Romeo will find other girls more attractive than Rosaline. This was highlighted when Benvolio said "Compare her face with one that I show and I will make thee think thy