The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet

The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet Macbeth, Julius Caesar, and Hamlet are just a few of William Shakespeare’s thirty-seven plays. Some would argue that Romeo and Juliet is by far his best and most famous. In this tragedy two families, Capulet and Montague, are feuding. Despite this problem, the two young lovers still meet and continue on to get married. Their love for each other is so strong it will eventually lead to their deaths. The amazing work of Shakespeare and how he created it made such a complicated play of poetry and tragedy seem so fantastic and exciting. In the balcony scene, which is one of the most famous scenes, Juliet openly shares her thoughts aloud on feelings she has for Romeo after just meeting him. Romeo hears all of this while hiding below Juliet’s balcony. He overhears, “O, Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? / Deny thy father and refuse thy name; / And I’ll no longer be a Capulet” (Act II, Scene ii, Lines 33-36) Despite the fact that the two families are in a long term hate war with each other, Romeo and Juliet still fall in love and then go forth with marrying each other. William Shakespeare made this soliquie work by using poetry, and personification. He used powerful language in this scene when he said “Deny thy father…” (Act II, Scene ii, Line 34). This is powerful language because disobeying your parents openly was very disrespectful in the 1500’s. Shakespeare also made this scene work by using personification when saying “Tis but thy name that is my enemy” (Act II, Scene ii, Line 38). This is personification because a name really can’t be an enemy. This scene is definitely memorable and significant to the play. The balcony scene is memorable mainly because of Juliet saying what she did in the presence of Romeo. This really helped to speed up their relationship. The reasoning for this is, think about what if this speech didn’t happen, Romeo and Juliet’s love life may have never happened nearly as fast. In the Mercutio and Tybalt fight, scene Mercutio is slain by Tybalt and then Tybalt is killed by Romeo in anger. Once Romeo finds out that Mercutio wasn’t joking about being stabbed as he usually would be, he chased after Tybalt and challenged him to a duel. Romeo won and Tybalt was now also slain. “Tybalt hit the life/ of stout Mercutio” (Act III, Scene i, Lines 162-163). “Romeo slew Tybalt…” (Act III, Scene i, Line 175). Shakespeare did this scene with poetry and various types of conflict. When he used man against society Romeo was up against the Prince and his punishment. The Prince would be considered the society because he was kind of like the head of the town. Also Shakespeare makes this scene work with man versus man conflict with Mercutio and Tybalts’ fight when they argue and then ending both of their lives. This scene is memorable to the play and very important because each of the lovers have a dear friend die. Tybalt kills Romeos friend and Romeo proceeds to kill Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin. This scene is a big deal because Juliet’s husband killed her loving cousin on their wedding day and this may ruin things between the two. In the double suicide scene Juliet takes a sleeping potion; Juliet uses the sleeping potion to fake her death and will wake in forty-two hours. Romeo rushes back from Mantua to find Juliet ‘dead’. Romeo thinking that she is actually dead wants to be with her and poisons himself with a deadly concoction he bought from a poor apothecary. “Here’s to my love! [Drink] O true apothecary! / Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die” (Act V, Scene iii, Lines 119-120). Very depressed to wake and see her true love dead, she grabs Romeos dagger and stabs herself in the chest. “Yea, noise? Then I’ll be brief. O happy dagger! / This is thy sheath: there rust, and let me die” (Act V, Scene iii, Lines 169-170). William Shakespeare made this work using once again, poetry. But also this time using personification and dramatic irony. Personification is used when Juliet says “O happy dagger!”(Act V, Scene iii, Lines 169). Dramatic irony is used by Shakespeare when the audience knows that Juliet isn’t really dead, but Romeo commits suicide thinking that she is. This is probably one of the most important scenes because it shows the tragic ending of the two young lovers and their double suicide. With their deaths they have brought peace between the two feuding families. The reasoning that their deaths bring the two families close after years of hating each other and killing is simply because of the love they each have for their children, and how now they are both dead and gone. There are thirty-seven plays by Shakespeare and this is one of the most famous. This complicated work of drama, love, and death by William Shakespeare turned out so fascinating to all people even to this day. And as years go by Romeo and Juliet is interpreted different every time it is read. So as a wise, young Prince once said, “For never was there a story of more woe / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo” (Act V, Scene iii, Lines 309-310).