What Is The Relationship Between Romeo And Juliet

True love has been an emotion that people have attempted to define time and time again. When thinking of true love, Shakespeare’s timeless classic The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet may come to mind, and rightfully so. Romeo falls madly in love with Juliet, which Juliet reciprocates, and they dedicate themselves to loving one another before meeting their tragic end. But what about Rosaline, Romeo’s girlfriend at the start of the play? In the beginning of the play, before Juliet showed up in Romeo’s life, Romeo took love for granted, and he tended to be a womanizer without putting much thought into love. He also felt obligated to be with a girl at all times, due to the pressure from his friends, and Rosaline was an easy, available girl to impress his friends with. After meeting Juliet, he transformed, and attempted to put real affection into his words and actions around Juliet. Because they formed a
He says, “In sadness, cousin, I do love a woman,” telling Benvolio about Rosaline (1.1.212). He then goes on to say that he thinks he loves Rosaline, but she’s reluctant to love him. Romeo only speaks of loving her for her beauty, and he seems disappointed because Rosaline is “...in strong proof of chastity…” (1.1.218). Later on, when Romeo and Mercutio decide to go to the Capulets’ party, Romeo sees Juliet and forgets about Rosaline immediately as he says, “For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (1.5.60). Romeo thought he had cared for Rosaline, but what he had felt for her was artificial love, based on her physical beauty. He cared for her looks, and though he noticed that Rosaline was fair and wise, he did not deeply appreciate those qualities of her. If he had truly loved Rosaline, he wouldn’t have forgotten about her as soon as he could meet another pretty girl. His ease in forgetting about Rosaline also speaks to how much love he was overwhelmed with for