Romeo and Juliet themes quotes

“Star cross’s lovers take their life” PROLOGUE

Theme: Fate

Love against tradition and society

Destined to be together and destined to end in tragedy (because stars are crossed)

Excites audience - waiting for tragic consequences

“Death-mark’d love” PROLOGUE

Theme: fate

Whole story is destined to happen

Oxymoron

Love was doomed from the start

Death is a result of passionate love

Love is stained/diminished by future death

“These hot days, is the mad blood stirring” BENVOLIO - A3 S1

Theme: fate

Hot days = hot tempers

Foreshadows conflict/brawl of Tybalt/Mercutio/Romeo

Gives audience expectation for violence

“O, I am fortune’s fool” ROMEO - A3 S1

Theme: fate

Cruel gods

Romeo had a choice - decided to fight - did he bring it on himself or was it fate?

Hasty/impulsive - ROMEOS FATAL FLAW

Thinks fate is messing with him

“Shake the yoke of inauspicious stars” ROMEO - A5 S3

Theme: fate

Before death - Romeo is fed up with life

Feels he must kill himself to stop unlucky fate from happening

“To make me die with a restorative” JULIET - A5 S3

Theme: fate

Contrast to Romeo’s dream - kiss should have brought him back to life - instead he stays dead

“”Restorative” - instead of bringing him back to life - restores her to her world with Romeo (death)

“I will bite my thumb at them” SAMPSON - A1 S1

Theme: male violenence

Men want to fight to prove honour - so insult/provoke others

Grudge expects men to hate/fight each other for family expectations

Men boast they are violent

Fighting over nothing - for fun

Will fight over pointless things

“Peace? I hate the word” TYBALT - A1 S1

Theme: male violence

No interest in maintaining peace

Wants to fight to honour his house

“Peace” is just a word - so meaningless - enjoys fighting/killing

“Thou wilt quarrel with a man that hath a hair more or a hair less in his beard than thou hast” MERCUTIO ABOUT BENVOLIO A3 S1

Theme: male violence

Starts fights for nothing

Excuse is to protect honour

More just wants to prove dominance and masculinity

Shows futility

“Thou art a villain” TYBALT ABOUT ROMEO - A3 S1

Theme: male violence

Tybalt trying to provoke Romeo into fighting him

Not actually going to fight for a reason

Just wants to fight him

Male honour means Tybalt expects/Romeo should fight to defend good name

“Villain” - low class/scoundrel - Romeo should fight to prove he isn’t

“Here is come to do some villainous shame to the dead bodies” PARIS ABOUT ROMEO - A5 S3

Theme: male violence

Paris stops Romeo in tomb

Must protect Juliet (even in death)

Only man allowed to see her - thinks she belongs to him despite engagement enforced on Juliet by Paris & Lord Capulet

“Obey and go with me, for thou must die” PARIS ABOUT ROMEO - A5 S3

Theme: male violence

Has to kill him

Feels he must fight to the death to prove he is better man/suitor (for Juliet)

Paris blames Romeo for Juliets death, as Romeo kills Tybalt - must get revenge

“Young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes” FRIAR A2 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Friars shock at Romeo forgetting unrequited love for Rosaline so quickly

Doesn’t know whether to believe Romeo’s love

Men love on beauty/no depth/fickle love

Knows its against better judgement/religious duty to marry them when he thinks love is based on wrong ground - BUT treats Romeo like surrogate son - INNER TURMOIL OF FRIAR

“For this alliance may be so happy prove to turn your households rancour to pure love” FRIAR A2 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Marriage is dangerous/risky

Feels duty as Romeo’s surrogate father to support him

Link to “virtue itself turns vice” - GOOD INTENTIONS LEAD TO BAD OUTCOMES - DOES THIS MISTAKE/DECISION BY FRIAR LEAD TO R + J’S DEATHS?

“There is no world without Verona walls, but purgatories, torture, hell itself” ROMEO A3 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Punishment for killing Tybalt - banishment

Banishment is worse than death because he cant see Juliet anymore

Doesn’t want to die but cant live without her - ROMEO’S INNER TURMOIL

“Heaven is where Juliet lives” ROMEO A3 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Doesn’t see banishment as blessing (instead of death)

But death would hurt Juliet even more

Nothing above heaven, so nothing above Juliet (like his God)

“Sayest thou yet that exile is not death?” ROMEO A3 S3

Theme: innner turmoil

Ideation of suicide

Thinks banishment is hell but suicide is religious sin, and would send him to actual hell

Cant imagine living without Juliet, but can live with her

If he cant have her, he has to die

“I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins” JULIET A4 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Anxiety and fear of death/potion/what if poison?

Alone - her choice to make

Doubt about realism of future with Romeo - JULIETS INNER TURMOIL

“Shall i be married then tomorrow morning?” JULIET A4 S3

Theme: inner turmoil

Cant live life set out for her - marriage with Paris

Sin to marry twice - sin to commit suicide - INNER TURMOIL

Chance of life with Romeo, despite chance of death is better than certainty of current life without Romeo, and with Paris, Nurse, and parents

“Madam, I am here, what is your will?” JULIET A1 S3

Theme: Family and duty

Very formal - not close personal relationship - scared?

Submissive to Lady Capulets wants - will do whatever she asks

Not her place to have opinions/wants

“The valiant Paris seeks you for his love” LADY CAPULET A1 S3

Theme: family and duty

After they marry, Juliet will belong to Paris

Doesn’t ask if she wants to marry Paris

Duty expects her to

From noble family, so should marry well to boost connections and maintain high social standing - NOT FOR LOVE

“Doth she not give us thanks? LORD CAPULET A3 S5

Theme: family and duty

Should be grateful for marriage parents set up and life they have given her, so grateful that she should do anything for them (aka marry Paris)

Expect her gratitude

Her duty to please them

“hang, beg, starve, die in the streets” LORD CAPULET A3 S5

Theme: family and duty

Has to/deserves to die if she doesn’t submit to fathers wishes

Juliet kneels to listen and take abuse

Doesn’t deserve nice life is she doesn’t repay parents by marrying their choice of suitor

“Death is my son-in-law, death is my heir” LORD CAPULET A4 S5

Theme: family and duty

No other children, no grandchildren - NO INHERITORS

Repeated personification of death shows depth of grief

Struggling to express emotions - DENIAL

“Heir” emphasises amount he’s lost - whole family died with her

“And with my child, my joys are buried” LORD CAPULET A4 S5

Theme: family and duty

Cant be happy again

She was his happiness

Despite arguements, wanted what he thought was best for her

Soul feels dead

Mourns death as if part of himself has died

“with my unworthiest hand this holy shrine, the gentle sin is this” ROMEO A1 S5

Theme: love

Romeo thinks he’s unworthy of Juliet

Romeo shows devotion to Juliet

“Sin” - breaking religious rules - love is overbearing

PETRARCHAN LOVE

“let lips do what hands do” ROMEO A1 S5

Theme: love

Romeo begging Juliet

Hands are not enough

Has to kiss her

Give lips the same privilege as hands

Whole first interaction is 14 lines - sonnet - destined to love - spark connection

“Young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes” FRIAR A2 S3

Theme: love

Friar surprise at Romeo forgetting Rosaline so quickly

Men too focussed on appearance

Love has no depth for them - all entered on appearance/beauty - no honesty/commitment

Young love may be short lived/not true love

Fickle Romeo - loved Rosaline and now Juliet

“Women may fall when there’s no strength in men” FRIAR A2 S3

Theme: love

No wonder women still lose respect

Women will never be faithful when men are so unreliable/their love is so fickle/no depth in relationships

Elizabethan men do not experience true love

“My dismal scene i needs must act alone” JULIET A4 S3

Theme: love

In soliloquy before she takes potion

Knows what she is doing is wrong in religious/societal/familial views but does it for love of Romeo

Will destroy parents lives

Also to escape arranged marriage

“Romeo, Romeo, Romeo - I drink to thee” JULIET A4 S3

Theme: love

Romeo is only thing that gets her through morbid thoughts

Gives her courage to drink potion - despite all horrible alternatives