Romeo and Juliet Final

Flashcards for english final

Romeo Montague

Role: Male protagonist; son of Lord and Lady Montague.

Traits: Passionate, impulsive, romantic, emotional.

Relationships: In love with and secretly marries Juliet; cousin to Benvolio; close friend to Mercutio.

Themes: Impulsive love, fate vs. free will, youthful rebellion, tragic flaw (impulsivity).

Juliet Capulet

Role: Female protagonist; daughter of Lord Capulet.

Traits: Intelligent, loyal, strong-willed, romantic.

Relationships: In love with and secretly marries Romeo; cousin to Tybalt; pressured by her father to marry Paris.

Themes: Forbidden love, loyalty vs. family duty, individual desire vs. societal expectations.

Friar Lawrence

Role: Franciscan friar; spiritual advisor to Romeo and Juliet.

Traits: Wise, hopeful, well-meaning but flawed in execution.

Relationships: Marries Romeo and Juliet; devises the potion plan; mentor to Romeo.

Themes: Consequences of secrecy, the limits of well-intentioned actions, fate and intervention.

Friar John

Role: Messenger tasked with delivering Friar Lawrence’s letter to Romeo.

Traits: Loyal but ultimately ineffective.

Themes: Fate, missed communication, human error.

Benvolio Montague

Role: Romeo’s cousin and friend.

Traits: Peacekeeper, rational, loyal.

Relationships: Tries to mediate the family feud and support Romeo.

Themes: Peace vs. violence, rationality in the face of chaos.

Mercutio

Role: Romeo’s best friend; kinsman to Prince Escalus.

Traits: Witty, imaginative, sarcastic, hot-tempered.

Relationships: Loyal to Romeo; provoked and killed by Tybalt.

Themes: Fate (“a plague o’ both your houses”), chaos vs. control, masculinity and pride.

Tybalt Capulet

Role: Juliet’s cousin; antagonist.

Traits: Aggressive, hot-headed, vengeful.

Relationships: Hates Montagues; kills Mercutio; killed by Romeo.

Themes: Family honor, violence and revenge, pride.

Count Paris

Role: Nobleman favored by the Capulets as Juliet’s suitor.

Traits: Respectful, entitled, unaware of Juliet’s secret marriage.

Relationships: Loved by Juliet's parents; killed by Romeo.

Themes: Arranged marriage, societal expectations vs. personal choice.

Balthasar

Role: Romeo’s loyal servant.

Traits: Devoted, obedient.

Relationships: Brings Romeo the (false) news of Juliet’s death.

Themes: Miscommunication, tragic fate.

Lord Capulet

Role: Juliet’s father.

Traits: Authoritative, temperamental, prideful.

Relationships: Forces Juliet toward marriage with Paris; his rigid control pushes her toward rebellion.

Themes: Parental control, generational conflict, societal pressure.

Lady Montague

Role: Romeo’s mother.

Traits: Loving, fragile.

Relationships: Dies from grief after Romeo’s exile.

Themes: Family love, grief, emotional consequences of conflict.

Prince Escalus

Role: Prince of Verona; authority figure.

Traits: Just, stern, frustrated by violence.

Relationships: Related to Mercutio and Paris; punishes both families.

Themes: Law and order, consequences of civil unrest, justice.

“A plague o’ both your houses! They have made worms’ meat of me. I have it, And soundly too. Your houses!”

Mercutio → Romeo and Tybalt

“These violent delights have violent ends, And in their triumph die, like fire and powder Which as they kiss consume.”

Friar Lawrence → Romeo

“Young men's love then lies Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes.”

Friar Lawrence → Romeo

• Young men often fall in love due to looks rather than personality.

“Care keeps his watch in every old Man's eye,
And where unbruised youth with unstuffed brain Doth couch his limbs, their golden sleep doth reign.”

Friar Lawrence → Romeo

• Older people can’t sleep well because they have worries ("care").

• But young people, who don’t have heavy thoughts, sleep deeply and peacefully.

“Come, come with me, and we will make short work:
For, by your leaves, you shall not stay alone Till Holy Church incorporates two into one.”

Friar Lawrence → Romeo and Juliet

• What he tells Romeo and Juliet when they are secretly married.

“Is it even so? then I defy you, stars!”

Romeo → himself

• He is overwhelmed by Juliet’s death and does not want to accept it.

“My only love sprung from my only hate!”

Juliet → herself

• Her “true love” is from the enemies of her family

“It is the east, and Juliet is the sun!”

Romeo → himself during the balcony scene

• Compares Juliet to the rising sun in the east, bringing light and warmth. He means Juliet brightens his world and is the center of his life.

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite.”

Juliet → Romeo on the balcony

• Her love for Romeo is endless