Romeo and Juliet
In a nutshell
Romeo and Juliet is a story about fate, conflict and the titular "star-cross'd lovers". One of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedies, you have probably heard of this play already. Or maybe you haven’t paid much attention to it! Either way, in this lesson you’ll be able to review the plot, the main characters and their relationships, and what themes come into play.
Plot summary
Prologue
The Chorus introduces the setting, Verona, and the existing feud between two important families. They also warn us that a pair of star-crossed lovers will die, and with this bury their parents' strife.
Act I
The Montagues and the Capulets hate each other, a hatred which the Prince wants to put an end to.
We meet Romeo, who likes a woman named Rosaline, but she doesn't like him back. His friends, Benvolio and Mercutio, convince him to go to a ball with them to cheer up.
We meet Lord Capulet, who refuses to marry his daughter Juliet to a nobleman called Paris, at least for now. He is the one throwing that big masquerade ball.
When Romeo arrives at the ball, Tybalt, Juliet's cousin, is offended by his presence (Romeo is a Montague!). But Lord Capulet allows Romeo to stay, which angers Tybalt even more. He vows revenge on Romeo.
In the final scene, Scene 5, Juliet and Romeo meet for the first time, and they fall in love! After that, they discover their families are sworn enemies.
Act II
Scene 2 is the famous balcony scene, where Romeo and Juliet speak. They confess their love and vow to set aside their family loyalty to get married in secret. Friar Laurence helps them with this, believing the marriage might help end the feud between the families. They get married in Scene 6. The only ones who know are the Nurse and the Friar.
Act III
Tybalt is looking for Romeo to duel him, but Romeo refuses to, for he is Juliet’s cousin. Tybalt ends up fighting Mercutio instead. Romeo gets in the way, allowing Tybalt to kill Mercutio. Romeo feels responsible and, in revenge, kills Tybalt himself (Scene 1). The Prince exiles Romeo as punishment.
Juliet grieves her cousin, but still loves her husband. Romeo goes to Mantua, away from Verona. Lord Capulet decides to accept Paris' proposal this time and gives him Juliet's hand in marriage, which she refuses completely, causing a rift in her relationship with her father (Scene 5).
Act IV
Juliet tells the Friar, who is to marry her to Paris, what is going on, and the Friar comes up with a plan: to give Juliet a potion that will make her appear dead, and allow Romeo to pick her up once she wakes. But the message he sends to Romeo never arrives, and so Romeo is unaware of the plan. Juliet takes the potion in Scene 3, and is discovered by the Nurse and believed to be dead by everybody in Scene 5.
Act V
Romeo hears about Juliet's death and goes back to Verona with a poison to kill himself. When he arrives to the tomb (Scene 3) he sees Juliet's body, drinks the poison and dies. When Juliet wakes up, she realises what happened, takes Romeo's dagger and stabs herself, dying alongside him. The families arrive, the Friar explains what happened, and finally they make peace.
Characters
Romeo
| Montague's son, uninterested in the feud. He falls in love with Juliet.
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Juliet | Capulet's daughter. Strong-minded and loyal. She falls in love with Romeo.
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Tybalt | Lady Capulet's nephew, Juliet's cousin. He hates all Montagues. He kills Mercutio.
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Lord Capulet | Juliet's father. He cares about her, but ends up being the one who forces her into a marriage with Paris against her will. He is the one who ends the feud with Lord Montague after their children’s untimely deaths.
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NURSE | She has taken care of Juliet her whole life and loves her very much. Likewise, she is the one Juliet confides in.
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FRIAR LAURENCE
| Friend of Romeo. He is the one who marries Romeo and Juliet in secret, and then comes up with the plan of faking Juliet's death.
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Relationships
Romeo ↔ Juliet
They love each other, and this love will mean their deaths. When Romeo is exiled, he believes being away from Juliet is a fate worse than death. And so, when he believes she is dead, he doesn't doubt it, and runs back to Verona to die by her side.
Romeo ↔ Mercutio ↔ Benvolio
Benvolio is Romeo's cousin, and all three: Romeo, Mercutio and Benvolio are good friends.
Juliet ↔ Nurse
They have a mother-daughter relationship. She is the one who finds her "dead" body.
Juliet ↔ Lord Capulet
Lord Capulet is very protective of Juliet, as he shows in the first act when he says that she is too young to be wed. But later, when Juliet refuses to marry Paris, he becomes furious and threatens to disown her.
Themes
Love
From the beginning of the play, we are told this is a story about "lovers". We see love in different situations:
- Unrequited love: Romeo is in love with Rosaline, who does not love him back.
- Love at first sight: Romeo and Juliet fall for each other when they meet at the ball, without even knowing who the other is.
- Friendship: Benvolio, Romeo and Mercutio are very good friends.
- Parental love: between Lord Capulet and Juliet, and also between the Nurse and Juliet.
Fate
In the prologue, Romeo and Juliet are said to be "star-cross'd lovers" and "death-marked". As the audience, we know that they will die, and nothing they do will stop their deaths. This is foreshadowed all throughout the play:
- Romeo talks about an ominous dream that makes him worried about the future.
- Mercutio curses them as he dies in Act 3, Scene 1.
Fate is also intertwined with the use of time in this play. The play's events take place over just five days! This creates momentum: an unstoppable series of events that leads to tragedy.
Conflict
- Conflict between the Montagues and the Capulets.
- Inner character conflict: happens when Juliet realises Romeo is a Montague.
- Inner family conflict: happens when Juliet defies Lord Capulet and refuses to marry Paris.
Key quotations
Act/Scene
| Quotation | Theme
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| Prologue | CHORUS: "From ancient grudge break to new mutiny / Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean"
| Conflict
Their feud is ancient, untouched. Juxtaposition with "ancient grudge" and "new mutiny", a backdrop of violence before play begins. |
| Act 1, Scene 4 | ROMEO: "I fear too early, for my mind misgives / Some consequence yet hanging in the stars" | Fate
Romeo is talking to Mercutio and Benvolio before going to the Capulet ball. He had an ominous dream and feels like something bad, some "consequence", is going to happen and lead to his death. |
| Act 2, Scene 2 | JULIET: "O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? / 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" | Love
Juliet is apostrophising Romeo. "Wherefore" meaning "why" – why does Romeo have to be a Montague? Still, with this, she asks him to put their love above their family loyalty. |
