Romeo and Juliet is one of the most known works of William Shakespeare. At this time though, William Shakespeare was only 35. The true talent of William Shakespeare really comes through in the techniques he uses in his work. The way he shares the vows through the characters Romeo and Juliet is proof of this. The Balcony Scene is almost one of the most remembered scenes but also is misplayed. To properly analyze the play we first need to see what has happened. After having a broken heart from Rosaline, Romeo seems a bit depressed and so Mercutio takes him to the Capulet’s party. He then meets Juliet and is amazed by her beauty. They then find out that they are from rival families. After the party, they then exchange vows of their love while Juliet is at an elevated window.
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Romeo is seen to climb up the Capulet’s wall and to see Juliet, showing that he actually loves her and the determination to see her. There is proof in the way he speaks to her and also the way he acts. Juliet tells Romeo “If they do see thee, they will murder thee.” He was risking his life to see a woman that he has just met. On the other hand, some may think that Romeo is only a one-moment person. By this, I mean that he doesn’t really think about the future but thinks about that moment. Therefore, he doesn’t put into consideration the risks and the benefits of his situations but acts before he thinks.
Before Romeo makes himself known Juliet, he compares Juliet to the light while thinking to himself. Light is important to life. Without light, the night will be dark. He shows the potential importance that Juliet can have on Romeo’s life. He then says, “Juliet is the sun.” The significance of this is that in the 16th Century, many of the time believed the sun was major to life. Just as the Earth needs the sun to orbit, Romeo needed Juliet to orbit around. “Bright Angel” is also said to describe Juliet. Romeo could have been saying that not only was she kind, pure and beautiful but she was good enough to be a spiritual being. It also has religious connotations, angels are said to be higher than humans and worshipped. This might mean that Romeo is worshipping her. Before he appears to Juliet, he also says that he would like to be “a glove upon that hand”. He was saying that even though there may be a chance that he cannot be with her, he wouldn’t mind being the glove on her hand because he felt that they were made to be together.
He seems to feel as though Juliet is someone to be worshiped. He seems to bow down to her and feel that he is not good enough for her just like some religions believe they are not good enough for their gods. He also comes under the self-delusion that he can do anything. Not only has he climbed over the Capulet’s Wall to see Juliet, he also has the nerve to just wait there talking to himself even though he may get caught. This shoes just like how many religious people risk their lives for worship and beliefs, Romeo is staying so that he can worship Juliet
We have now discussed Romeo but there is more than one character to the scene and there are always two sides to a story. Before Romeo makes comes out of hiding, she says one the most famous lines in the whole play. “O Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?” meaning “Why does he have to be Romeo?” This is because they are from rival families and she just wanted it not to be like this and wanted him to be another person but with the same looks. She also says “Tis but thy name that is my enemy.” She doesn’t think that Romeo is the enemy but it is that he comes from the family of the Montague. She then adds that she hopes he was named “some other name.” She wants to be with him but she can’t because of their families. If he had another name, they can be together. She uses the metaphor of a rose, if it was not called a rose; it will still smell as sweet. If Romeo changed his name, he will still be as sweet and as kind as before. Juliet tries to say that just because Romeo has a certain name doesn’t change the type of person he is; he will still be the same polite, lovable person. Juliet speaks with a lot of maturity for a girl of her age, talking about advanced concepts such as love but she is still a thirteen year old teenager and whines and argues.
From this scene, we can gain a lot from the speech that Romeo and Juliet say to each other. Romeo says “Call me but love and I’ll be new baptized.” He is so desperate to be with Juliet that he will rather get baptized again with another name than be alone. He would resort to this with just Juliet saying she is in love with him. His name is “hateful to “himself “because it is hateful to thee.” He hates his name for the fact that that she hates his name for being a Montague. He then adds that he climbed the wall because of “love’s light wings”. He shows that he had no trouble climbing the wall to see Juliet because it was love that moved him to do it. He finally compares her to merchandise. He says he would have had to go to a “vast shore … for such merchandise.” The 16th century was full of trading and traveling. Many voyagers would travel to faraway lands to trade items of the British for their merchandise. Some have said that the further they went and the more remote the place was, the more exotic and exciting their returns were. Romeo would have sacrificed anything, to be with Juliet. On the other hand, you may say that he wants to own Juliet. Also in the 1500 women who were married were to be the property of their husband. Some people who may have watched this play may have thought as Romeo wanting to own her because he wanted power and not because he was in love with her.
When Juliet sees Romeo in the Orchard, she warns him that the “orchard walls are high and hard to climb and the place of death considering who thou art.” She wouldn’t want him to die for her sake. She would wants him to be alive and so that, at least, she will be able to see him. She knew that if he was seen, that would be his grave and she will not be able to see him alive. She then reiterates that point by saying “if they see thee they will murder thee.” She really wants him. The question is, does Romeo really mean it?
In the scene there is a nurse who plays a very small part. She warns when Lady Capulet comes. This saves the life of both for a period of time. She also represents reality. She makes the story feel less like a fairy tale and more of with a true story.
Romeo has just has his heart broken by Rosaline and he will probably be upset by the way that “her beauty will be wasted.” Romeo may have wanted to be with Juliet to make Rosaline jealous. He may have wanted to show that he had moved on but she hadn’t even though he may not have wanted to be in this relationship because they had just met. Comparing the two, they seem to talk of different things. Romeo seems to compliment Juliet with her beauty, personality and looks while Juliet talks of the risks that Romeo is taken to be with her.
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By use of dramatic irony, Shakespeare enhances the idea that Romeo and Juliet are deeply in love with each other. The nurse uses dramatic irony when she tells Juliet of Tybalt’s death by only telling her “we are undone, lady, we are undone! Alack the day! He’s gone, he’s killed, he’s dead.” She purposely leaves out a name, and because of this Juliet fears it’s Romeo. She cries “o Romeo, Romeo! Whoever would’ve thought it? Romeo! O break my heart! Poor bank rout, break at once! Vile earth, to earth resign, end motion here, and thou and Romeo press one heavy bier!” at this terrible news. By doing this, Shakespeare shows how Juliet would feel if Romeo actually died in the battle. She is so terrified of Romeo’s death, that she almost disregards the fact that Tybalt, her kin, had been killed. Juliet thinks of Romeo as someone closer than even her Capulet family and his well-being is everything to her.
Lady Capulet’s misunderstanding of Juliet’s feelings is also ironic. She believes Juliet is “evermore weeping for [her] cousin’s death,” when she sees her sorrow. Juliet admits she is grieving because of Romeo, but leaves it ambiguous whether if she is grieving about him killing Tybalt, or him not staying with her, saying only “god pardon him! I do, with all my heart; and yet no man like he doth grieve my heart.” This allows her to confess her love without drawing suspicion from her mother.
Romeo becomes part of the terrible consequences of dramatic irony when he believes Juliet has died. He does not know the plan created by Friar Lawrence, and kills himself when seeing her dead. This sad twist is perhaps the most important usage in the whole play, in demonstrating Romeo’s love. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to show how essential Juliet is to Romeo, and how powerful their love is. Dramatic irony is used in Romeo and Juliet to allow the reader to see how the characters truly feel. This mainly pertains to the romance between Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare skillfully utilizes this literary device to develop understanding of their relationship.
William Shakespeare uses a wide range of techniques to show technical and dramatic innovations. From the use of elevation in the scene to the effective metaphors used to describe Juliet’s beauty and the strength of the love between her and Romeo. We see that this part of the play is vital to the development of these two pivotal characters of the play, we learn a lot about their personalities and the small differences present in their behavior. It also shows there emotional development and how serious they take their relationship. Romeo does not talk in prose but in a poetic sense, something Shakespeare has used in all his literary works to differentiate between classes of people. This scene is what sets off the legendary love story between Romeo and Juliet and the unfortunate tragedy that befalls them at the end, it would have been a very different story had the two not exchanged their feelings of affection in this scene and it is what sets up the rest of the plot.
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