Act 2, Scene 2 Flashcards
It is my lady; O, it is my love!
The caesura represents the fractiousness of Romeo’s love-smitten mind as he struggles to find the appropriate words to express his love. The nouns he uses to describe Juliet increase in intensity ‘lady’ then ‘love’ and it is foregrounded by the repetition of ‘it is my’. It creates the sense that Romeo has the same thoughts constantly going through his mind. ‘O’ is an exclamatory opening highlighting the depth of his emotions and thoughts
O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?
This quote shows the intensity of her love as she is lamenting why Romeo must be a Montague and she a Capulet. The repetition of ‘Romeo’ emphasises her emotions as Romeo is both lexically and literally at the foreground of her thoughts. She is shown as quite a powerful character as she demands him to give up his. Name so they can freely be together
Wert thou as far / As that vast shore wash’d with the farthest sea, / I should adventure for such merchandise
This metaphor is a romantic comment on Romeo’s love as he will seek Juliet out no matter what. However, ‘merchandise’ undermines the romantic sentiment as he objectifies Juliet and thus adheres to stereotypes of Elizabethan male-female power dynamics. It also makes Romeo the active lover and Juliet passive
He jests at scars that never felt a wound
Romeo points out the ease with which Benvolio and Mercutio, who have never loved, make fun of his. This highlights the opposition between lovers and non-lovers within the play. However, it displays Romeo’s naivety as he perceives himself to be the only one that has loved when in actual fact, they may be more experienced in these matters
Deny thy father and refuse they name; / Or, if thousands wilt not, be but sworn my love, / And I’ll no longer be a Capulet
These lines highlight the main issue facing the couple - the fact that he is a Montague and she a Capulet and therefore sworn enemies. The lexical field of negotiation (‘deny’, ‘refuse’) foregrounds the tensions and oppositions underpinning their relationship and shows Juliet as quite a strong, powerful character due to here use of strong verbs
If they do see thee, they will murder thee
This emphasises the serious threat posed to Romeo by the Capulets if he is found. The use of the intimate pronoun ‘thee’ juxtaposed with the verb ‘murder’ emphasises this
‘The orchard walls are high and hard to climb; / And the place death, considering who thou art, / If any of my kinsmen find thee here
The ‘walls’ could perhaps act as a metaphor for the obstacles that surround their love as they surmount them but at great cost (their lives). The ominous reference to death foreshadows the tragic ending of the play and somewhat overshadows the frivolity and young love that underpins the scene
Juliet is the sun / bright angel / winged messenger of heaven
Throughout the play, Romeo deifies her and always calls her his superior, suggesting he isn’t worthy of her.
My life were better ended by their hate, Than death prorogued, wanting of thy love.
Romeo would rather die quickly from her kinsman’s swords that die a slow death waiting for her love, using the juxtaposition between ‘hate’ and ‘love’ to emphasise this
Or if thou think’st I am too quickly won, I’ll frown and be perverse, and say thee nay,
Juliet is essentially saying to Romeo that if she seems to be falling too easily, tell her, and she will play hard to get which shows how inexperienced she is in these matters compared to Romeo as she unsure how to behave during courting, despite being with someone she clearly loves dearly
O swear not by the moon, th’ inconstant moon, That monthly changes in her circl’d orb, Lest that thy love prove likewise variable.
Juliet doesn’t want to Romeo to swear his love on the moon as it is ever-changing so she fears that if he did, his love for her would forever be ever-changing despite her constantly deep feelings for him. This shows the extent of her feelings for him as well as Elizabethan beliefs at the time as the moon was a symbol of inconstancy
O if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self, Which is the god of my idolatry
Juliet is essentially saying that Romeo is now her God / idol which would be considered blasphemous as she is rejecting the Christian idea that there is only one true god. It therefore, still highlights her slight naivety and perhaps immaturity as she doesn’t think of the consequences of her words or actions
It is too rash, too unadvis’d, too sudden,
Juliet is shown to be the pragmatic, reasonable and responsible one in this situation whilst Romeo is the one overcome with emotions therefore they are both rejecting traditional stereotypes. She is rightly worries that they are perhaps going too quickly, having known each other for all of an hour yet she quickly retracts her statement by proposing marriage the next day which he quickly agrees to, showing she accepts a life with Romeo as his equal. Juliet actually has more lines than Romeo in the act showing she isn’t subdued by him
