Key Quotes Flashcards
(19 cards)
“For this alliance may so happy prove,
To turn your households’ rancour to pure love”
(Friar Lawrence, Act 2 scene 2) Shows how he believes that Romeo and Juliet’s love may lead to the two households finally uniting and absolving their “rancour”. Uses technique of foreshadowing to resonate with the preternatural beliefs of the period. It shows how the relationship between Romeo and Juliet acts as a sacrifice in order to unite the families. Shakespeare criticises how families appeared to care more about the families’ reputation and status rather than the individuals in the family
“Two households, both alike in dignity”
(Prologue) Shows that despite the Montague and Capulet households sharing similarities, they endlessly feud.
“A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life”
(Prologue) Fate - Romeo and Juliet are destined to perish and the audience are made aware of that from the beginning, which leaves us wondering what their hamartia’s are. Links to a preternatural, divine power that is present throughout the play.
“She hath not seen the change of fourteen years”
(Lord Capulet, Act 1 Scene 2) Lord C is a nonconformist - he deviates from the social norms we would expect from an Elizabethan patriarch, believing Juliet too young to marry.
“Earth hath swallowed all my hopes but she”
(Lord Capulet, Act 1 Scene 2) Personification shows his fatherly protectiveness taking course, however later contrasts with his sudden change in attitude (Act 3 Scene 5)
[About marriage] “It is an honour that I dream not of”
(Juliet, Act 1 Scene 3) Shows her heroine nature: she is strong-headed and mature despite her age (contrasts Romeo), but also emphasises her youth as she sees herself not yet fit to marry.
“O, I am fortune’s fool”
(Romeo) Fate - Romeo believes he is merely a jocular being acting as humour for a divine power. Fricative alliteration creates a sense of mystery and supernatural, meanwhile the caesura adds emotional weight to the sentence, causing the audience to resonate with and feel a sense of empathy towards him.
“But, soft, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.”
(Romeo) Romeo speaks in hyperbolic language (blazons) to describe Juliet. “The sun” and “light” create a semantic field of hope and beauty emphasised by natural essence, that Juliet is the new light to contrast Romeo’s feelings towards Rosaline. Alternatively, the metaphor could be interpreted as symbolic to the transience of their relationship, as the “sun will set” and their relationship will fall apart/they die.
“O brawling love, O loving hate”
(Romeo, Act 1 Scene 1) Here Romeo speaks in oxymoronic language to convey his inner turmoil stemming from his Petrarchan love towards Rosaline. Both Romeo and Juliet speak in oxymoronic language throughout the play to represent the struggle between the conflict and their love.
“A plague O’ both your houses”
(Mercutio) Idiom - Mercutio blames both the families for his imminent death. He, like the audience, is frustrated with the constant battling. The noun “plague” emphasises the destructive nature of the relationship, and how it causes tragedy for others, such as Mercutio himself.
“These violent delights have violent ends”
(Friar Lawrence) Fate - even the Friar, who helps the couple, is aware of their inevitable destinies of doom. The repetition of “violent” foreshadows the nature in which the two character perish, and links to the overarching theme of conflict. The phrase “violent delights” emphasises its impulsiveness, and how it is short-lasting. Additionally, the second usage of “violent” shows despite the small, ephemeral relationship, it causes huge repercussions for all.
“To strike him dead I hold it not a sin”
(Tybalt about Romeo) Shows his belligerent, bellicose nature. “Sin” connotes religious imagery, how Tybalt is so loathing towards Montagues that he believes killing Romeo is just and morally correct.
“Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace”
(Prince Escalus, Act 1 Scene 1) Assonance and repeated short vowel sounds heightens tension, emphasising the Prince’s resentment towards the conflict and the two households. “Rebellious” suggests they disregard his instructions, a heterodoxy.
“Out, you baggage!” “Disobedient wretch!”
(Lord Capulet, Act 3 Scene 5) He has become the antithesis of himself; he becomes enraged towards Juliet for disobeying his orders. Becomes the dichotomy of his former metaphorical description of Juliet. This is because of the patriarchal society, that there is a high societal expectation wherein he is expected to control his daughter, so forces her into marriage.
“My only love sprung from my only hate”
(Juliet, Act 1 Scene 5) Juliet juxtaposes the ideas of love and hate to convey the plight she faces due to loving a Montague. Repetition of “only” suggests she is loyal, yet faces turmoil due to the family feud.
“Happy dagger”
(Juliet, Act 5 Scene 3) The oxymoronic language represents a cyclical structure: the same lexical techniques are used at the end of her life, conveying a message that the love has done no good. Adjective “happy” suggests Juliet is embracing death in order to be with Romeo again.
“Love is heavy and light, bright and dark, hot and cold, sick and healthy, asleep and awake - its everything except what it is!”
(Romeo, Act 1 Scene 1) Repetition of metaphorical oxymoronic language represents Romeo’s inner turmoil. Also shows how love in the play is not as it appears, it foreshadows Juliet’s father and mother not actually feeling love for her, even the Nurse’s allowing of her to marry Romeo, causing us to see that her family did not really love her.
“I defy you, stars!”
(Romeo, Act 1 scene 1) The celestial imagery alludes to the prologue of the play (syntactical inevitability), as we know Romeo’s fate and thus, we as an audience know Romeo will not defy the “stars”. Additionally, the “stars” could represent God, showing the extremities Romeo is willing to go to for his love for Juliet.
