Select one of the characters from the streets of Verona and explain his or her most salient character trait. Provide at least one passage from the story to demonstrate this. Here is an example for Paris.
Pompous Paris
"Happily met, my lady and my wife" (IV.i.18)
Paris thinks that Juliet is very excited and happy to be marrying him. He thinks that Juliet should be gratful for being able to marry him. In some ways Paris is narcissistic, he is very full of himself. When Juliet replies to Paris's comment, she says,"That may be, sir, when I may be a wife" ( IV.i.19) Juliet statement was directed towards Friar Lawerence, but Paris thought she was talking to him. Paris goes on about how happy she will be once they are husband and wife, not even considering what Juliet has to say. He is narcissistic, he it is always about him and how wonderful he is. Paris does not realy care what Juliet thinks, he looks at thier marriage as a business deal--a business deal that will benefit him. He truly is Pompous Paris.
Wait, do we have to do one character for the house of Montague, the house of Capulet, and someone from the streets? Or do we just pick one of the three?
ReplyDeleteFriar Lawrence is understanding to a fault.
ReplyDeleteFriar: In one respect I'll thy assistant be;
for this alliance may so happy prove
to turn your households rancor to pure love.
Romeo: O, let us hence! I stand on sudden haste.
Friar: Wisely and slowly. They stumble that run fast.
(II, iii, 90-94)
This passage, in which Friar Lawrence is consenting to marry Romeo and Juliet, shows Friar's unreasonable ability to understand. Friar thinks that Romeo's plans are hasty and ill advised, yet he agrees to marry them because he sees their eagerness. Friar understands what Romeo is feeling and sympathizes with Romeo's situation. He also hopes that this will quell the fued between the two families because he has a reltion with both. Even though he thinks that they are too impulsive, he still marries tham. Friar Lawrence's own doubt is overcome by his understanding, ehich he expresses through the last line in this passage.
Friar Lawrence is hypocritical
ReplyDeleteII.iii.15-16.
“O, mickle is the powerful grace that lies
In plants, herbs, stones, and their true qualities”
II.iiiiii.35-37
“Come, come with me, and we will make short work;
For, by your leaves, you shall not stay alone
Till Holy Church incorporate two in one.”
Friar Lawrence is hypocritical because he chose a life of faith and worship, but surrounds himself with plants and science. He also lied to the Capulets by saying that Juliet is to be married by him to Paris. Which he then gave Juliet a poison to stop her heart temporarily. So clearly he has some knowledge in alchemy, to have the confidence that the poison will not kill Juliet.
Friar Lawrence is a very neutral character. He does not choose sides between the Montagues and the Capulets. He wants what is best for Verona. This is seen when he says," For this alliance may so happy prove
ReplyDeleteTo turn your households' rancor to pure love," (II.iii.98-99). This shows that the only reason he is consenting to marrying Romeo and Juliet is in the hopes of ending the feud between the families. He has a really nice way of talking to everyone the same and treating everyone equally. He is always willing to help someone who comes to his cell in search of assistance or good advice.
Deceiving Friar Lawrence
ReplyDelete“For this, being smelt, with that part cheers each part;
Being tasted stays all senses with the heart.” (II, iii.27-28)
Friar Lawrence is a priest that Romeo is very close with, as close, if not closer than Juliet and the nurse. Since he has the title of priest you would expect him to be very religious and follow the laws and rules of God and his faith but he does not do this. He agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet when he knew that he and the nurse were the only people to know of the arrangement and yet, married them. He also refers to drugs and drug use when he is speaking in the morning in act two. Another un-priest like thing he did was give Juliet a vial that would make her fall into a deep sleep, let her family think she was dead, then she would run away with Romeo. This is what is so deceiving about Friar Lawrence, his title makes you think of him as a very religious and well mannered man when this is not completely true.
Mad Mercutio
ReplyDelete"Help me into some house, Benvolio,
Or I shall faint. A plague a both your houses!
They have made worms' meat of me. I have it,
And soundly too. Your houses!" (III,i. 107-110)
In this story, Mercutio starts off as impartial to either family. Although he is much closer to Romeo, he does not hate the Capulets, as evidence by his invitation to their party. Throughout the book, he is a good friend to Romeo. However, Romeo never told Mercutio of the marriage of Juliet and him. So when Tybalt attempted to fight Romeo and Romeo refused to defend himself, Mercutio stepped in. Romeo tried to hold Mercutio back, and Mercutio was stabbed by Tybalt in the process. Suddenly, he displayed a hatred for Romeo as well as Tybalt. Mercutio believed that both of them are responsible for his death. That is why he wishes a curse on both their houses in this quote. He becomes so angry because he is dying. He becomes very mad and hates them both.
Mercutio is mad at Romeo.
ReplyDelete“O calm, dishonorable, vile submission!
Alla stoccato carries it away.
Tybalt, you ratcatcher, will you walk?
(III, i, 74-76)
In this story, Mercutio is very close with Romeo. Mercutio starts to tease Tybalt when Romeo arrives after secretly marrying Juliet. When Romeo won’t fight with Tybalt, Mercutio starts to get really ticked off. Then Mercutio gets so mad that he starts fighting with Tybalt, who wants to fight with Romeo. This shows that Mercutio has a short temper.
Mercutio has such a strong personality.
ReplyDelete"A plague on both your houses!" (III, i, 90)
Mercutio may be close to Romeo, and he could even be close to some people in the Capulet's family, but death can bring out the strongest feelings in the strongest of us, and Mercutio is no exception. He is the only reason Romeo ever met Juliet, and he wished a plague on their houses before his death. This plague he wished upon them may have come true in the form of the children dying, and so Mercutio's strong heart plays a large part in the story.
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ReplyDeleteMagnificent Mercutio~ While he has no direct connection to the fued, Mercutio is loyal to his best friends, the Montagues. However, at the same time still has connections to the Capulets. Yet when it comes down to it, he will die for Romeo and that is where his heart lies. "O Romeo, Romeo, brave Mercutio is dead. That gallant spirit hath aspired the clouds." (III, i, 121-122) He was willing to die for a matter that didn't concern him. What an honorable man.
ReplyDeleteCrazy Mercutio
ReplyDeleteMercutio, throughout the book, makes odd, rash decisions and goes on about meaningless things. A good example is this quote from right before he dies.
“TYBALT: Mercutio, thou consortest with Romeo.
MERCUTIO: Consort? What, dost thou make us minstrels? And thou make minstrels of us; look to hear nothing but discords. Here’s my fiddlestick; here’s that shall make you dance. Zounds, consort!” (III, i, 46-50)
Why, if Mercutio is impartial to the feud between the Montegues and Capulets, is he acting so hostile to Tybalt? Its like he’s trying to get Tybalt angry. Not to mention his entire speech on Queen Mab, (I, iv, 58-100) which goes on and on about someone who he claims not to believe in. He gets very worked up over things like dreams and conflict, making me think he’s a little crazy. He also tries to fight Tibet simply because Romeo wont. His impulsive decisions end up getting himself, and eventually Tybalt, killed.
Nurturing Nurse
ReplyDelete“On Lammas Eve at night shall she be fourteen.
That shall she. Marry, I remember it well.”
(I.iii.23-24)
“Thou wast the prettiest babe that e’er I nursed.
An I might live to see thee married once,
I have my wish.”
(I.iii.65-67)
“Hie to your chamber. I’ll find Romeo
To comfort you. I wot well where he is.
Hark you, you Romeo will be here at night.”
(III.iii.151-153)
As the excerpts from the play demonstrate and hint, the Nurse has a sweet, kind, loving nature. In one of the scenes mentioned above, where Juliet, Lady Capulet and the Nurse discuss Juliet’s age and how she should soon become a bride, we understand the connection between the Nurse and her. From the time Juliet was very little the Nurse had been there to watch her make mistakes and be there to comfort her. She had no kids of her own to care for, so Juliet took on that role and the Nurse wholeheartedly took on the role of a motherly figure the girl needed. When she talks about nursing Juliet, we are reminded just how much of a mother’s job she carried out. Through the duration of the play, we truly understand how much she cares for Juliet as if she was her own flesh and blood. She takes a personal interest in everything Juliet does and only wishes for the girl to be happy. Unlike Lady Capulet, the Nurse sees things through the eyes of Juliet and her actions are conducted with Juliet in mind, as shown when the Nurse ran to get Romeo as Juliet wept over his banishment. The Nurse, like any maternal figure does what is best for their child, and is also a friend, a partner in crime, whom Juliet can confide in. She is sincerely a person who has Juliet’s back and is very nurturing.
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ReplyDeletePeaceful Prince
ReplyDelete"Throw your mistempered weapons to the ground
And hear the sentence of your moved prince.
Three civil brawls, bred of an airy word
By thee, old Capulet, and Montague,
Have thrice disturbed the quiet of our streets" (I.i.90-94)
Throughout this book the Prince is constantly breaking up fights between the Capulets and Montagues. He gives warnings at first, but when the law is disobeyed he has no choice but to punish the citizens. For example, when there was the street fight in Act I he gave both the Capulets and Montagues a warning of what would happen if they did it again.
Prince: "If ever you disturb our streets again, your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace." (I.i. 99-100).
Later in Act III when Tybalt and Mercutio are murdered, the Prince punishes Romeo. The Prince had taken pity on Romeo however. Because Romeo had fled, the Prince chose to just banish him from Verona instead of chasing him down and killing him.
Finally, in the last scene in Act IV after Romeo and Juliet killed themselves, the Prince shows up along with the watchmen and families to find out what happened. He concludes this tragedy by saying:
"A glooming peace this morning with it brings.
The sun for sorrow will not show his head.
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things;
Some shall be pardoned, and some punished;
For never was a story of more woe
Than this of Juliet and her Romeo." (V.iii.305-310)
Overall, the Prince is able to stay cool and collected even when he is cleary frustrated with the two families. He handles each situation as fair as possible, and tries his hardest to promote peace.
Friar isn't the ideal priest
ReplyDeleteFriar, the priest for both the Capulets and the Montagues, is a very different kind of priest. He studies the power of the Earth through herbs and plants, something that most priests of that time would think to be witchcraft, and uses it for helping Juliet. When Juliet comes to Friar, she is distraught, she threatens to kill herself because she does not want to marry Paris, and she doesn't want to live without Romeo. So, in remembering his studies in plants, Friar recalls a plant that can fake death. He quickly tells her this, stopping her suicide attempt, and he continues to say that if she is willing to risk the chances the remedy brings, he will give it to her. She immediately tells him that she would rather jump off a building than marry Paris, so just give he the remedy. So, in creating the plan he tells her
Hold then; go home, be merry, give consent
To marry Paris: Wednesday is to-morrow;
Tomorrow night look that thou lie alone,
Let not thy nurse lie with thee in thy chamber:
Take thou this vial, being then in bed,
And this distilled liquor drink thou off:
When, presently, though all thy veins shall run
A cold and drowsy humor;
for no pulse... (IV i 89-96)
Friar tells Juliet to lie to her parents, then lie to the world by telling them she is dead. Something that a priest would never approve of. A true priest would have told Juliet to talk to her parents. A real priest wouldn't have wed Romeo and Juliet in the first place. But if Friar hadn't done this, there wouldn't be much of a story then? Friar is a vital part in the tragedy of these lovers. He not only fuels their ambitions because they know that he will help them, but because he DID wed them, when they were getting married out of pure impulse, and the knowledge of a day. Yes, he did try to warn them, but he never did anything to stop the collision course that this couple had to death.
Friar Lawrence is sneaky, but for good cause.
ReplyDelete"O, she knew well
Thy love did ready by rote, that could not spell.
But come, young waverer, come, go with me.
In one respect I'll thy assistant be,
For this alliance may so happy prove
To turn your households' rancor to pure love." (II.iii.94-99)
Friar Lawrence wants to end the feud between the houses of Capulet and Montague, and believes marrying Romeo and Juliet will be the way to do this. He wants what is best for both houses and for his friend Romeo. Even though this requires going behind the family members’ backs, Friar agrees to Romeo’s request.
“In the meantime, against thou shalt awake,
Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift,
And hither shall he come, and he and I
Will watch thy waking, and that very night
Shall Romeo bear thee hence to Mantua.
And this shall free thee from this present shame,
If no inconstant toy nor womanish fear
Abate thy valor in the acting it.” (IV.i.115-122)
When Juliet threatens with suicide, Friar Lawrence decides to help Juliet run away to Mantua to be with Romeo. Juliet’s parents do not approve of the Montague’s, so Friar is taking a large risk in trying to allow Juliet to escape. Friar does all that he can to help these young lovers prosper, which shows possibility for failed love in his own past. Unfortunately, as we know, the friar’s plans do not carry out as hoped. The entire time, however, he had truly good intentions and wanted to help Romeo and Juliet.
Manic Mercutio
ReplyDeleteThroughout the story, Mercutio seems to be somewhat bipolar, and his personality changes, from being a wise yet eccentric guy, to a kid who makes rash decisions. For example:
“O calm, dishonorable, vile submission!
Alla stoccato carries it away.
Tybalt, you ratcatcher, will you walk?"
III, i, 74-76
He shows his readiness to fight, but the scene immediately after (in which he dies) he shows his spite for Romeo and contradicts his own feelings. Mercutio's personality is all over the place and a bit manic.