Examples Of Masculinity In Romeo And Juliet

What does it mean to be masculine, and is there an actual definition of masculinity? Depending on the time period, the answer changes to both of these questions. The denotation of masculinity is having traits traditionally attributed to men. But what are these traits? In Shakespeare’s tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare shows many kinds of men that vary on the spectrum of masculinity. Due to societal pressure, men craved to be the perfect balance of both chivalrous as well as courageous and strong. Being considered ‘effeminate’ was diminishing to one’s sense of self-image. Shakespeare makes it so no man in Romeo and Juliet displays ‘perfect’ qualities. Although Shakespeare shows varying extremes of flawed man, represented by Romeo and Tybalt,

At the Capulet’s masquerade ball, Tybalt spies an uninvited guest: Romeo. Tybalt became enraged and says, “This, by his voice, should be a Montague.— /Fetch me my rapier, boy./What dares the slave/Come hither covered with an antic face/To fleer and scorn at our solemnity?/Now, by the stock and honor of my kin,/To strike him dead, I hold it not a sin” (I. v. 61- 67). Tybalt’s eagerness to fight shows a toxic side of masculinity. In order to protect his reputation as ‘tough guy’, he’s unreasonably aggressive. Tybalt doesn’t think about the consequences of his actions, and Mercutio’s nickname for him, the “Prince of Cats”, fits with his inclination to pounce on anyone who gets on his nerves. He is the personification of hate. These traits eventually lead to his death, portraying that Shakespeare believed these qualities were unbearable. After Tybalt’s death, the Friar tells Romeo of his exile from Verona, and Romeo goes into a state of panic and depression. He believes that Juliet hates him because he killed Tybalt and pleads to Friar Lawrence, “O, tell me, friar, tell me,/In what vile part of this anatomy/Doth my name lodge? tell me, that I may sack/The hateful mansion” (III. iii. 115 - 117). After his exile from Verona, Romeo threatens to kill himself because he’s afraid Juliet won’t love him anymore. His irrational behaviour shows the reader who Romeo is:

The Nurse goes to find Romeo before he had to leave for Mantua. She came to tell him to comfort Juliet, but she finds him in a state of disarray. She says, “O woeful sympathy!/Piteous predicament!/.../Stand up, stand up. Stand an you be a man./For Juliet's sake, for her sake, rise and stand” (III. iii. 96-97). When seeing Romeo’s state, the Nurse compares him to Juliet in his demeanor. Not only does that reduce Romeo’s self esteem and make him feel effeminate, but the reader also sees how the Nurse characterizes a good man. For the Nurse, a good man takes initiative and will go to Juliet to make her feel safe. Hence, if he can’t make Juliet happy, then he is not a proper man. The Friar agrees with her and tries to make Romeo behave like a proper man once again. He reprimands, “Thy noble shape is but a form of wax,/Digressing from the valour of a man/...Thy wit, that ornament to shape and love,/Misshapen in the conduct of them both,/” (III. iii. 136 - 141) In addition to the Nurse’s comments, Friar Laurence is also insinuating what Shakespeare thought a ‘proper man’ should be like. He states that a proper man has qualities such as courage, intelligence, and charm. However, due to Romeo’s rash demeanor, he’s losing those qualities. The Friar states that Romeo is “but a form of wax”, implying that Romeo is but a statue without any of the honor of