Examples Of Violence In Romeo And Juliet

Violence, impulsiveness, anger. These are the three traits that all humans share, and that ultimately lead to their downfall. Throughout history, humans have evolved from animals into civilized humans, yet we still possess the primitive instinct solve problems through violence. William Shakespeare, a playwright, portrays civil humans in animalistic ways, as he uses violence to point out the evil within humans. In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the use of violence highlights the fact that humans are inherently evil, as the characters impulsively use violence to vent anger, exact revenge, and defend honour.

Firstly, violence is used as a tool to vent anger. One prime example of this is that in the very first conversation of the play,

Because of self-honour, Abram does not tolerate Sampson’s action and challenges them to fight. Another example of when a character defends honour is when Mercutio stands up for Romeo. This happens when Tybalt challenges Romeo, Romeo refuses to duel, and Mercutio says, “O calm, dishonourable, vile submission! / ‘Alla stoccata’ carries it away. [Draws] / Tybalt, you rat-catcher, will you walk?” (III.i.70-72). This quote shows that after Romeo disagrees with dueling, Mercutio, his good friend, stands up for him instead. This proves that disgracing honour is an action that humans are unable to tolerate, as Mercutio can not put up with Romeo’s honour being tarnished. Another important time where honour was being defended was when Paris saw Romeo at churchyard, he whispers, “And here is come to do some villainous shame / To the dead bodies. I will apprehend him.” (V.iii.52-53). This quote shows that Paris is a noble man, as he is standing up for the honour of the Capulet corpses, yet he rashfully decides to fight Romeo despite not knowing Romeo’s real intentions for coming. Hence, humans impulsively use violence as a way to defend the honour of themselves and