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The relationship between Mercutio and Romeo
Explore the character of mercutio in romeo and juliet
Contrast between romeo and mercutio
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In the renowned play "Romeo and Juliet" written by William Shakespeare, we follow the path of two star-crossed lovers in fair Verona. As we go with them, we explore the world through their eyes and encounter important characters. A pivotal character in the play is Mercutio. He brings in his down-to-earth personality and the themes of antagonism, honour and humour. Mercutio plays an important role in the whole love story of "Romeo and Juliet".
Mercutio is an anti-romantic character even though his friend Romeo and him share different beliefs and traits. Even though he is a good friend of Romeo, he can never be trusted enough for people to tell him little secrets or private matters. Mercutio is antagonistic towards Tybalt however underneath
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The first sight of his mockery and anti-romantic beliefs are found in Act 1 Scene 4. In this scene, Mercutio is mocking Romeo for his notation of romantic union by saying "If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking and you beat love down."(1.4.27-28). This reinforces the previously made image that Mercutio is anti-romantic and that everybody has different views. In this case, Mercutio regards love as a physical pursuit whilst Romeo is an immature, inexperienced lover who is innocent and young. Mercutio is a neutral character in the feud between the two sides and he brings humour to the city during the war. Not only that, Mercutio possesses immense loyalty. When Mercutio hears of Tybalt's challenge to Romeo, he is amused because he regards Romeo as a lover and not a fighter. He asks "Is he such a man to encounter Tybalt?" (2.4.15-16). As Mercutio has a strong sense of honour and does not know why Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt, he demonstrates his loyalty when he takes up Tybalt's challenge to defend his friend. Mercutio is killed shortly after as Tybalt stabbed …show more content…
Ultimately, his death ended the quarrels between the Capulets and the Montagues. Mercutio's death turns the play from being a romantic comedy to a tragic tale. Even as he dies, he maintains his sense of humour. Mercutio says "No 'tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church door, but 'tis enough, 'twill serve" (3.1.98-99). The character had made a major impact on me as he was an innocent person who placed others in front of his life. When he died, he cursed "A plague on both your houses" (3.1.92). Mercutio had blamed the Capulets and Montagues for his death. In my opinion, once the 2 sides saw Mercutio die, they realised that it was a result of their actions and their unnecessary war. Mercutio really touched me with his actions and beliefs; more than any other character in the play. It seemed to me that he was more influential dead rather than alive. Perhaps that is why I think he had such a dramatic impact on me. The fact that he was willing to defend his friend and die for him showed true loyalty and courage on Mercutio's part. But what would have happened if he had not died? Would the storyline be different? Would the tables not have turned? Would the feud still be
He is often up and happy, which immediately turns to serious brooding. The best example of this comes at his death. He has been stabbed through by Tybalt’s cruel blade and the killer has flown. All his fellows gather around laughing when Mercutio yells that he is injured. After sending for a surgeon he stumbles about saying, “No, ‘tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church door; but ‘tis enough, twill serve: ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man. I am peppered I warrant for this world. A plague o’ both your houses! Zounds, a dog, a rat, a mouse, a cat to scratch a man to death” (III.i.94-99). In this quote Mercutio seems to go from cracking jokes and making puns to all seriousness, screaming plague upon the quarrel between the two houses. This was very serious considering the plague was running rampant at that time, killing thousands of people. To wish plague on someone is to wish the most feared thing of their age on them and their family. This is not the only example of such emotional instability as he often ranges from very high to very low, creating quite the dramatic and loud character. Mercutio’s characteristics are wide and varied, making him into an extremely complex, extremely prominent character. Shakespeare places this persona of varying emotions who may not be thinking exactly what he seems to be into the story of Romeo and Juliet, a stage full of such
Mercutio: Menî–¸ eyes were made to look, and let them gaze. I will not budge for no manî–¸ pleasure, I. This is just a small sampling of crime and violence versus peace and law. Later in this scene, Mercutio challenges Tybalt in a duel, then when Mercutio is slain, Romeo goes on to challenge Tybalt, killing him. If Mercutio, Tybalt and Romeo would have listened to Benvolio, the fights would have not occurred, and the outcome of the play would be changed. An example of love versus hate occurs through the relationship Romeo and Juliet and the hate between their families.
Romeo was very loyal to his friends and family, and it is possible that Mercutio thought that Romeo would help him fight off Tybalt (since he was unaware of Romeo and Juliet’s secret marriage that somewhat united Romeo and Tybalt). However, this argument is easily deemed invalid. Romeo was not in the town square when the fight had first begun, so Mercutio expected his help in the fight would be a far-fetched idea. A person who is not present cannot help or hinder the situation at hand. In addition, Romeo tried to break up the fight when he said, “Gentlemen, for shame forbear this outrage!
In the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Mercutio, a friend of Romeo plays a deep role within the play. Many characters in Romeo and Juliet can represent the masculine or feminine spaces. The masculine space is chaotic and more towards the sexual and material side of the play, which have more of a tragic potential. While the feminine space is peaceful, more romantic and spiritual in giving a better chance for the comic potential. Mercutio represents the masculine space while Romeo prefers the peacefulness of the feminine space. Mercutio tells Romeo to be rough with love, he tries to keep him within the masculine space after the ball, and he fools with the Juliet’s nurse because of his actions he pushes Romeo towards tragedy.
Mercutio can be blamed for Romeo and Juliet’s peril because he initiated the fight with Tybalt and forced Romeo to go to the Capulet’s party. At the beginning of the play, Romeo gets invited to the Capulet’s party by a servant, unless he was a Montague. At first, Romeo did not want to go, but Mercutio eventually convinced him under the pretext that Rosaline, Romeo’s love, was going to be there. The next day, Tybalt, a Capulet, went looking for Romeo because he knew that Romeo was at the Capulet party. Instead, he stumbled upon Mercutio and Benvolio and asked them where he could find Romeo. However, Mercutio did not want to tell him and insisted on having a duel. Tybalt killed Mercutio during the fight, and Romeo kills Tybalt because he has the need to avenge his friend. Unfortunately, Prince Escalus punished Romeo by banishing him from Verona. This made Romeo and Juliet’s love
Mercutio says, “Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance…You are a lover. Borrow Cupid's wings. And soar with them above a common bound” (1.4.13-18). Mercutio persuades Romeo and says he is a gentle person and he gets all the girls and that he should go to the party to get over Rosaline and when they go to the party Romeo meets Juliet and falls in love with her, then marries her in a day. This is where Tybalt sees Romeo at the party making Tybalt wanting to kill
In the play The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is one of the main characters. He is a teenage boy that is impulsive, a dreamer, emotional, and dramatic. His friend Mercutio is a relative to the Prince. Mercutio is witty, realistic, and a skeptic of love. Romeo and Mercutio are very good foils to one another because they contrast in thoughts of love, emotions, and dreams.
Mercutio, though a minor character, had and enormous impact on the outcome of the play. Before the Capulet Ball, Romeo had been debating whether to go or not. Mercutio persuaded him to go by giving a big speech to him about a dream he had. This makes him partially responsible because the Ball is where Romeo first met Juliet. Mercutio also caused Romeo to be banished from Verona. Mercutio got in a fight with Tybalt and ended up dead. His death enraged Romeo enough to make him kill Tybalt in revenge. When the Prince saw what happened, he sent Romeo into exile. Romeo's banishment to Mantua made it near impossible for Romeo and Juliet to see each other. Mercutio was to blame, though only partially for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
As life proceeds its slow waltz, and humans live their lives, meeting countless other people in the same predicament of nearing an unavoidable end. In this cycle of monotony and conversation there can be people found that are different. Those who are never bothered by the burdens of death and monotony, and hurry through life to greet death as a lost friend they had encountered many times on their sprees of invincibility. From the handful of people who resemble these characteristics, one can be found in the William Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet. In which the zany character to be found is Mercutio, who is of neither Montague nor Capulet but falls to the hands of Capulet in the defense of Romeo of Montague in a fight of a childish altercation. In which even at his fall in Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare still displays his distinct characteristics that greatly define him such as: humor and impulsiveness.
Mercutio’s role in the play, as the joker, the catalyst, the best friend, is an essential part to what is such a famous and respected play. Without him, Romeo and Juliet wouldn’t be the play it is today. He is, though, a very subtle character in the way that he isn’t seen as a main character but probably has the most important role. He introduces the idea of fate, adds to the effect of tension, and causes the reason for Romeo to murder Tybalt. He also shows another side to Romeo emphasising the effect that Juliet has on Romeo and how he changes around her.
Mercutio is a multi complex character in Williams Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet written in 1595. He's described as witty, cynical, loyal and misogynistic, although only a secondary character and appearing in only four scenes Mercutio is known for overshadowing Romeo in the play with his puns and witty dialogue. This comedic foil to Romeo is neither a Montague or a Capulet and lives outside the realms of the conflict however it's this tragic friendship that sets in Mercutio's role as a catalyst for the play turning from comedic to tragic .
Mercutio is pleased that Romeo has gotten over his grief over his lost love, Rosaline. Mercutio even participates in some playful wordplay with Romeo. True friends know what you are thinking without having to speak. By noticing, Mercutio shows that he is more than a rich boy but Romeo’s best friend.
The most famous foil character in ''Romeo and Juliet'' is Mercutio. He is known for his sharp wit and quick, often ribald, humor and is considered a foil to Romeo. He lacks Romeo's effusive romance, his adoration and almost courtly approach to the idea of love. He often urges Romeo to just find a woman to sleep with and stop worrying about the ephemeral, yet all consuming, love Romeo is desperate to achieve. Mercutio warns Romeo to be skeptical of love and not to rush ahead, but Romeo is all rush, no
Romeo on the other hand would much rather use his words than resort to violence. In Act 3, scene 1, during the violent encounter between Mercutio and Tybalt, Romeo is seen as trying to settle the feud between the two men rather than them getting into a fight. “Gentle Mercutio, put thy rapier up. / Draw, Benvolio; beat down their weapons. / Gentlemen, for shame! forbear this outrage!” (3.1.83-86). Romeo is once again portrayed as more feminine since he is trying to diffuse the situation using his words and not actions. However, later in the scene when Mercutio is murdered, Romeo’s feminine traits as well as masculine traits are portrayed since he only then resorts to violence in order to defend Mercutio’s honour and avenge his death. This shows that Romeo has the capability to show his more masculine side when he choses. Unfortunately, when faced with difficult circumstances, Romeo is forced to choose between the two sets of
In act 1, scene 4 we meet Mercutio for the first time and the impression he give on us is that he is eloquent, humorous and witty and doesn't take love seriously. For example he says Act 1, scene 4, line 27: - "If love be rough with you be rough with love. " This quotation gives us a view of how Mercutio thinks about love. In his view love is only physical not something which deals with Emotion.