William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet: Act 3 Scene 5

William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet: Act 3 Scene 5

This scene is approximately at the mid point of the play. It begins

with Romeo and Juliet, spending there first night together, as a

married couple. Romeo then leaves hastily as Lady Capulet enters

Juliet's bedroom. She mistakenly thinks that Juliet is mourning the

death of Tybalt; however the audience is aware that her tears are for

Romeo and Juliet speaks ambiguously throughout when in conversation

with her mother. She informs Juliet of her proposed marriage to County

Paris, a rich and handsome cousin of the family. Predictably, Juliet

reacts angrily and unequivocally expresses her discord and anger. This

atmosphere is soon halted as Capulet also enters the bedroom. He, like

his wife, is unaware of the real cause of Juliet’s sorrow, and

comforts her. However, he soon realises that she opposes the wedding

and is unwilling to go through with it. Capulet is surprised, as this

is in stark contrast to Juliet's attitude at the beginning of the

play, before she had met Romeo. Capulet expects gratitude, but instead

is faced with rejection; this leads him to explode with anger. He is

infuriated with his daughter, whom he thought he knew. Juliet is then

submitted to foul insults and threats from him, Capulet even shouts at

the nurse, as she tried to intervene. Capulet and Lady Capulet then

leave. Juliet is left alone with the nurse. She expects to find solace

and comfort in her, but the nurse has also taken a sharp U-turn and

advises Juliet to abandon her romance with Romeo and abide by her

parents wishes. Obviously, Juliet then feels unaided and bitterly

betrayed by her nurse, who she tho...

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...ises adopted by my

culture.

In the time of Shakespeare’s play, it was common practice for

aristocratic families such as the Capulets to marry their members off

to others from similar families. I disagree with marriages to be

enforced upon people, such as in Juliet's case, however I am not

opposed to circumstances where both parties agree to the arrangement.

The gulf between now and then is also evident in Juliet's reaction to

the news of her marriage.

Today, many teenagers would rebel and are infamous for reacting

outrageously and against their parent’s wishes. But when Juliet's is

unhappy, it seems as if she has committed a grave sin, as daughters of

that time were not supposedly to defy their parents. To audiences at

the time, Shakespeare’s notion would have been perceived as

revolutionary and radical.