How Shakespeare Builds Tension in "Romeo and Juliet"

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How does Shakespeare build tension in ‘Romeo & Juliet’? Pay close attention to act 3, scene 1 in your answer.

Romeo & Juliet is a play written by Shakespeare in 1594-1596. Romeo & Juliet is a tragic play about two families (Montague and Capulet) whose family feud ruined the love live of their star-cross’d children. He was inspired to write his own play because author Arthur Brooke wrote a tragic play about “two star-cross’d lovers” called Romeus and Juliet and he was as well inspired by Palace of Pleasure by William Painter in 1582, but Shakespeare’s tragedies were more tragic than Arthur Brooke’s because in Romeus and Juliet they were together for 3 months but in Romeo and Juliet they were together for 1 night.

He set his play in Verona, Italy because in the Elizabethan times, it would have shown the Queen as a bad ruler meaning she can’t handle the people in her country meaning she can’t handle people who fight on the streets. Tragedies in the Elizabethan times were very popular and Shakespeare’s writing was very influenced because in the Elizabethan Era the plague killed thousands of civilians and Shakespeare talked a lot about the plague for instance Mercutio says “A plague o’ both your houses’ showing how vile and bad the family feuds are.

Executions were also a big deal because bandying was at a zero tolerance on the streets of the Elizabethan times, it was also not tolerated in the play because if your found bandying you will get executed. There was a lot of tension and blood shed over the religion their Monarch is because the Catholics and protestants had different religious views because it will mean people in the other religion will have to convert to the opposite religion or they will get executed, they can also ...

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...2 so that the audience will be puzzled on how Juliet will still love Romeo after he killed her cousin. He also puts the romantic tension up and the violence up so he’s achieving both things.

In act 3, scene 1 Benvolio says “By my head here comes the Capulets”. Then Mercutio replies “By my Heel I care not.” This reply can let the audience know that Mercutio is a brave man because he uses femininity and he’s arrogant to show that he care’s less about trouble. Tybalt walked into the scene and said “Follow me close, for I will speak to them. Gentlemen, good e’en. A word with one of you.” This can make the audience think that Tybalt isn’t big enough to back himself he needs his companions next to him. Then Mercutio says “And but one word with one of us? Couple it with something. Make it a word and a blow.” This shows that Mercutio is putting on a show of masculinity.

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