Analyzation of Act 1, Scene 3, Romeo and Juliet
Uploaded by kenflyken on Mar 19, 2007
Act 1 Scene 3 introduces the readers to the main characters— Capulet’s wife, the Nurse, and Juliet—and their relationships through the conversation between the three. Juliet, at this early stage in the play, is shown as an immature girl; she is naïve and unknowledgeable in the ways of love and the world. The Nurse refers to Juliet as, “what a lamb, what lady bird,” (1.3, line 3) for Juliet is far away from being a woman. This quote, in another perspective, also gives clues about the intimidate relationship between the two characters, since the Nurse was the person who brought Juliet up. “And since that time it is eleven years,” (1.3, line 37) the Nurse said; this provides contrast between a caring, friendly position the Nurse has with Capulet’s wife formality towards Juliet. Their distant feelings are already portrayed for the obedient Juliet responses politely— “Madam, I am here, what is your will?” (1.3, line 7)—a cold response when compared to the Nurse’s bawdiness. This first glimpse of their deteriorating relationship sets a scene for the upcoming acts, in which Juliet will have more problems with her family. However, the cause of this problem lies in Lady Capulet herself, for she endeavors to push Juliet into a marriage with Paris—what she wants—but this contradicts with the portrayal of Juliet as an immature character. These relationships add more complexity to this scene, which is an exposition to the play, since in the next scenes, we will be able to observe changes in Juliet, when she severs the bonds with her family.
Furthermore, Shakespeare also introduces and reinforces various themes and motifs, mostly related to love, into this scene. A recurring motif, which is found again in 1.4, is the idea of “dreams”. Juliet replies to her mother, “[marriage] is an honor I dream not of.” (1.3, line 68), while in Romeo’s speech that precedes Mercutio’s description of Queen Mab, he said, “[he] dreamt a dream tonight,” (1.4, line 48). When connected with Queen Mab, dreams convey the fact that everyone has hidden thoughts inside their minds—“they dream of love;” (1.4, line 69), “dreams he of cutting foreign throats,” (1.4, line 81)—but since dreams are non-substantial, they contradict with society’s views on a predetermined life (e.g. arranged marriages), which in turn brings us to a wider theme of the individual (i.e. Romeo...