Examples Of Oxymorons In Romeo And Juliet

Through a young man’s journey through life, they will eventually stumble upon the obstacle of love. Some may choose to avoid it and others may choose to face it head on. Those who chose to face love head on experience rejection. In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare oxymorons and metaphors to emphasize Romeo’s exaggerated reaction after he faces rejection.
In lines 174 through 178 of Act 1 Scene 1, Romeo says many oxymorons in the beginning of his conversation with Benvolio. “Heavy lightness” and “serious vanity” are just some of the many oxymorons that Romeo says while explaining how it feels to love someone who doesn’t love you back. The use and repetition of the many oxymorons in the same dialogue leads the reader to the conclusion

that Romeo is extremely depressed. Earlier in the scene, Benvolio points out the fact to Romeo that he was never in love with Rosaline, so the oxymorons also help develop to convey the fact that Romeo is being very overdramatic in this situation. In line 181 of Act 1 Scene 1, it says “Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs; being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes; being vexed, a sea nourished with loving tears.” By comparing love to smoke, this metaphor emphasizes the fact that love isn’t always long lasting in relationships. Love can be so prevalent in the beginning, but then it can slowly fade as the relationship progresses. This metaphor also emphasizes how overdramatic Romeo can be. He instantly fell into a state of depression reminiscing about the fact that he would never find anyone better than Rosaline, but the reader knows that later on in the story, he meets Juliet and suddenly forgets about his so called true love named Rosaline.