Mercutio in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Using his imagination Mercutio describes Queen Mab to Romeo as one would

describe Santa Claus, Where Santa is actually fictitious, but also in a

sense reality. In Queen Mab's case people do have different dreams of the

things they want, but the imaginative part is that Queen Mab sends these

dreams to people. The account of Queen Mab is supposed to prove Mercutio's

imagination and that under his pugnacity there is a poet. In William

Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, Mercutio plays the part of Romeo's

rebel friend who uses his imagination to cheer Romeo up and describe to him

what he thinks of dreams.

When talking about Queen Mab, the dream fairy, tells what she discovers in

people's dreams, and how she can make someone dream of something. In Act I,

scene iv, page 349 Mercutio says, " Through lovers' brains, and then they

dream of love; On courtiers' knees, that they dream of curtsies straight;

O'er lawyers' fingers, who straight dream of fees; O'er ladies' lips, who

straight on kisses dream," this is saying that when she goes through a

lovers brain they dream of love, lawyers dream of money, and ladies dream of

kisses. Queen Mab can also cause one to dream of something and this is

demonstrated in Mercutio's speech in Act I, scene iv, page 349, "Sometime

she gallops o'er on courtiers nose, and then dreams he of smelling out a

suit;" this says that just by flying over someone she can make them dream

their wildest dreams therefore because Mercutio can paint such a picture

like that, he is demonstrating his poetic ability.

Mercutio uses his imagination to make Romeo realize that life is not a

spectator sport. He talks of Queen Mab and paints a picture to Romeo that

dreams are a waste of time and if you want something you have to get it

yourself. In Act I, scene iv, page 348, Romeo says, "I'll be a candleholder

and look on; the game was ne'er so fair, and I am done. I dreamt a dream

tonight." This is saying that he had a dream, but now it is over and he is

giving up. Now also in Act I, scene iv, page 350, Mercutio says,"I talk of

dreams; which are the children of an idle brain, begot of nothing but vain

fantasy." This is saying that if Romeo were to just sit and dream he would