Shakespeare's Language and the Main Characters' Views About Love

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Shakespeare's Language and the Main Characters' Views About Love

The language of Shakespeare's characters within Romeo and Juliet is

entirely different between each character. The characters' language

provides the reader, occasionally subtle, but present information of

their experiences and views of love.

At the start of the play, in Act 1 Scene 1, there is a theme of

mystery, as none of the Montagues, as well as Mercutio, can appreciate

the meaning of Romeo's sadness and solitariness. He is disorientated

and gloomy. The reason, we soon find out, is because he has been

rejected by a girl called Rosaline. This event is similar to Paris'

impassionate conventional love for Juliet, but it is more

self-indulgently melancholy: perhaps it is because we never meet

Rosaline and only view Romeo's feelings directed more at himself than

the supposed target of his affections. In my opinion, Romeo only

believes that he is in love, but is actually only in love with the

idea of being in love. His eloquent and flamboyant metaphorical

language shows that he is able to find words to describe her and is

not over-awed by her, resulting in a loss for words. He describes her

as "saint-seducing", and beautiful and witty. He doesn't think he will

ever forget her, "thou canst not teach me to forget" and he thinks

there is nobody as wise or as fair. However, she is "uncharmed from

love's weak childish bow." Here, there is a hint that Romeo could be

aware that his love is weak and childish. He uses numerous oxymorons

to emphasise his emotions and feelings about the love and hate between

the two families, "Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate."

Romeo ...

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...Romeo and Juliet happy without thinking enough about what is

right. Juliet is terrifyingly committed to what is right in a way that

shames the older people. The Nurse in Act 3 Scene 5, attempts to

persuade Juliet to marry Paris, "Romeo is banished"…"I think it best

you married with the county. O he's a lovely gentleman." As a

representative of Christian love, Friar Lawrence tries hard, but never

solves the conflict between Christian teaching and worldly desires.

Both the language of love and the language of death play important

roles in the tragedy. They cooperate with light and dark imagery to

make the play the masterpiece it is, a play of paradoxes and

oxymorons, good and evil, neither one whole without the other. For

without love there would be nothing to lose, and without death there

would be no way to lose it.

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