Act 3

Question 1

1. How does Shakespeare convey the temperature? (Pathetic fallacy)
2. How does the temperature affect everyone’s mood?

Answer 1

1. Benvolio tells Mercutio multiple times to leave the public place because the hot weather could stir up a fight with the Capulets.
2. According to Benvolio, the hot weather makes people angrier.

Question 2

After Tybalt calls Romeo a villain, Romeo says “I see thou knowest me not.”
Tybalt doesn’t know they are RELATED by:

Answer 2

Tybalt and Romeo are related by Romeo’s marriage to Juliet

Question 3

What does Romeo MEAN when he says to Tybalt:

“And so, good CAPULET, which NAME I tender as dearly as MINE OWN, be satisfied.”

Answer 3

Romeo means that he endears the Capulet name and Tybalt because they share the same name. He is tender to the Capulet name bc/ it’s Juliet’s.

Question 4

WHY does Mercutio fight Tybalt? Why is Tybalt able to stab Mercutio fatally?

Answer 4

Mercutio fights Tybalt to step in and fight for Romeo’s honor. He is disgusted by Romeo’s passive response to Tybalt’s challenge, and he thinks Romeo is embarrassing the Montagues.
“O calm, dishonorable, vile submission!”
Tybalt is able to stab Mercutio fatally bc/ Romeo stepped between them.

Question 5

Why does Mercutio curse BOTH houses?

Answer 5

Mercutio curses both houses because if the feud didn’t exist in the first place, he wouldn’t have fought Tybalt or been stabbed. He blames the feud.
He might have also cursed both houses because Romeo’s reaction infuriated him enough to fight with Tybalt, and Tybalt fatally stabbed him.

Question 6

If Romeo had done N0THING - had NOT avenged Mercutio’s death - then what would the LAW HAVE DONE?

Answer 6

The law would have killed Tybalt because he was openly fighting in the streets and killed Mercutio. Romeo would’ve faced no punishment and he would’ve been with Juliet.

Question 7

What is Romeo’s lament after killing Tybalt?

Answer 7

“O, I am fortune’s fool!”

Romeo blames his predicament on fate.

Question 8

Prince does NOT execute Romeo because:

Answer 8

The Prince is related to Mercutio; he’s biased.

The Prince sees that Romeo was avenging Mercutio’s death, he didn’t kill him for no reason.

Question 9

Climax?

Answer 9

Climax = Romeo killing Tybalt: turns the action towards the resolution
There’s no way Romeo and Juliet can be happily together because he’s legally not allowed to see her and the Capulets hate him.
Tybalt killing Mercutio is NOT the climax (rising action)

Question 10

Why does Juliet say this line about Romeo in 3.2: “O serpent heart, hid with a flow’ring face”? (Page 885 Line 73)

Answer 10

Juliet is still in shock that Romeo killed her cousin Tybalt.
How could he look so beautiful when he has such an evil heart?
Snake represents evil: biblical allusion
Oxymoron: “serpent heart”
Antithesis: “Serpent heart/flow’ring face”

Question 11

Why does Juliet use oxymorons to describe Romeo in 3.2? Identify two oxymorons used.

Answer 11

Juliet uses oxymorons to describe Romeo because she’s conflicted: she still loves him, but he killed her cousin.
“Serpent heart”, “beautiful tyrant”, “fiend angelical”, “an honorable villain”

Question 12

Why does Juliet ultimately choose to be on Romeo’s side and not Tybalt’s? (What logic does she use in lines 105 to 107 in 3.2?)

Answer 12

1. Juliet shames herself for speaking badly of her husband of 3 hours.
2. She reasons that Tybalt could have killed Romeo if he didn’t kill him first.

Question 13

Characterize Romeo at the beginning of 3.3

Answer 13

Romeo is being dramatic. He’s depressed about his banishment and ungrateful for it; he says death would be better than exile.

Question 14

Why and/or how does the Friar criticize Romeo? (up to line 135)

Answer 14

The Friar is insulting Romeo because he’s upset that Romeo threatened to kill himself. (It’s a sin.)
“Art thou a man? … Thy tears are womanish”
“Thy noble shape is but a form of wax” → Romeo has no substance, he’s just beautiful
“Thy dear love sworn but hollow perjury” → Your sworn love for Juliet was fake

Question 15

What are the reasons (in lines 135 to 145) that Friar tells Romeo to be grateful?

Answer 15

Juliet is alive and Romeo is alive (Tybalt could have easily killed him),
“The law, that threatened death, becomes thy friend”: The law that was supposed to kill Romeo became his blessing:
Friar Laurence repeats “There art thou happy”: You should be happy

Question 16

What is the friar’s plan to help Romeo?

Answer 16

Nurse should tell her that Romeo is coming to visit her
Romeo will comfort Juliet in her room
Romeo will sneak out early in the morning to Mantua
Friar Laurence will stay in touch w/ Romeo through the mail (letters)
On Friar Laurence’s part…
“Blaze your marriage”: announce that Romeo is Juliet’s husband
“Reconcile your friends”: make sure the people support Romeo
“Beg pardon of the prince”: FL will try to convince him to let Romeo come back, once he returns he’ll be 200,000 times more happy

Question 17

What does Capulet decide to do concerning Juliet’s hand in marriage? WHY do you think he decides to make this choice?

Answer 17

Lord Capulet moves the marriage up to Thursday.
(REASONS…)
Capulets see a chance of death, want Juliet to live her life out bc/they think life is short
Lord Capulet wants the Capulet to shine, bring their reputation up
Tybalt, a prominent Capulet, killed Mercutio in the street, it makes the Capulets all look bad
Lord Capulet wants to comfort Juliet, stop her mourning of Tybalt
Wants to raise the family’s and Juliet’s status
To replace Tybalt with Paris, who’s of high social status and a relative of the PRince

Question 18

Why do Romeo and Juliet wish for night time at the beginning of the scene, instead of the morning? (Identity two ways one character pretends it is still evening.)

Answer 18

They wish it was nighttime because Romeo has to leave Juliet to flee to Mantua in the morning.
Juliet tries to convince Romeo it’s still evening by telling him the nightingale, a bird that sings at night, is singing instead of the lark, a morning bird. She also tells him a meteor was making it seem like daytime and the Sun wasn’t rising.

Question 19

What is a double entendre? How does Juliet use these in this scene while talking with her mother?

Answer 19

Double entendre: a phrase that can be interpreted in two different ways
Juliet uses words carefully so that her mother thinks she’s being loyal to her family when she’s really being loyal to Romeo.

(JULIET’S DOUBLE ENTENDRES…)
“Yet let me weep for such a feeling loss.”
She lost Tybalt/ she lost Romeo from his exile
“Feeling so the loss, I cannot choose but ever weep the friend.”
Friend = Tybalt/Romeo\“Indeed, I never shall be satisfied
With Romeo, till I behold him—dead—
Is my poor heart for a kinsman vexed”
Juliet’s heart is dead, not Romeo
I will never be satisfied with Romeo until I have him, dead is my poor heart

Question 20

How does Juliet lose her support system one by one? Who will she NOW turn to for support?

Answer 20

First Lady Capulet, then Lord Capulet, then the Nurse turns away from Juliet when she doesn’t agree to marry Paris.

LORD CAPULET:
“Hang thee, young baggage! Disobedient wretch!”: Juliet is possession, worthless
“And you be mine, I’ll give you to my friend; and you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets, for, by my soul, I’ll ne’er acknowledge thee, nor what is mine shall never do thee good.”
“My fingers itch.” → expresses violence

LADY CAPULET:
“I would the fool were married to her grave!”
“Talk not to me, for I’ll not speak a word. Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee.”

NURSE:
“Romeo’s a dishclout to him. An eagle, madam, hath not so green, so quick, so fair an eye as Paris hath.”
Nurse changes her mind just like Capulet changed his mind about the marriage.

Juliet will now turn to Friar Laurence for support.

Question 21

Does Lord Capulet change as a character? How?

Answer 21

Yes, Lord Capulet changes from supporting Juliet and respecting her age to threatening to disown her if she doesn’t marry Paris

Question 22

What does it mean when Juliet says, “Go, counselor!/ [the Nurse] and my bosom henceforth shall be twain”?

Answer 22

Juliet means that she’ll never trust the Nurse again.