Monday, July 18, 2011

What are some of Romeo's speeches about Juliet that he recites before his death?

At the top of Act V, Romeo enters the stage and professes his love for Juliet:



I dreamt my lady came and found me dead / (Strange dream that gives a dead man leave to think!) / And breath'd such life with kisses in my lips / That I reviv'd and was an emperor. (V.i.6-9)



Romeo is anticipating his reunion with Juliet, imagining he will be reborn as an emperor when he sees Juliet. Of course, the audience knows this is not how the play will end, and this line can be interpreted as a nod towards the poison that will be used later in the act.


Later in the act, Romeo enters the chamber to find the body of Juliet.



For here lies Juliet, and her beauty makes / This vault a feasting presence full of light. / Death, lie thou there, by a dead man interred. (V.iii.86-8)



Romeo describes Juliet as having a light that illuminates the space around her body. This imagery mirrors the light imagery that exists throughout the play.


The next line is one of the last lines Romeo speaks to Juliet:



Ah, dear Juliet, / Why art thou yet so fair? Shall I believe / That unsubstantial Death is amorous, / And that the lean abhorred monster keeps / Thee here in dark to be his paramour? (V.iii.101-5)



Again, Romeo lifts Juliet up as a romantic image. She is more powerful than death, at least in the eyes of Romeo. There is also some subtle jealousy in these lines as he says death has stolen Juliet as his lover. Romeo then goes to reclaim Juliet by taking his own life. Of course, the tragedy is that Juliet is only sleeping, and patience would have reunited the two. 

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