Comparing Love/hate In Romeo And Julliet

Shakespeare uses various techniques to link the ideas of love and hate in Romeo and Juliet. Before Romeo meets and falls in love with Juliet, he goes through a phase of unhappiness and depression; Benvolio questions this as Montague and Lady Montague are worried about Romeo, “What sadness lengthens Romeo’s hours?” (157 - Act 1, Scene 1). Romeo answers him with, “Not having that which, having, makes them short” (158 – Act 1, Scene 1). Romeo is telling Benvolio that he does not have the thing that fulfils him; therefore the days of his life seem long and tedious. Benvolio guesses that he is in love, “in love?” but Romeo quickly corrects him, “Out of her favour where I am in love.” Romeo is the unfortunate victim of unrequited love, the love he feels for Roseline is not reciprocated. Romeo presents us with a short monologue in the following few lines. He initiates a series of paradoxes, which show the anguish and distress in which he is feeling, “Here’s much to do with hate but more with love” (169 - Act 1, Scene 1). Here, Romeo is notifying Benvolio that the reason why the feud between the two rival families continues; is because of such love that dwells within each family. “Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate, / O anything of nothing first created!” (170, 171 – Act 1, Scene 1) the irony continues. At the Capulet ball in Act 1, Scene 5 there is evidence of Romeo and Juliet falling in love before they even know each others’ names, they appear to have an attraction to one another instantly. They share a sonnet, the conventional form of love poetry and mirror each other through their language, “Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too? / Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.” (101, 102 – Act 1, Scene 5) This shows their immediate unity. After the ball, Romeo goes to the garden below Juliet’s balcony, which is depicted as such a beautiful setting to express such intimacy. After realising that Juliet is on her balcony he pays tribute to her, “It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.” (2 – Act 2, Scene 2) After he refers to Juliet as the sun he adds, “Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, / Who is already sick and pale with grief” (3, 4 – Act 2, Scene 2), this shows that Romeo is linking the hate of the “sick, pale and envious moon” to the beauty of Juliet; because the moon is envious of the sun who is beautiful, because it is Juliet. The ideas of love and hate are juxtaposed; the fact that the moon is jealous of the sun is almost a good thing because it portrays the beauty of Juliet.

Shakespeare relates the ideas of love and hate to night and day because of the harsh change in emotion between the couple when daytime arrives meaning they can no longer share the night.

However, Juliet may be sad for her cousin but her love for Romeo outweighs the furiousness she should feel for him, because he was the man slew her cousin.

This shows that Shakespeare uses an assortment of techniques throughout his numerous plays and does not focus on one particular technique while compiling a script. In Act 5, Scene 3, it is the Prince that makes the two rivals catch sight of rationality, “Where be these enemies? – Capulet! Montague! / See what a scourge is laid upon your hate”. The Prince is only showing them what has become of their feud, the tragic death of Romeo and Juliet.