Gcse-wjec English Coursework: How Does Juliet's Language Change During The Play?

How does Juliet’s language change Throughout the play and what does It expose about her state of mind?

Throughout this essay I will examine the use and tone of Juliet’s language throughout the play. I will write a short summary of the play, where act 3, scene 2 is set and what events have led to the scene, spoken lines from Juliet explaining what they mean and how it indicates her mood and state of mind and act 3, scene 5 where it’s set and what events have led to this scene. Romeo and Juliet was written be William Shakespeare. The audience would have expected this play to have ended happily. However William Shakespeare put in a twist where this play ends in a tragedy. The genre of the play is a Tragedy. The play is about two families have been fighting with each other for years, but the daughter and son of the families meet and fall in love, Romeo the son kills Juliet’s cousin and gets banished. Juliet is arranged to marry Paris but she is already married to Romeo. She takes a poison to trick her poison that she had died in her sleep but Romeo thinks she is dead just like her parents and kills himself. Juliet sees Romeo’s corpse and stabs herself. The families make a truce. Before act 3, scene 2 Romeo and Juliet get married and Romeo had killed Juliet’s cousin Tybalt. At the start of the scene Juliet is talking to herself about Romeo. Using language from Greek mythology. In the scene you notice some changes in Juliet’s language. Firstly she is talking about love, she uses the Greek mythology and some metaphors to express how much she loves Romeo, she uses words like ‘Phoebus.’ , ‘Sun.’ , ‘Heaven.’ and ‘Modesty.’ She then uses night and day. ‘Love preforming night.’ , ‘Gentle night.’ , ‘Tedious Day.’ Further on in the scene she uses a lot more metaphors only they are not as positive than at the start of the scene for example, ‘ Wolvish ravening lamb.’ , ‘Beautiful Tyrant.’ , ‘ Dove feathered raven.’ And ‘ Fiend angelical.’ Act 3, Scene two is a very good example of how Juliet’s language changes in the play. Juliet is feeling happy and in love when juliet says ‘Take him and cut him out in little stars and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night.’ This shows that she wants to be with Romeo. When Juliet says ‘Ay me! What news? Why dost thou wring thy hands?’ It shows that she immediately snaps out of her roamntic mood. Soon after she says ‘ Vile earth, to earth resign; end motion here; and thou and Romeo press one heavy bier!’ It tells you that she can’t live without Romeo. Juliet says ‘ For who is living if thnose two have gone?’ It tells you that she is concerned about the death of ‘ two’ important people in her life but also it tells you that she is worrried about how she is going to live on her own without them. Juliet’s language towards the end of the scene clearly shows that Juliet feels more concerned about Romeo than about Tybalt, even though Tybalt is dead and Romeo is only banished. Before act 3, scene 5 The Capulet’s and Paris have a discussion about Juliet marrying him. In this scene Lady Capulet and Juliet start to have a conversation about marrying Paris but Juliet refuses because she is too upset over Tybalt, but she is actually upset about Romeo. In this scene Lady Capulet is not sympathetic to Juliet even though she is a grieving thirteen year old, however the nurse does try to defend her. Lord Capulet talks very viciously towards Juliet and upsets her.

Act 3, Scene 5 is also a good example of Juliet’s language as it shows her anger, her relationship with the nurse and her relationship with her parents. Juliet’s language towards Lady Capulet is quite calm and tolerant. Juliet shows this in a lot of her speech but a good example of her tolerance is the line ‘ O, sweet mother,cast me not away.’ Because after everything that Lord Capulet has said to Juliet she still tries to cover up her anger. When Capulet starts to get angry with Juliet because she refuses to marry Paris she says ‘ Not proud, you have; but thankful, that you have: Proud can I never be of what I hate.’ This shows how much she doesn’t want to marry Paris and how determined she is not to even consider it. Lady Capulet responds to Juliet ‘Fie, fie! What, are you mad?’ Which makes Juliet change her mood and reason with them to try and get them to calm down so she can get a better chance to delay the wedding.