What does "wherefore art Romeo" mean?
What is the most famous line in Romeo and Juliet?
How do Sutherland and Watts explain Juliet?
What would happen if Romeo wasn't known as Montague?
Did Shakespeare mention a balcony in Romeo and Juliet?
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What does Juliet mean when she cries Romeo Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo in the famous balcony scene?
Leaning out of her upstairs window, unaware that Romeo is below in the orchard, she asks why Romeo must be Romeo—why he must be a Montague, the son of her family's greatest enemy (“wherefore” means “why,” not “where”; Juliet is not, as is often assumed, asking where Romeo is).
What does Romeo say after Juliet says Romeo Romeo where art thou Romeo?
O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love and I'll no longer be a Capulet.
Who said O Romeo Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?
Words from the play Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare. (Wherefore means “why.”) Juliet is lamenting Romeo's name, alluding to the feud between their two families.
What type of irony is Juliet's line O Romeo Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo?
Wherefore art thou Romeo?"How is this an example of dramatic irony? She is talking about how much she wishes Romeo did not belong to the family that is enemies with her family. The audience knows what Juliet does not - that Romeo is there and hears here.
Why does Juliet cry Wherefore art thou Romeo?
Wherefore art thou Romeo?" What doubts and fears does Juliet express even as she realizes that Romeo loves her? She fears for his life at the hands of her relatives. She fears that his love is shallow and that he may have a change of heart and turn out to be a liar.
What is the most famous line in Romeo and Juliet?
Famous Lines from Romeo and Juliet " Parting is such sweet sorrow.” — ... " But soft, what light through yonder window breaks? ... “ Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?" — ... " What, drawn, and talk of peace? ... " My only love sprung from my only hate!" — ... “ ... " ... "More items...•
Is Romeo and Juliet a true story?
The story is, indeed, based on the life of two real lovers who lived and died for each other in Verona, Italy in 1303. Shakespeare is known to have discovered this tragic love story in Arthur Brooke's 1562 poem entitled “The Tragical History of Romeo and Juliet”.
What did Romeo call Juliet?
Romeo Calls Juliet an Angel Romeo says that Juliet is just like an angel because she stands on the balcony above his head. He says she is just as magnificent as an angel flying above in the air. And sails upon the bosom of the air.
How old was Juliet?
13 yearsIn Shakespeare's original story, Romeo is given the age of 16 years and Juliet is given the age of 13 years. The Montague and Capulet families originated in the Divine Comedy by the Italian author Dante Aligheri, rather than in Shakespeare.
What is the irony of Romeo and Juliet?
Romeo and Juliet The play itself is a form of situational irony. You think it's a love story, but it's actually a tragedy. The two lovers end up dead in the end—certainly not a typical love story. Finally, when Romeo finds Juliet in a drugged sleep, he's certain she's dead.
Why is irony important in Romeo and Juliet?
William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is a tragic story about two lovers who are from two disputing families, and their eventual suicides. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony throughout the play to create tension for the audience and foreshadow the ending.
What does irony mean in Romeo and Juliet?
Irony in Romeo and Juliet. Irony in Romeo and Juliet. Definition. you expect one thing to happen, but the unexpected happens instead.
What were Romeo and Juliet's last words?
Here's to my love. O true apothecary, Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die.
What does Romeo say to Juliet?
Romeo promises Juliet that he loves her: "Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear / That tips with silver all these fruit-tree tops." Juliet cautions him not to swear by the moon since it is always changing, and she is seeking a constant love.
What does Romeo Act 3 Scene 1 say?
Romeo says, "Oops," and Mercutio curses both the Capulets and the Montagues ("a plague on both your houses!"). Romeo blames himself for Mercutio's death and laments that his love for Juliet has made him soft. If he had fought Tybalt, Mercutio would still be alive.
What does Romeo Act 3 Scene 3 say?
Summary: Act 3, scene 3 In Friar Lawrence's cell, Romeo is overcome with grief and wonders what sentence the Prince has decreed. Friar Lawrence tells him he is lucky: the Prince has only banished him. Romeo claims that banishment is a penalty far worse than death, since he will have to live, but without Juliet.
What Does 'Wherefore Art Thou Romeo' Mean? | Merriam-Webster
Not where, but why. Language is democratic—we vote with our words. Just as new words come into the language when we have new things to name or new concepts to describe, old words can drop from use.
Wherefore Art Thou Romeo - Meaning, Origin, and Usage - Literary Devices
The purpose of this phrase is to criticize procedures that involve unnecessary complication. In general terms, people use it to criticize excessive terms and conditions for doing something (like getting loans or insurance papers signed). We find its usage in various areas of life like when courts, visa offices, or government institutions reject someone’s case over documental flaws; the ...
O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? - eNotes
O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Juliet: O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love
Speech: “ O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? - Poetry Foundation
While William Shakespeare’s reputation is based primarily on his plays, he became famous first as a poet. With the partial exception of the Sonnets (1609), quarried since the early 19th century for autobiographical secrets allegedly encoded in them, the nondramatic writings have traditionally been pushed...
Quoting Shakespeare: “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?”
This is the first of an occasional series discussing Shakespeare’s plays and language by examining quotes from the works. With tomorrow being the anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, everyone is talking about the Bard.
Why is Juliet saying "Why are you Romeo"?
In Renaissance English ‘wherefore’ meant ‘why.’. So Juliet is saying “Why are you Romeo?”. This is an expression of Juliet’s fear that this newly awakened love will end in failure.
What is Juliet's fear of Romeo and Juliet?
This is an expression of Juliet’s fear that this newly awakened love will end in failure. There is an ancient feud going on in Verona between the Capulets and the Montagues. She is a Capulet and Romeo is a Montague.
What does Juliet wish Romeo was not?
In that speech Juliet is wishing Romeo is not Romeo Montague but that he had a different name. It wouldn’t matter what his name was as long as it wasn’t the name of Montague’s son. If the boy she has just fallen in love with were from any other family it would be fine.
Why is Shakespeare's language so difficult to understand?
Although Shakespeare’s language is not difficult to understand because it is so much like the English we speak today , some words have been lost or have evolved to mean something entirely different. For example, if Juliet or the nurse had referred to Romeo as a brave young man they would have meant that he was handsome or fine-looking. If they had talked about him as a knave they would have been saying that he is a little boy or a servant. There are many such words in Shakespeare but not enough to make his texts difficult to understand. The meaning is usually very clear when read in context.
What would Shakespeare have said if he was a knave?
If they had talked about him as a knave they would have been saying that he is a little boy or a servant. There are many such words in Shakespeare but not enough to make his texts difficult to understand. The meaning is usually very clear when read in context.
Wherefore art thou Shakespeare?
‘Wherefore art thou’ is one of Shakespeare’s most famous lines, spoken by Juliet in his Romeo and Juliet play. After meeting Romeo at the party her father has thrown to celebrate her engagement to Paris, Juliet goes up to her room. She steps out onto her balcony and, not being able to get the handsome young Romeo Montague out of her mind she sighs, and speaks her mind out loud.
Why is there no way that any union between them could occur?
There is no way that any union between them could occur because the hostility between the two families is firmly established and the situation is unmovable. Her fear of failure is well-founded because they go ahead with their love affair and actually get married. And, just as she fears, it results in failure.
What does "wherefore art Romeo" mean?
‘Wherefore’ means ‘why’: ‘the whys and the wherefores’ is a tautological phrase, since whys and wherefores are the same. (If we wish to be pedantic, ‘wherefore’ strictly means ‘for what’ or ‘for which’, but this means the same as ‘why’ in most contexts.)
What is the most famous line in Romeo and Juliet?
But let’s return to the first of these: the most famous line from the play, ‘O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?’ The play’s most-quoted line references the feud between the two families, which means Romeo and Juliet cannot be together. But Juliet’s question is, when we stop and consider it, more than a little baffling. Romeo’s problem isn’t his first name, but his family name, Montague. Surely, since she fancies him, Juliet is quite pleased with ‘Romeo’ as he is – it’s his family that are the problem. So why does Juliet not say, ‘O Romeo, Romeo , wherefore art thou Montague?’ Or perhaps, to make the poetry of the line slightly better, ‘O Romeo Montague, wherefore art thou Montague?’
How do Sutherland and Watts explain Juliet?
Sutherland and Watts attempt to explain this oddity by arguing that Juliet is drawing attention, even subconsciously, to the arbitrariness of signs or words and their merely conventional relationship with the things they represent.
What would happen if Romeo wasn't known as Montague?
Hence the plaintive lament in her line ‘O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo’. If he wasn’t known as ‘Romeo Montague’, or ‘Romeo’ for short, and belonged to some other family, he would still be the youth he is. And their love would not be doomed.
Did Shakespeare mention a balcony in Romeo and Juliet?
In the stage directions for Romeo and Juliet and the so-called ‘balcony scene’ (Act 2 Scene 2), Shakespeare writes that Juliet appears at a ‘window’, but he doesn’t mention a balcony. It would have been difficult for him to do so, since – perhaps surprisingly – Elizabethan England didn’t know what a ‘balcony’ was.