Sunday, October 28, 2012

In Act 5 of Romeo and Juliet, Juliet shows a side to her we have never seen before. When does she reveal this side of her and what is it like?...

In this act, Juliet actually speaks very little, and only in scene III, when she first awakens and finds herself in her family's vault.  Juliet's brief speech emphasizes her newfound decisiveness.  Consider how long and how much she had to say when she learned that Romeo had slain Tybalt; she spent quite a while working through her conflicting responses and trying to decide what to do and how to feel.  Recall, also, the lengthy speech she gave just prior to drinking the potion that Friar Lawrence had given her or her need to seek out the friar's advice when she learns that she will be made to marry the County Paris.  No, now, Juliet acts against the friar's wishes and quickly makes the decision to end her life and be with Romeo.  She does not take time or need to consider her options; there are none in her mind.  This side of her is revealed when she realizes that her husband is dead.


Juliet certainly seems a great deal more self-assured in this scene than she has in any other.  There is no need for her to ponder, no need to question or worry over what consequences her actions might have.  Realizing that there is no more poison left in Romeo's vial, and hearing voices outside, she says, "Yea, noise?  Then I'll be brief.  O happy dagger, / This is thy sheath" (5.3.174-175).  Thus, in the sense that Juliet has become more and more capable of taking decisive and immediate action, she seems to have developed a sense of certainty in her decisions that she's not exhibited before. 

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