In Act 1 Scene 2, Paris asks Lord Capulet's permission to marry Juliet. Although amenable to his request for his daughter's hand, Lord Capulet asks Paris to wait. He states that Juliet is not yet fourteen years old, and he would prefer that Paris wait two years before he presented his suit again.
Disappointed, Paris argues that girls younger than Juliet have married and become happy mothers. In response, Lord Capulet basically explains that Juliet is the apple of his eye; she's the only child he has ("Earth hath swallowed all my hopes but she"). So, he's not ready to see her married yet.
Lord Capulet tells Paris to concentrate on winning Juliet's heart first; if Paris is successful, Lord Capulet will then give his permission and his blessing for the union. In the meantime, Lord Capulet invites Paris to a party he's giving that night. He tells Paris that there will be lots of young women there and advises him to delight himself in the presence of all the "fresh fennel buds" (young maidens) who will be in attendance. Lord Capulet thinks that if Paris keeps an open mind, he may find himself preferring another young woman to Juliet.
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