Romeo and Juliet
The definitive love tragedy of the Western canon — the story of two young people from feuding families who fall catastrophically in love and die as a result of hatred, chance, and haste.
At a Glance
- Genre: Tragedy
- Approximate date: c. 1594–1596
- Setting: Verona and Mantua
- Source: Arthur Brooke's narrative poem The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet (1562); Bandello's novella
- Acts: 5
Dramatis Personæ
| Character | Description |
|---|---|
| ESCALUS | Prince of Verona; seeks to end the feud |
| MERCUTIO | Kinsman to the Prince; Romeo's brilliant friend; killed by Tybalt |
| PARIS | Kinsman to the Prince; suitor to Juliet |
| MONTAGUE | Head of the Montague family |
| LADY MONTAGUE | Romeo's mother |
| ROMEO | Son to Montague; impulsive romantic |
| BENVOLIO | Nephew to Montague; Romeo's peacemaking friend |
| ABRAM | Montague servant |
| BALTHASAR | Servant to Romeo |
| CAPULET | Head of the Capulet family; Juliet's father |
| LADY CAPULET | Juliet's mother |
| JULIET | Daughter to Capulet; thirteen years old; deeply serious |
| TYBALT | Nephew to Lady Capulet; fiery; kills Mercutio; killed by Romeo |
| NURSE | Juliet's nurse; confidante; earthy; betrays Juliet |
| PETER | Servant to the Nurse |
| SAMPSON and GREGORY | Capulet servants |
| FRIAR LAWRENCE | Franciscan friar; marries Romeo and Juliet; his plan goes wrong |
| FRIAR JOHN | Carries the crucial letter that never arrives |
| AN APOTHECARY | Sells Romeo poison |
| THREE MUSICIANS |
Plot Summary
Prologue: A Chorus announces that "A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life" — the tragic outcome is stated from the start.
Act I: Servants brawl; the feud between the Capulets and Montagues is introduced. Romeo is love-sick for Rosaline. Benvolio persuades Romeo to attend a Capulet feast (to see Rosaline is outshone by others). At the feast, Romeo and Juliet meet and fall instantly in love — only to discover each other's family identity.
Act II: The famous balcony scene: Romeo overhears Juliet confessing her love, and they pledge to each other. Romeo arranges a secret marriage with the help of Friar Lawrence (who hopes the union will end the feud) and the Nurse. They are married.
Act III: Tybalt confronts Romeo in the street; Mercutio fights Tybalt in Romeo's place and is mortally wounded. Romeo kills Tybalt in grief and rage. The Prince banishes Romeo. Juliet is grief-stricken but forgives Romeo. They spend their wedding night together. In the morning, Romeo leaves for Mantua. Capulet suddenly arranges Juliet's marriage to Paris in three days.
Act IV: Juliet refuses the match; Capulet threatens to disown her. She goes to Friar Lawrence, who gives her a sleeping potion that will make her appear dead. She will be buried in the tomb; Friar Lawrence will alert Romeo; they will escape. Juliet takes the potion; her family finds her "dead" and places her in the Capulet vault.
Act V: Friar John fails to deliver Lawrence's letter to Romeo; Romeo hears only that Juliet is dead. He buys poison from an apothecary and rides to Verona. At the tomb, he kills Paris, who refuses to let him in. He enters, sees Juliet, drinks the poison, and dies. Friar Lawrence arrives moments too late. Juliet wakes, finds Romeo dead, and stabs herself. The Prince, Capulets, and Montagues arrive. The Friar explains everything. Montague and Capulet are reconciled over the bodies of their children.
Key Themes
- Love and death — eros and thanatos are inseparable in the play; the intensity of love becomes fatal
- Fate and free will — "star-cross'd lovers" suggests fate; yet human decisions (Romeo's haste, the failed letter) drive the catastrophe
- Youth and age — the lovers' impulsive youth is contrasted with the slower deliberation of their elders
- The feud — hate as the environment that makes love lethal
- Time — the play is obsessed with speed; events move with fatal haste
Notable Quotations
"But soft! what light through yonder window breaks? / It is the east, and Juliet is the sun." *(II.ii)*
"A plague on both your houses!" *(Mercutio, III.i)*
"What's in a name? That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet." *(II.ii)*
"For never was a story of more woe / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo." *(V.iii)*
LibriVox Recording
Romeo and Juliet audiobook on LibriVox — Free public domain recording.
Cross-references
- Tragedies — genre context
- Othello — love destroyed by jealousy and malice
- A Midsummer Night's Dream — written around the same time; presents the same young lovers motif as comedy
- Antony and Cleopatra — the mature counterpart to this adolescent love story