How Did Romeo And Juliet Change By Love

In the play “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare, Romeo was hardly changed by love because initially, he was characterized as shallow whereas now, he’s still characterized as shallow. In Act 1, Scenes 1-3, Romeo describes the love he has for Rosaline, a women who he has only talked to once. He narrates, “ One fairer than my love? The all-seeing sun Ne’er saw her match since first the world begun,” (Shakespeare, 1.1-3.101-102). When he exclaims that the “sun ne’er saw her match”, he’s portraying that Rosaline is more beautiful than the sun through the use of imagery. The sun itself is very bright and hot, but by saying that it’s not to Rosaline’s match, Romeo is illustrating that her outer beauty is even hotter. This constructs that he’s

At the party, he questions if the love he felt for Rosaline was literal. He narrates, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight. For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night,” (Shakespeare, 1.4-5.59-60). Despite not knowing Juliet, her beauty is standing out compared to everyone else at the party, causing Romeo to feel enamored. Meeting her allows him to feel a type of love he feels like he never experienced before. Nevertheless, this view is incorrect because Romeo only fell in love with Juliet’s beauty and not her true self. In this moment, he has never talked to Juliet before but still believes that she stands out the most in the crowd. This clearly highlights that he was hardly changed by love because Romeo only starts to love someone for their appearance and not for anything else. To add onto the idea that Romeo was hardly changed by love and is still shallow, after the party, he starts to describe Juliet even more. He narrates, “O, speak again, bright angel…As a winged messenger of heaven,” (Shakespeare, 2.2.29-31). This is demonstrating that Romeo is shallow because even though he met Juliet only briefly, he believes that she’s an angel. When he says that she’s a “bright angel” he’s communicating that her beauty is out of this world. An angel is also known for being pure and innocent and by calling her an angel, it reveals that he’s still shallow

When Lady Capulet asks Juliet to attend the Capulet party, this was because Paris, a man who loves Juliet, will be there. Hearing this, Juliet responds with, “I’ll look to like, if looking liking move. But no more deep will I endart mine eye That your consent gives strength to make [it] fly,” (Shakespeare, 1.1-3.103-105). Through the use of characterization, when Juliet communicates “I’ll look to like”, this is highlighting that she’ll see if she’s interested in Paris. This is constructing that Juliet is obedient because she’s only doing this since her mother is asking her to. Juliet doesn’t really have a view of love which means that she has uncaring emotions towards it, but once again, she’s going to the party and meeting Paris because she’s obeying the orders of her mother. Juliet is then characterized as disobedient because she starts to love Romeo who’s from an enemy’s family. She narrates, “My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep. The more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite,” (Shakespeare, 2.2.140-142). When Juliet explains “boundless as the sea, my love as deep”, she’s saying that her love for Romeo will never meet its end. No matter what happens in the future, Juliet will continue to love Romeo. The sea is very large, to the point where it feels like there’s no end to it. Saying