How Does Shakespeare Present Lady Capulet

In Act 1 Sc 3, we witness a conversation on the topic of marriage between Juliet’s character and Lady Capulet’s character. Juliet’s character states “It is an honour that I dream not of.” This clearly creates the impression that Juliet has a reluctance to marry. Juliet’s language here is ambiguous and Juliet’s character is immediately being deliberately vague by creating a sense of manipulation with her language. Juliet’s character describes the idea of the marriage as an “honour”. This shows that Juliet’s character has a respect for her duty. Shakespeare has used sarcasm to imply that Juliet’s character already understands that it is her duty to marry, and she also understands that she has no choice in the matter. Juliet’s character’s duty is a part of the

Later on in Act 1 Sc 3, the conversation moves on to the topic of Juliet’s character’s opinion on whether she is able to possess feelings for Paris. Juliet’s character states that “I’ll look to like, if looking to like move”. Shakespeare uses alliteration, consonance and assonance within this quote to create a musical effect, which makes Juliet’s character’s language difficult to follow. This builds on the idea that Juliet is being evasive and is unwilling to give a direct answer. Furthermore, this creates the impression that Juliet’s character has a refusal to commit to Paris’ love. As a result, Juliet’s character seems to have passive resistance as on the surface she agrees with Lady Capulet, but the language she uses suggests rebellion. Shakespeare emphasises in Act 1 Sc 3 that Juliet’s character is consistently deceptive, as in this scene she has been evasive of Lady Capulet’s character’s questions. In Act 1 Sc 5, Romeo and Juliet meet for the first time and are instantly attracted to each