How Does Shakespeare Use Metaphors In Romeo And Juliet

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In the tragedy Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses metaphor to convey the idea that one’s family does not define a person. A metaphor is when one thing symbolizes another thing. In act two, Juliet says,“that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet;”(2.2.43-44). The “rose” is a type of flower, it is beautiful and often used to represent love. Juliet sees Romeo as perfect and romantic, so Romeo is her rose. Juliet then considers a rose “by any other name.” A “name” is a word that we call something by, but often does not have much to do with the actual object. Romeo’s name is the one of his family, Montague. Juliet, on the other hand, is from the rival family of Capulet. Even though Romeo is a Montague, he is not very similar