Literary Devices Used In Romeo And Juliet

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In the past and present dating is a thing that comes with being human. According to Price et al., “50% of people have dated by the age of 15” (1). Relationships among teenagers can be both good and bad. In order for a relationship to work both parties have to exhibit loyalty, trust, and genuinely care about the other person. Even in the 1500s when William Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet these traits still were around. The literary devices used in the play help keep the story relevant. With the language used in Romeo and Juliet, the reader can more fully understand the feelings and thoughts of the characters within the play.
The literary devices that add the most flavor to the play are metaphors and similes. Romeo exclaims ¨Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs. Being purged, a fire sparkling in lover's eye¨ (Shakespeare 1.1 197- 198). Romeo also notes, ¨Too rude, too boist’rous, and it pricks like thorn.¨ (Shakespeare 1.4 26). These devices are used to show emphasis. The metaphor shows how Roemo deals with his feelings and how they affect his view on love. The simile is used to further explain to …show more content…

The asides used in Romeo and Juliet help explain the characters´ feelings to the audience and other characters in the story or remind the audience of events the characters know. For example, ¨I would I knew not why it should be slow'd. / Look, sir, here comes the lady towards my cell¨ Friar Lawrence says in regard to Paris ( Shakespeare 4.1 16-17). Earlier in the play, Romeo asides ¨Is she a Capulet? / O dear account! My life is my foe’s debt¨ ( Shakespeare 1.5 131-132). This aside displays Romeo´s feeling of learning that Juliet, the girl he fell in love with, belongs to the family that he was born to hate. These asides add an extra level of understanding the character's feelings. This divides the flow of the play and attributes it to the feeling of the