Masking Identity In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

Masking Identity
On the internet, there is an obsession with being anonymous. A priority of many who log onto their computers or phones wants to keep what they do a secret from the outside world. But how do people stay hidden if you take away the screen? During Shakespeare’s time, people would wear masks at parties, performances, or for pernicious behavior. As a result, in Romeo and Juliet, the idea of a mask is used throughout the play to demonstrate identity and who the people in the play really are.
From the prologue, we already know that the Montagues and Capulets do not like each other. If you were a Montague, you were supposed to hate Capulets (and vice versa). The mask is first seen in Act 1, Scene 5 when Romeo goes to the Capulet party wearing a mask. He wears a mask so that he can hide the fact that he is a Montague.Romeo meets Juliet (a Capulet) at the party and this is where their love story starts. At this time, Juliet didn’t know that Romeo was a Montague, and this is important for the rest of the play, as it sets the identity of these two characters. In Act 2, Scene 2 (during the famous balcony scene), the theme of masks and identity

He thinks that Romeo is there to harm Juliet, as he is a Montague. He even goes far enough to say “This is that banished haughty Montague, That murdered my love's cousin, with which grief, It is supposed the fair creature died” (5.3 51). Romeo and Paris end up dueling. Romeo wins the duel and buries Paris next to Juliet, as he was supposed to be her fiance. Romeo also kills himself as he believes that Juliet is dead. At the end of the play, the Prince says “Where are these enemies?-Capulet! Montague! See what a scourge is laid upon your hate, That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love” (5.3 303). This shows us that if both families took off their masks, they would have seen that they were both equal. They wouldn’t have fought and caused those