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Mercutio Essay

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The play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, set in Verona in the thirteenth century, follows the two characters Romeo and Juliet, star-crossed lovers born into two warring families: the Montague and the Capulets. It follows the progression of their relationship leading up to their unfortunate but necessary death. While the play primarily revolves around the lovers, the tragedy of the story begins with the death of a prominent secondary character, Mercutio. Mercutio, a close friend of Romeo who appears four times in the play, is known for his wit, humor, and liveliness. He serves as a distraction from the intense love, as he brings comedy to the play. Although Mercutio initially appears to be a lively, elated character, each time he appears his exuberant facade fades to …show more content…

Mercutio only delivers this section of the speech to entertain; he uses magical language, and his charming, likable characteristics shine through. While his fairytale is lighthearted and playful as he describes the fairy queen, he uses darker imagery as well, describing her with insect imagery, hinting at some of Mercutio’s more undesirable qualities. Although his goal is to be playful, his esoteric knowledge marks him as an outsider. As playful as he begins, however, Mercutio’s speech becomes more critical as he continues. While the second section of the Queen Mab speech still has a magical and clairvoyant feel, it has an undertone of contempt. Mercutio talks of the different dreams that Mab brings, but his tone shifts from whimsical to serious. He delves into a scathing critique of the power structure of the world. His critique of lawyers is evident when he states, “O’er lawyers’ fingers, who dream on fees” (1.4.78). Mercutio highlights that those in positions of power prioritize their wealth and personal gain over their work and passion. His thoughts highlight his unique perspective on the

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This shows that his mood changes easily because if it didn’t then Mercutio would have let Tybalt duel Romeo. Mercutio can also be very rude. He makes fun of the nurse and calls her fat. This shows that he is rude because if he was not rude that he would have not said anything at all and kept it to himself.

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We see more figurative language spoken by Mercutio in the lines just above: “Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.” This means Mercutio is well aware of the damage that has been done, he realizes that no matter if he survives or does not, he will not be as he was before this encounter. Mercutio is either to be found dead, in a grave, or injured and unable to return to his convivial persona. Mercutio's death was a shock, it is seen to be so tragic as at the initial time of his injury, instead of the people around him helping him, they then instead make a mockery and Mercutio was never seen asking anybody for help, and was only ever seen to be sarcastic and

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This shows how Mercutio is a jokester in both the play and the movie, but his death scene in the play is less dramatic and more reasonable than his death scene in the movie. William Shakespeare meant for this scene to be a serious and sincere scene where Mercutio makes a joke even in the situation he is in. Baz Luhrmann went a bit too far in how dramatic Mercutio is in this

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1.4.98" This quote exemplifies the deep level of thought that Mercutio puts into what he says. This also shows the amount he cares about his friends, which bring us to the next word. The second word that describes Mercutio is kind. Mercutio is constantly concerned for and protective of his friends.

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Mercutio couldn’t defend himself because Romeo was in his way trying to stop the fight by saying “Draw, Benvolio; beat down their weapons, Gemtlem en, for shame forbear this outrage.” I enjoy this scene because Mercutio was bleeding to death, but didn’t stop joking around. The idea that he is a flat character stands out to the audience in this scene. A flat character is someone who only has one character trait, in this situation the character trait was a joker or clown.

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Mercutio’s humor contributes to his remarkable character. His humor is exemplified when Mercutio says, “O, then I see Queen Mab hath been with you / She is the fairies midwife, and she comes / In shape no bigger than an agate stone / on the forefinger of an alderman, / drawn with a team of little atomies” (1.4.53-57). The quote reveals how Mercutio is enlightening his friends through a funny dream that he once had about a fairy that flies across the dreams of men and women, giving them dreams that are not true in reality.

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McEnery plays the jester-like comedian with all of its dramatic flair and more by ad-libbing, such as his imitation of a whip’s crack when he delivers the line “Her whip of cricket’s bone” (19:05). His jest continues, gradually building the tension until McEnery pulls it to a half at line 85 (20:10). The way the line “and being thus frightened, swears a prayer or two and sleeps again” (1.4.85-85) is delivered implies a heartfelt experience, as though Mercutio had gone through it himself. This also allows the viewer to backtrack and realise that this crescendo of emotion encircles a nightmare of a soldier still fighting in a war. Perhaps it is a far-fetched theory, but the portrayal almost suggests that Mercutio suffers from post-traumatic disorder and the anger he directs at ‘Queen Mab’ (20:16-20:50) is the result of that until Romeo comforts him (“Thou talks of nothing” 1.4.94).

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Unlike his foil, Benvolio, he is quick to draw his sword in any situation. Instead of settling what could be peaceful agreements, Mercutio likes to instigate trouble. On page 24, he says “Couple it with something /Make it a word and a blow. The unnescessary violence Mercutio has in his day to day lifestyle is quite extra He is also a man of honor and would not pass up a fight, unlike Tybalt’s “vile submission” (25).

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The quote written is proof that Mercutio isn't wise when coming to a good sense of mindfulness. When Mercutio stirred up a wide pot between the Capulets and Montagues

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In this passage provided, we can see that Mercutio and Benvolio are very different people. When they are together in this scene, their differing facets stand out tremendously. Mercutio is a hotheaded, witty character, while Benvolio is the calm, peacekeeper that tries to keep

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She makes courtiers dream of curtsying, lawyers dream of fees, ladies dream of kissing, priests dream of large donations, soldiers dream of cutting the throats of enemies. Queen Mab is also responsible for the tangling of horses’ manes as well. She is the one that teaches lovers how to make children. Mercutio becomes spell-struck by the story, and resentful, passion arises. Romeo steps in to stop the speech and try to get Mercutio to ease up.

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He is neither a Capulet or a Montague so he floats between the houses. I think he is closest to the Montague’s as his best friend is Romeo who is a Montague. Mercutio is always ready to fight so this builds up tension in this tense scene. ‘Make it a word and blow’ Shows his eagerness to fight also. In the time setting of the play, people would believe in honour and Mercutio is proud of it, ‘O Clam dishonourable vile submission’ shows this.

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In this movie, Mercutio was closer to the character described in the script, he was more lively and comical, rather than condescending (Luhrmann). The accurate portrayal of Mercutio is important because he was a vital character, his death caused the chain reaction of deaths and really turned the story into a tragedy. And without the correct portrayal of his personality, the scene leading up to his death would not seem correct. Even though this is true, the portrayal of one character is nowhere close to being the most important aspect of the movie, it is much better to have accurate sets, costumes, scripts, and character deaths, than having one character played well. Mercutio’s lighthearted and hilarious nature is expressed when he says, “Speak but one rhyme, and I am satisfied.

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