Marc Kogan Mr. Williamson Honors English 9AB 29 March 2023 Romeo and Juliet Literary Analysis Essay What was in Pandora’s Box? Was it death, agony, or maybe sickness? Pandora wouldn’t be able to tell you because she is too preoccupied with being consumed by her wallowing and self-pity. Similarly, Juliet, from William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, wouldn’t be able to tell you why she disobeyed her parents’ wishes because she is too preoccupied with being dead. A reader of Romeo and Juliet can identify her thought process through close examination of her development as a character. Specifically, her development in the aspects of speech, thoughts, effects on others, actions, and looks reveals how drastic her change was from the beginning …show more content…
Throughout the course of the play, Juliet’s speech and attitude towards her parents drastically change from acquiescent to disobedient. Juliet communicates her newfound rule-breaker attitude when she states, “I will not marry yet, and when I do, I swear/ It shall be Romeo, whom you know I hate,/ Rather than Paris” (3.5.121-3). Her diction of “I will not marry yet,” when speaking to her parents, illustrates her recently developed nonconforming nature, as she directly opposes their wishes for her to marry Paris. Additionally, a change in Juliet’s thoughts is prevalent as the play progresses. Initially, Juliet maintains a strong belief that love should not be expeditious, as voiced when she proclaims, “I have no joy of this contract tonight,/ It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden” (2.2.117-8). Juliet’s cautionary tricolon, “too rash, too unadvised, [and] too sudden,” builds upon her foundational belief that love should progress in a sedated manner. Later in the play, Juliet becomes significantly more infatuated with Romeo and develops a reckless outlook on the prospect of being with her lover, sharply contrasting with her previous belief. Juliet conveys her recklessness and infatuation with Romeo when she exclaims, “O