The Influence Of Words In Romeo And Juliet

Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, has its plot defined by the remarks made by the characters in the story, whether the comments are of love or disparagement. Fights are incited by mere insults, and romance is started with sweet talking, However, the words used by the characters in Shakespeare’s play are no ordinary words, they are words that portray a vivid picture, making the lines able to provoke people to act the way they do in Romeo and Juliet.
Throughout the play, there are many insults directed at the opposing families, and when this occurs, the situation does not normally end peacefully. For instance, when Tybalt encounters Mercutio while he was trying to find Romeo, both Tybalt and Mercutio start insulting each other. Soon enough, the insults result in a fight between Tybalt and Mercutio, with Mercutio dying from his injuries in the mentioned altercation. Because of the fact that simple indignities led to casualties, this shows how important words are, with their ability to influence people to go to means of violence.

One of the most convincing lines comes from when Juliet is talking to Romeo from her balcony after Lord Capulet’s party,“ By any other word would smell as sweet./So Romeo would, were he not Romeo called, /Retain that dear perfection which he owes/ Without that title.” (II, ii, 46) Romeo and Juliet were most likely raised to hate each other’s house, which should lead to Juliet abhorring Romeo because he is a Montague. This does not happen, instead, Juliet realizes that names mean nothing, more so it is the quality of the person that denotes how they should be treated. Even though Romeo and Juliet have only seen each other for a brief time, with only really knowing each other’s last names, Juliet’s disregard for the last name of Romeo also shows how love can make people blind to