Romeo and Juliet

Romeo Montague is passionate when meets Juliet for the first time. He declares his love for Juliet at the Capulet's party. 

"Henceforth I will never be Romeo."

Here, Romeo is telling Juliet he will not be Romeo Montague if it displeases her. This shows how passionate he is, as he is prepared to break away from his family and Christian name in order to be with Juliet. As the Montague family are wealthy and reputable, this would have caused great dishonour and therefore illustrates how serious Romeo believes his love is.

Romeo Montague is changeable as at the start of the play he declares his love for Rosaline, describing his heart as "heavy as lead". However, his emotions and feelings soon change when he meets Juliet.

"I have forgot that name and that name's woe."

This shows that Romeo is fickle, as he is openly stating he has 'forgotten' his past love, Rosaline. The fact that he isn't saying her name also indicates how his emotions have moved on, as he has almost forgotten that she is a real person, she is just a name to him now.

Romeo Montague is headstrong when he avenges Mercutio's death by killing Tybalt.

"Either thou or I, or both, must go with him."

This shows that Romeo is prepared to die in order to avenge his best friend's death. This is the ultimate sacrifice and illustrates how headstrong he is but also how much he values his friendships.

Juliet is passionate when she first meets Romeo. She kisses him when they first meet, and later on, in the famous balcony scene, she declares her love for him.

"I gave thee mine before thou didst request it."

Romeo requests that Juliet declares her love for him and Juliet simply replies that she has already done so. This shows how loving and passionate she is, as she has given her love and heart to Romeo.

Juliet is headstrong when she refuses to marry Paris. This shocks her father and causes her father to threaten to disown her if she doesn't obey him.

"He shall not make me there a joyful bride!"

This shows how headstrong Juliet is, as she refuses her parents and declares she will not get married to Paris. The use of the exclamation mark heightens Juliet's emotions as she is shouting her refusal.

Juliet is decisive when she fakes her own death so she can be with Romeo. She listens to Friar Laurence's plan and decides to fulfil it.

"Love give me strength, and strength shall help afford."

This shows how calm Juliet is when she makes the decision to fake her own death, not knowing of her future. Juliet declares that Romeo's love gives her strength and this fuels her decisions and therefore her decisive nature.

Capulet is powerful as he is the head of the Capulet household. His power is presented through out the novel, as Tybalt comes to him to warn him about Romeo being at the party.

"Content thee, gentle coz, let him alone... It is my will."

This shows Capulet is powerful as he tells the fiery Tybalt to leave Romeo alone. Later on, Capulet gets angry when Tybalt begins to question him. This illustrates Capulet's power as he is in charge of a reputable household; he is the head of the family.

Capulet is stubborn shown from the fact that he is displeased with his daughter Juliet refusing to marry Paris and threatens to disown her for not following his requirements. 

"I tell thee what: get thee to church a' Thursday or never after look me in the face."

This shows how stubborn Capulet really is as he threatening Juliet that she will no longer be apart of the family if she disobeys him. The use of "I" illustrates how authorative Capulet is, how only his opinion is important.

Lady Capulet is selfish because she doesn't listen to her daughters woes about marrying Paris; she refuses to listen to Juliet as she is seen to be disrespecting her husband and therefore disrespecting the family name.

"Talk not to me, for I'll not speak a word, Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee."

This shows how Lady Capulet is selfish as she is unprepared to listen to what Juliet thinks as it will affect her relationship with her husband and her family name. Shakespeare has made this quote very short to illustrate  Lady Capulet's emotion and how she is not prepared to give Juliet any of her time. 

Lady Capulet is unknowning as she has a very formal relationship with her daughter and appears to not know what she is doing or how to be a mother for Juliet. 

"Nurse, where's my daughter? Call her forth to me."

The question Lady Capulet directs at the Nurse illustrates how Lady Capulet isn't aware of where her daughter is or how she spends her free time. The use of the word 'daughter' illustrates how their relationship is formal, as she is referring to her as what she is, rather than who she is. It also shows how Lady Capulet is possessive over Juliet, as if Juliet belongs to her.

Tybalt is argumentative when he speaks to any of the Montague family. He fuels the conflict and rift between the two families. When he seeks Romeo for a fight, he is argumentative when Romeo refuses to fight him.

"Boy, this shall not excuse the injuries that thou hast done me; therefore turn and draw."

This shows Tybalt's anger towards Romeo. The fact that Tybalt is calling Romeo a 'boy' is an insult and illustrates how Tybalt is instigating the conflict, wanting Romeo to react to the insult. Tybalt is also being instructive in this quotation, telling Romeo that he must 'turn and draw.' This also illustrates how Tybalt is passionate and likes to be in control.

Tybalt is loyal. This is shown through the fact that he believes Romeo is dishonouring the Capulet family by going to the masquerade ball. Although he mentions this to Lord Capulet, the reply is to just simply leave Romeo alone. Despites Tybalts usual nature he is loyal and obeys his uncle.

"Why uncle, 'tis a shame"

This shows that Tybalt is listening to his uncle and obeying orders. The word "shame" suggests Tybalt is unhappy with his uncles response but because he is loyal and obeys his uncle he won't argue with him.

Mercutio is witty as he always makes fun of Romeo when he declares his love for Rosaline. Mercutio ridicules Romeo's ,"love" for Rosaline claiming it is fake.

"That dreamers often lie"

Mercutios repsonse after Romeo tells him he had a dream of Rosaline. Mercutio can see that Romeo's love for Rosaline is false so he ridicules him and openly saying that Romeo being the dreamer can lie.

Mercutio is loyal when Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt, as he decides to fight Tybalt instead. This is because he cannot stand to see Romeo's honour jeopardised in the face of his enemy.

"Will you pluck your sword out of his pilcher by the ears? Make haste."

This shows Mercutio taking Romeo's place to fight Tybalt. He is taunting Tybalt suggesting he is slow to get his sword ready to fight. The fact that Mercutio is telling Tybalt to 'make haste' will only taunt Tybalt further, as he is suggesting Tybalt is a coward.

Friar Laurence is wise when he advises Romeo. He thinks highly of Romeo and refers to him as 'son' illustrating their close bond. He also tries to impart advice so Romeo can make the right decisions.

"Wisely and slow, they stumble that run fast."

Here, Friar Laurence is advising Romeo to think carefully and wisely about his decision to marry Juliet. This shows that Friar Laurence is wise because he is aware of what could happen. This is an example of dramatic irony, as the audience is aware that Romeo will 'stumble' and this will have tragic consequences, resulting in their deaths as the prologue to the play states.

Friar Lawrence  is religious as he is the Priest of Verona. He believes that Romeo and Juliet's marriage will unite them in the eyes of God and therefore end all conflicts between the two families.

"Till holy church incorporate two in one."

This represents Friar Lawrence's heavy religious views as he believes that just from the eys of God the marriage of a Montague and Capulet will put the families hatred to one another at ease. 

The nurse is loving as she love Juliet like she is her own child. Nurse has brought up Juliet, breast fed her when Juliet was a child. Her own daughter Susan died so Juliet became her main attention