r&j characters

ROMEO

Adjectives to describe the character: 

Fickle, lovesick, infatuated, mopey, ideoloistic, romantic, determined, Pertrachan lover, juvenille, loyal, vengeful, sorrowful, poetic, impulsive, dramatic, foolish, sentimental, noble, young, emotional, irrational, brave.

How he evolves: 

At the beginning of the play: Romeo is lovesick due to his unrequited love for Rosaline. He is upset and hyperbolises his situation, his infatuation has left him unsociable and in sombre spirits. He is indulged by Benvolio but mocked by Mercutio.

At the Capulet ball, Romeo meets Juliet for the first time and has suddenly forgotten about his sorrow in an instant - demonstrating his fickle nature. He confesses his new-profound love for her and becomes determined to pursue a relationship and of course, marriage.

As the play progresses, he is presented as unwilling to partake in violence and conflict. But after Mercutio's death he becomes vengeful and loses all self-control, consequently killing Tybalt which has damaging repercussions (exile). A chain of events following this ultimately lead to his demise.

BENVOLIO

Adjectives to describe the character:

Rational, logical, level-headed, practical, pacifistic, noble, sensible, loyal, moral, good friend, kind, selfless, persuasive, considerate, a confidant and counsel (to his friends), demanding, peaceful, cautious, wise, reasonable, calm and collected.

How the character evolves: 

At the beginning of the play: Benvolio acts as the peacekeeper - as the feud breaks out, he attempts to prevent the brawl escalating to something much worse by being pacifistic and stopping the violence. Although, when provoked and mocked by Tybalt, he does in fact participate among the other civillians.

When Benvolio sees Romeo, he acts as his counsel - adhering to his needs as an infatuated lover. He attempts to cajole Romeo out of his sombe spirits by distracting his mind from his unrequited love. He persuades him to attend the Capulet ball and ultimately acts as a catalyst for the plot. 

Although Benvolio remains more or less the same throughout the play, as conflicts rise, he becomes more persuasive - it becomes his responsibility to defend his friends at a time of crisis.

MERCUTIO

Words to describe the character:

Flamboyant, mocking, impulsive, loyal, vengeful, witty, humourous, imaginative, realistic, unpredictable, devoted, neutral, mercurial, dirty, sexual, derogatory, obscure, gallant, brave, determined, vivacious, uncensored, hot-tempered.

Character's importance to the play as a whole: 

Acts as a catalyst for the plot - Mercutio is the one who persuaded Romeo to attend the Capulet ball where he first meets Juliet and falls in love. by acting as Romeo's confidant, he ultimately brings the starr cross'd lovers together.

His death - The death of Mercutio in Act 3 Scene 1 leads to a chain of events that lead to Romeo and Juliet's inevitable death. His death creates Romeo's newly-entertained revenge and fury which compells him to kill Tybaly. Consequently, Romeo is exiled and the events that follow result in the star crossed lovers' deaths.

Views of love - Mercutio has a realistic outlook on love that opposes society's Pertrarchan ideologies (and the likes of Romeo). This allows his character to…