Essay On Romeo And Juliet Figurative Language

652 Words3 Pages
Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” is a story of two lovers that ends in tragedy. It is well known for being a romantic piece with an inherited conflict and a macabre ending. Many uses of figurative language enhance the experience of reading the play. Whether it is providing a new perception of the story, creating a scene in the reader’s head, or making the entire play sound in the poetic tone, the devices used by Shakespeare heighten the senses while reading the story. With the use of light and dark images and the themes of love and death, Shakespeare paints a vivid picture in the reader’s head that helps them to better understand it. Light and dark imagery makes an impactful, mood-changing effect on the story. It not only stirs emotion,…show more content…
Shakespeare masterfully weaves the themes uniquely and provides a new insight into them. This is evident in the excerpt, “Death lies on her like an untimely frost upon the sweetest flower of all the field” (4.5.29-30). In the excerpt, Lady Capulet compares Juliet’s death to a flower’s death. By doing this, Juliet maintains her beauty and grace even at the state of death. Lady Capulet indirectly describes Juliet’s death as peaceful and elegant, rather than gruesome and grotesque. Juliet is described as cordial and delicate, much like a flower. A similar but more mournful scene in the play makes virtually the same comparison. Near the end of play, Romeo speaks to Juliet’s false corpse in the passage, “Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath, hath had no power yet upon thy beauty. Thou art not conquered. Beauty’s ensign yet is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks” (5.3.101-104). Again, Juliet’s beauty is invulnerable to Death’s grasp. Even up to her death, Romeo cannot sway himself from being taken aback by Juliet’s charm. Incidentally, he refers to Juliet’s life as “honey”, and that it was sucked from her breath. Therefore, it is not unnatural to assume that Juliet lived a good, friendly, and warm life. Love and death are a crucial part to the story as they provide a deeper meaning and understanding of it. Without images of light and dark as well as love and death, Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” would not have achieved the rightly deserved praise it has today. Consequently, the story would be dry and less lively, and some important connections and meanings could not be made. Romeo’s true feelings for Juliet would be somewhat vague and blurry, and Juliet’s beauty would be imprecise and ambiguous. The way Shakespeare beautifully executes the language of imagery is what will make him be remembered for generations to
Open Document