Romeo & Juliet Imagery Essay

928 Words4 Pages
Romeo & Juliet Imagery Literary devices play an essential role in most works of literature. These are techniques used by the writer in order to conjure moods and ideas within the reader. Writers often use different literary devices for different purposes. One very important literary device is imagery, and it is used in William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. Some of the imagery that truly appeals to the reader’s senses are the references to the stars, light and dark, and heaven and hell. In this play the stars represent the vast unknown and the heavens. When Romeo hears of Juliet’s passing he says, “Is it even so? then I defy you, stars!” (Act V, Scene 1, Line 24). Romeo is saying that he cannot believe in a God if they could take his beautiful wife from him. When the reader/audience interprets the thought of stars, the normal reactions are imagines of beauty, light, heaven, and other holy images. This perception of stars to the heavens is used by Juliet when she says, "When he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun." (Act II, Scene 2, Lines 20-25). This passage is also foreshadowing Romeo’s death later in the play. Another reference to stars was when Romeo said to Benvolio, “I fear too early, for my mind misgives some consequence yet hanging in the stars shall bitterly begin." (Act 1, Scene 4, Lines 106-108). This is Romeo stating that he is scared that they won't be too late, but too early for the Capulet party. In Romeo & Juliet light and dark imagery also plays a key role in this great Shakespearean tale. The most common imagery found in Romeo & Juliet are references to light and dark. Shakespeare first used light and dark imagery during the Capulet ball (Act I, Scene 5), when Romeo and Juliet fall in love with
Open Document