Written Coursework First Draft (incomplete)

Over the course of the play “Romeo and Juliet,” Juliet is a character that undergoes an immense amount of change in many different aspects. As a young girl falling in love, she experiences many emotions that previously have not been a part of her life. When she first sees Romeo, she immediately feels the connection between them. But she only realizes after that Romeo is, in fact, from the Montague family. The Montagues and the Capulets are two noble families who are in a long-standing feud. Despite coming from opposing families, their circumstances only seem to highlight their love for each other. Due to the pressure from Juliet’s parents about marrying Paris, Romeo and Juliet realize that their need to move forward in their relationship despite their situation. The scene that I selected begins at this point. Throughout Shakespeare's' language in the play, Juliet changes as a young girl maturing into a woman deeply in love. This development was very important to portray as an actor through facial expressions and movements.

 In the beginning of the play, Juliet can be seen as a young girl who depends on her parents to make decisions for her. This portrayed in the beginning of the play when her mother, Lady Capulet, and her handmaid, the Nurse, come into her bedroom to talk to her about getting married to Paris. At first, she is unsure of the idea, as she has never thought about her future in this way. But it is clear that she warms up to the idea because it is her mother, and oldest friend talking to her. In the first act, Lady Capulet says, “How stands your disposition to be married?” to which Juliet replies, “It is an honor that I dream not of” (1.3.65-6). She knows that she can trust them, and she also knows that they want the best of her as well. Despite knowing very little about courtship, and marriage, she opens up to the idea of it because of who is presenting the idea.

Once Juliet meets Romeo, her whole behavior changes. She starts to push back on her parents’ decisions and is a lot more willing to break the rules. When Juliet’s parents tell her that she must marry Paris, a noble Count, she is devastated. She knows that if she does not do anything, she will be stuck in her fate without Romeo at her side. Her decision is to go to Friar Lawrence, the religious man who had married the pair and ask for his help. This in and of itself was a big step for Juliet. Previously, she has always had everything handed to her from the Nurse or her parents. Because they would approve of her actions, she knows that she must be the one who must help herself. Friar Lawrence understands how important being with Romeo is to Juliet so he devises a plan to get them together. He creates a potion that will put Juliet to sleep as if she is dead, so her family will place her in the tomb. Then the Friar will send for Romeo who will come get Juliet, wake her up, and bring them away from Verona. This is where the scenes that my partner and I chose pick up the story.

Our scene starts when Juliet is in her bedroom and she has to take the potion to start the plan. In this first monologue, Juliet goes through a range of emotions. She knows that this is a very important decision, and that is why she takes so much time thinking about what she wants to do. Deciding what she truly wants is key in this section, because for the first time in her life, she is the one in charge of her own life. She has the potion in her hand that could change her life forever. But when she is alone in her bedroom with the potion, her uncertainty really shines through. The third line of our scene is the following: “I’ll call them back again to comfort me./ Nurse!—What should she do here?/ My dismal scene I needs must act alone.” (4.3.17-9). This shows a lot about Juliet’s character. It shows that her first instinct is to call back her family and ask them what they think about the situation. This is what her life before Romeo consisted of; relying on others to make her decisions. But she realizes that they cannot help her here, and that she is truly alone in this decision. And that scares her. She goes on to worry a lot about the potion and what will happen next. She says, “What if it be a poison which the friar/ Subtly hath minist’red to have me dead,/ Lest in this marriage he should be dishonor’d/ Because he married me before to Romeo?” (4.3.24-7). This quote shows that she is continuing to question everything. She wonders if the potion will do what the Friar said, or if it is trap that will cause her death. She realizes that she has no way of knowing what will happen until she makes a decision. 
Juliet continues to wonder about all the possibilities that might happen if the potion does work. She first thinks about what would happen if she gets stuck in the tomb and suffocated, then moves on to pondering what would happen if she went crazy whilst in the vault. Juliet thinks about all these different options because on the inside she is still the young, inexperienced girl that we see in the beginning of the play. She is very much unsure about whether or not she should take the potion. Her monologue ends with these words; “Romeo, Romeo, Romeo!/ Here’s drink—I drink to thee” (4.3.58). Juliet calls out for Romeo multiple times before she takes the drink. This shows that it is ultimately Romeo that makes her decision. She longs for a future with him and she knows that this is path to that. It shows that this possibility of the future gives her confidence and makes her overlook all the other things that might be affecting her. For Juliet, just thinking about her love for Romeo is enough to risk her life.