Caroline Jilek

Miss. Johnson

Pre AP English 9

06 November 2017

Romeo and Juliet Formative Essay

“Never judge anyone by their appearance… or even the words they say. Judge people by

their actions, that’s how you know if they’re bad or good,” (Luanne Rice). In the play, Romeo

and Juliet, by Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet’s families are in conflict, creating a lot of tension

between the two sides. It increases when Romeo, Juliet’s new and secret husband, just killed

Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt. Juliet’s feelings towards Romeo change as she hears what happened

between Romeo and Tybalt. Shakespeare uses imagery to portray Juliet’s feelings towards

Romeo before and after she hears of Tybalt’s death.

Before Juliet discovers the news of Tybalt’s murder, she is praising Romeo and struggling

in his absence. Shakespeare uses imagery to render this. For example, while Juliet is waiting for

Romeo to come after their wedding, she says that “[He is] Whiter than new snow upon a raven’s

back,”(3.2.20). Juliet is indicating that Romeo is the light of her life by comparing him to snow

on a dark surface, such as a raven’s back. The imagery implies that Romeo brightens up Juliet’s

dark and twisted life, showing that he makes her happy and she loves him. Another example is

when Juliet is lionizing Romeo’s good-looks, when he dies, she wants to “...cut him out in little

stars, and he will make the face of heaven so fine that… the world will be in love with night,”

(3.2.24-26). Juliet believes that Romeo is so beautiful that he could replace the stars, which are
known for their beauty, and the people of the world would fall in love with the night because of

Romeo’s radiance. She is suggesting again that Romeo could illuminate the dark and that he is

precious and beautiful. All in all, Juliet’s thoughts and feelings towards Romeo before she hears

of Tybalt’s death are exalting and they are portrayed using imagery.

After Juliet hears of Romeo’s murderous action, her feelings towards her new husband

are altered. Shakespeare uses imagery in this dramatic scene to illustrate Juliet’s distraught state

of mind. For instance, when the nurse tells Juliet the news, she calls Romeo a “... serpent… hid

with a flowering face,” (3.2.74). Juliet is describing Romeo as a snake, he is being perfidious and

deceitful. Furthermore, Juliet says that Romeo is a snake disguised as a flower, a beautiful thing

that represents happiness and love. This shows that Juliet now thinks of Romeo as an

untrustworthy and disingenuous man when before she was glorifying his good looks and charm.

Additionally, Juliet dubbed Romeo a “Beautiful tyrant…” (3.2.76) and a “...fiendish angel,”

(3.2.76). Again, after hearing of Romeo’s crime towards her dear cousin, Juliet feels as if

Romeo is a cruel and malicious man posing as a “beautiful angel.” She is angry that Romeo,

whom she thought was a caring man, would kill her cousin. All in all, Juliet feels betrayed by

Romeo’s actions, this is shown through imagery in the play.

To conclude, Shakespeare’s brilliant use of imagery in this scene shows Juliet’s feelings

towards her new husband Romeo before she found out that she killed her cousin and after. Prior

to learning the news, Juliet was adoring towards Romeo by suggesting that he was the light of

her life. Subsequently, Juliet was enraged and thought of her husband as evil in disguise. The use

of imagery helps the reader understand Juliet’s genuine feelings regarding Romeo.