The Upside-Down World of Romeo and Juliet

This week, I gained a new perspective of Romeo and Juliet. It was interesting to look at it as more than a reader, and actually try to make sense of Shakespeare’s world. I had never picked up on a lot of the patterns and trends we made note of in class.  

Of the first posters we made, I found “time” and “place and space” to be the most eye opening. The time poster recognized how different times of day related to events - and they observed that the daytime was reserved for conflict and tension, while the romance and tenderness happened at night. This impacted us, as readers, even if we didn’t realize it. Everything in this story was flipped around. We usually associate the night with fear, as darkness usually evokes this emotion. However Shakespeare put fear in the daylight - and this confuses readers, adding to the semblance of the play.

The “place and space” poster gave insight to gender roles of Romeo and Juliet. Juliet is always seen inside or in a private setting, but Romeo has full freedom. It is obvious to the audience that women are left in private. Space and place also added to the aura of confusion present throughout the play. When Juliet is with Romeo, she is in a mixture of public and private - when they meet, she is indoors, but surrounded by people. Then later, at the balcony scene, she is outside yet in private. Shakespeare really plays with public and private vs indoor and outdoor, which to the audience shows an upside down world.

As I have already mentioned, Shakespeare plays with time, space, and place to highlight the confusion and panic occurring in Verona at this time. The fighting between the Capulets and Montagues have thrown the city into disarray, and Shakespeare effectively shows that through more than just flipping expectations upside down. He also uses language.

One of the biggest moments in the play is Mercutio’s death. He is killed by Tybalt, a Capulet - but exclaims “A plague a’ both your houses!” as he dies. Again, this isn’t what the audience expects. To me, this line means that Mercutio has realized the foolishness of this feud, and for just a brief moment, he is able to see things the way they should be. Everything is right-side up for just a second, then he dies. The audience is left with a world more complicated than before - Mercutio dead by Capulet, and then Romeo kills Tybalt - and everything instantly goes downhill.

On the second round of posters, I saw even more about how the world of Romeo and Juliet is backward. On the “patterns” poster, it was clear that the play alternated between love and fighting, while simultaneously getting progressively more violent. This was interesting, because it again created an atmosphere of confusion - the play was constantly shifting between love and war. This quick back and forth keeps audiences on their toes.

It is evident that Shakespeare used time, place and space, language, and patterns to create a confusing and “upside-down” world in Romeo and Juliet. The audience picks up on this confusion subconsciously, and we were able to find exactly what causes it in class this week.