Tuesday, July 31, 2012

In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo compares Juliet to stars in Act II scene 2. How might this be an example of foreshadowing?

This part of the play that you refer to of course comes in the
famous balcony scene, where the two lovers address each other and confess their mutual love.
However, before Romeo announces his presence to Juliet, he views her for a while, comparing her
appearance favourably to stars:


readability="11">

Two of the fairest stars in all the
heaven,


Haivng some business, do entreat her
eyes


To twinkle in their spheres till they
return.



By comparing Juliet's eyes to
stars, Romeo is obviously trying to capture her beauty and the way that he feels about her. If
there is any foreshadowing in this scene, I think it must relate to the way that "stars" operates
as a symbol of unchanging destiny in the play. Note, when Romeo receives news of Juliet's death,
how he shouts to the universe "I defy you stars!" One of the central themes of this tragedy is
the way that fate or destiny, captured in the symbol of the stars, will not be thwarted and how
the two lovers are "star cross'd." Thus this description of Juliet could be said to be ironic
because it compares her to stars, which are the very things that keep them
apart.

No comments:

Post a Comment

How is Anne's goal of wanting "to go on living even after my death" fulfilled in Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl?I didn't get how it was...

I think you are right! I don't believe that many of the Jews who were herded into the concentration camps actually understood the eno...