The Different Colors of Love: An Analysis of Romeo and Juliet Over time, the red rose has developed to become a symbol of love. It is common for people to give them to their loved ones as a token for their affection. A rose communicates that love, much like its appearance is beautiful and delicate. One similar aspect of love is also displayed in its red shades, a color of passion. However, many forget of a rose’s thorns, sharp and painful to the touch. The rose is similar to the love expressed in Romeo and Juliet, a play written by William Shakespeare.
The story follows a pair of star-crossed lovers who must deal with the various aspects of love. For Romeo, love produces feelings of pain, joy, and impulsiveness. Early on in the play, the audience is introduced to Romeo, grief stricken and in pain due to his unrequited love. His friend Benvolio comes to comfort and him and rid him of his troubles yet, Romeo speaks of his pain commenting how, “Love is a smoked raised with the fume of sighs” (1. 1. 197). Sighs are noises that are often made when one is distressed or sad. The smoke becomes a metaphor to the sighs that are produced by his feelings of love.
Smoke is produced by fire, often have the connotation of being destructive and powerful. Therefore, Romeo’s love is like the fire, damaging and painful. In his eyes, the pain is caused by his unrequited love from Rosaline for she does not love him back. In Romeo could have the thing he wants, he would be happy. Another example of Romeo’s pain due to love in the play is when he talks to Friar Lawrence about his punishment having slain Tybalt. Learning that is to be banished instead of execution does not bring joy to Romeo but only brings despair for he ould be without his Juliet. He described it as,” ‘Tis torture and not mercy,” and adds how, “And little mouse, every unworthy thing/ Live here in heaven and may look on her/ but Romeo may not” (3. 3. 29-34). Receiving banishment seems more favorable than to be executed. Knowing Juliet is around but being unable to be with her brings him more pain then death, not wanting to suffer with the knowledge of Juliet around. A mouse is described as a pest, dirty and a nuisance. Because they are disgusting, others do not enjoy having them around.
Heaven is regarded as a place or paradise where the angels reside. The mice, usually regarded as a vermin, are on the same status of angels. Romeo is not and so he believes he is less than the mice. Putting himself down would indicate that he is sad and in pain. Although love is a source of Romeo’s pain, it also becomes a source of his joy. Having fallen in love with Juliet, Romeo shows a change from pain to pleasure. In one example, when Romeo stares at Juliet in the balcony, he expresses saying, “O, speak again, bright angel” (2. . 26).
Desiring her to do something again would mean he enjoys it. He is happy to hear her speak. He also compares her to that of an angel. Angels are religious figures known as a messenger of god, someone holy. Holy beings are regarded as being pure and precious. People are delighted when they are presented with something that is precious to them. Love is joyful because he is in the presence of Juliet, someone who is valuable to him. In another scene, Romeo discusses the prospect of having the Friar marry him and Juliet.
Hesitant to marry the two, Romeo anxiously tries to convince him sharing that “What sorrow can/ It cannot countervail the exchange of joy/ That one short minute gives me in her sight” (2. 6. 3-5). A minute is a relatively short amount of time. Romeo brings up sorrow in a general term, referring to any feeling of sadness. For Romeo, a quick glance has more impact on his life than any act of misfortune that may strike. Events that last over long periods of time tend to have more meaning because there is more time for things to happen.
The glance must be more significant for it to surpass the importance of any bad event. This shows that the happiness Romeo he receives from loving Juliet is very strong. Due to his newfound love for Juliet, Romeo’s strong feeling make him impulsive, giving no real thought to the results of his actions. A scene that shows Romeo’s impulsiveness is when is eager to marry Juliet while the Friar is skeptical of their decision. The Friar offers advice and reminds him, “Wisely and slowly. They stumble that run fast” (2. 3. 101).
Things that are done slowly are done in a more careful manner. Something done carefully is often done better than something that was rushed because there is more time to consider and review. More mistakes tend to rise when it is done quickly. The Friar offers this advice towards Romeo’s impulsiveness towards love. He advises him to not be hasty in your actions for they may lead to mistakes or misfortune. Finally, nearing the end of the play, Romeo’s impulsiveness leads him astray. Hearing about Juliet’s death, Romeo plans to kill himself.
He speaks, “Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on/ The dashing rocks thy seasick weary bark/ here’s to my love” (5. 3. 117-119). A desperate situation is one that is serious and critical. Someone who is desperate is someone who is in need. Romeo is like the desperate pilot where his needing to be by Juliet’s side is an urgent situation. And urgent situation must be dealt with quickly. It is also mentioned that the pilot must run and one who runs is one who is in a hurry. In a hurry, one has a limited amount of time to think for it must be done as soon as possible.
The action is done without thought, therefore making it impulsive, meaning more errors. Because of his love for Juliet, it blinds him from making a ration decision but instead, one done in a rush. This leads to Romeo’s misfortune because it was done without thought, all on an impulse. For Romeo, love is not only beautiful and joyful for him but causes him to be impulsive and be in pain. This may be a reason the play has become such a popular play. The characters must struggle to fight for their love, creating sympathy and evoke emotions that many people can relate to.
However, stories such as Romeo and Juliet often bring about questions on their love. Do they reflect a problem society faces today, too quick to fall in love? High rates of divorce often become a point that is brought up, bring up doubt in the legitimacy of love. Some suggest that arranged marriage is the solution to this problem, bringing together people who share similar ideals and backgrounds. Sadly, some find it restricting, not meeting up with their standards of finding love. One thing people will agree on is that love is hard, not easily earned but worth every penny.
