How Is Mercutio A Dynamic Character In Romeo And Juliet

When most people think of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the first thing that comes to mind are the characters; Romeo, Juliet, the Capulet family, the Montague family along with others. Many of these characters are major parts of the storyline, but we only see what is given to us by the writer. Take for example, Lady Capulet. Although she is viewed as a demanding, poor mother figure, when we look deeper we can see that Shakespeare actually painted her to be a caring and protective character. Although one character appears to be one thing, Shakespeare leaves us hints to more significance the character has to the story.

In William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the character Mercutio is a foil for Romeo. They are both young men who enjoy each other's company and meet their death in this tragedy. Romeo is an impulsive, hopelessly dramatic romantic who overreacts to most life events. While Mercutio is more realistic, grounded, carefree and serious, although he can be impulsive. With Mercutio being a foil for Romeo, it is easy to see Romeo's dramatic and tragic life story as compared to the more calmer tragic ending for Mercitio.

He is the one who tries to pick Romeo back up and dust him off. Even though Romeo may not have admitted it, Mercutio was portrayed as his rock. That is why when he dies, this triggers a turning point in the play for the worst, resulting in multiple deaths and even an exile. Romeo and Juliet’s plan was caused by the death of Mercutio, because if he had not fallen, Romeo would not have lost his temper and slain Tybalt in a fit of rage. Romeo feels to blame since Mercutio “…got his mortal hurt in [Romeo’s] behalf;” (III.i.106-107). In turn, Romeo strives for vengeance and achieves it through the death of Tybalt. Although Mercutio is considered to be a subsidiary character, the outcome of the story would have been much

Not a lot of people can make up things on the spot and make everyone intrigued. Although he is a good friend, he is very impulsive. Mercutio fights Tybalt with no hesitation and he must suffer the consequence of death for it (Shakespeare 428). The characters in this play all act then think. He is not very patient as demonstrated in Act 2 when he can’t wait to find Romeo and go home (Shakespeare 402).

" Mercutio was correct in his predictions. The love between Romeo and Juliet ends up a tragedy for both families. Mercutio's character is essential in driving the action forward in this play. He foreshadows the devastating events, serves as Romeo's friend, and gives the audience important information throughout the play. Mercutio's death is the turning point in the play.

Mercutio can also portray the jester because he is humorous. He always steals the show, he doesn’t believe in true love and then mocks Romeo about it. These are just some examples. William Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet” Mercutio is humorous because he sais Tybalt is going to be dead with his “nine lives”:

As one of the most complex characters in the play, Romeo and Juliet, Mercutio’s purpose is to act as a static catalyst for the death of most of the characters. Shakespeare uses Mercutio’s character cleverly as the kind of character that stays in the background, but influences the rest of the cast in the utmost amount. Mercutio’s light and occasionally sardonic humor at inapt times relieves the play from being a complete tragedy and allows the audience a false sense of security before calamity strikes, such as the death of his character. Mercutio also stands as a consistent character to prove that despite the fact that the majority of Shakespeare’s characters are unpredictable and impulsive, there has to be at least one character to steady

Mercutio is what his name stands to be, Mercurial. Though known as a joyful and intense character, he is in fact partially to blame for the tragic death of the two young lovers. It is in fact Mercutio who convinces a young Romeo to forget about

They have made worms meat of me,” (3.1, 68-69). This quote exemplifies that although Mercutio is neither a Montague nor a Capulet he still dies in a battle fought between the families. This incident heightens Romeo’s fatal flaw, as his reckless act of heroism turned out to be a burden as it caused the death of Mercutio. Moreover, Mercutio’s plague towards the families also foreshadows further tragedy, as Romeo then gets banished from the Verona, along with additional events which later on result to his death. Last, even after his death, Mercutio acts as a foil character to Romeo by causing a shift in Romeo’s gentle character. For example, after Tybalt slays Mercutio, Romeo avenges his friend by killing Tybalt. This act shows his alteration in character, as he was never seen as a ferocious character in any previous scenes. This is evident in the play when Romeo says, “Away to Heaven, respective lenity, and fire-eyed fury be my conduct now,” (3.1, 125-126). This quote exemplifies Romeo’s new perception, as he claims he is finished with sympathy and gentleness. This change in Romeo’s personality is significant because not only is he going to attack Tybalt, but also he is going to kill him, which then entitles him a murderer. This is significant because it further leads to his banishment, which in all leads to his death. The transition in the persona of Romeo is highlighted by the character Mercutio, which leads to the

This results in Romeo’s fate to be darkened. Second, Mercutio shows how Romeo is constantly dreaming. Mercutio’s realism contrasts Romeo’s head in the clouds. This is revealed when Mercutio says “True, I talk of dreams, which [is] the [child] of an [inactive] brain,” (1.4, 96-97). This quote exemplifies that dreaming cannot be a portent, and that it can change just like the wind. This also shows that Mercutio has a flamboyant imagination, while demonstrating his mocking side. This quote also acts as foreshadowing in which shows that if Romeo keeps his head in the clouds he will make mistakes in life, such as him quickly marring Juliet. Moreover, this quote reveals that Mercutio is an important foil character because his view on love contrasts that of Romeo. Mercutio’s view on love is that it is futile, however Romeo thinks of it as a key component to life. Mercutio’s mocking of the hopeless love, makes Romeo’s view look stronger and more passionate. Third, Mercutio shows how serious Romeo is. Mercutio always talks in a witting and light-hearted way, in which contrasts to Romeo’s seriousness. Mercutio always uses clever wordplay and puns to mock people and bring comic relief into the play. This is emphasized when Mercutio says “And but one word with one of us? ... Make it a word and a blow,” (3.1, 40-41). This quote illustrates the comedy that Mercutio brings. At the edgy moment when Tybalt was about to fight, Mercutio still made a mockery of him.

Mercutio’s arrogance in Act III is truly magnificent, “Men’s eyes were made to look, and let them gaze. I will not budge for no man’s pleasure”(57-58). This sentiment shows that Mercutio is confident enough to stand up for himself and fight back. For this reason, Mercutio’s behavior allows the audience to get the sense that Mercutio is outgoing but is still a teenager. In other words, this wittiness reveals that his bravery and confident is not the only thing Mercutio gained, but he gained the confidence to talk back to his foe, Tybalt. Because of this, Mercutio learned who he actually is before his tragic death. This ignorance Shakespeare portrays of Mercutio shows that his personality changes by the end of the

Mercutio’s role to Romeo and Juliet takes many shapes and forms. Mercutio is the opposite of Romeo when it comes to love, as he says “If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking and you beat love down. (1.4.27-28)” While Romeo believes in love both ways in a relationship, Mercutio believes that long-standing love isn’t real. Also, Mercutio isn’t technically a Montague or a Capulet, so he doesn’t really take the feud or love very seriously. Mercutio is also quick tempered, and even though he isn’t truly a Montague he is shown like a counterpart to Tybalt because he likes to side with the Montagues. Like Tybalt, Mercutio is quick to go to his sword, “O calm, dishonourable, vile submission. Alla staccato carries it away. Tybalt you rat catcher, will you walk?(3.1.74-76)” When Romeo rejects Tybalt’s offer to fight, Mercutio draws his sword to save Romeo’s name, but also because his love to fight. Mercutio offers as a contrast between houses, sort of like the man in the middle in Romeo and

Mercutio is Romeo’s friend and a kinsmen to the Prince. He is fun-loving, but can be very intense at times, and he has a very wild imagination. In Shakespeare’s classic work Romeo and Juliet, this beloved character dies at the beginning of the third act. There are many things that led up to his death, such as his insistence that Romeo attend the Capulet’s party, confidence, and pride. If he had acted differently in certain situations, he would most likely have not died the way he did.

Romeo’s dear friend, Mercutio, greatly affects the events that lead up to the death of Romeo and Juliet. Although he is a loyal friend to Romeo,

Mercutio is a relative of the prince and friend to Romeo. He is an eloquent man and becomes the center of attention whenever he appears in the play. It seems like he dominates Romeo with his teasing and irony. He mocks Romeo as he thinks he is too sentimental and tells him how foolish he is; he turns all of Romeo’s thought about love into sexual metaphors.