Role of Tybalt and Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet (Essay Sample)

Role of Tybalt and Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet
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Role of Tybalt and Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet
Tybalt and Mercutio are two minor characters in William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. Tybalt is a cousin to Juliet and a nephew to Lord Capulet. He is mortally stabbed by Romeo after he kills Mercutio in a street brawl, resulting in Romeo getting banished from Verona. This essay looks at how these two characters influence the play and affect the eventual tragic ending. It will also discuss what themes the characters contribute to and how they do it.
Mercutio has a significant effect on the lives of both Romeo and Juliet. For instance, it is his actions that cause the death of Tybalt. Also, he is indirectly responsible for Romeo and Juliet meeting. According to Hunter & Lichtenfels (2009), he is presented as an anti-romantic character who perceives love as a wholly physical pursuit. Mercutio advocates for an adversarial concept of love that is a sharp contrast to Romeo’s idealized perception of a romantic union. This advocacy is evident in one scene when Romeo likens his love for Rosaline with the image of a rose with thorns, only for Mercutio to mock this allegory with puns.
Unlike Romeo, Mercutio is not of the opinion that dreams can act as omens. The dream world that he presents is predominated by fairies, with dreams being just the results of the desires and anxieties of sleeping individuals. Mercutio makes a speech in the fourth scene of the first act that highlights his vivid imagination and eloquence while at the same time displaying his cynical side. While building tension for the first meeting between Romeo and Juliet at the Capulet ball, this speech indicates that despite being Romeo’s friend, he cannot be his confidant. In the course of the play, Mercutio is not aware of the love between Romeo and Juliet, and their subsequent marriage (Hunter & Lichtenfels, 2009).
Despite being a minor character in Romeo and Juliet, Tybalt plays quite a significant role. While not speaking many lines, he manages to influence the play’s course to an extent that exceeds his apparently minor role in it. According to Hager (2002), he displays his stubborn, resentful, angry nature throughout the play, inciting a fight between the Montague and Capulet families. When he challenges Romeo to a duel, Mercutio steps in; causing Tybalt to kill him apparently by accident. Romeo then kills him in retaliation, causing him to be banished.
The above-mentioned incidences are all examples of how Tybalt affects the play’s tragic nature. His death also affects Juliet and her parents, driving the tragic plot even further. In the case of Juliet, Tybalt’s death spurs her to reconsider the love she has for Romeo. Also, her parents pressurize her into getting married to Paris, thinking that the events of her cousin’s death were to blame for her intense sadness. The nurse in the play parts way with Romeo as she thinks he is a disdainful person and a murderer (Hager, 2002).
Mercutio is hilarious, out of control and funny. When Romeo and Juliet are compared to him, they can appear to be repetitive and whiny. While technically he is a minor character in the play, Mercutio’s personality has such a forceful impact that he would take over as the main character if he does not die. For instance, he is heard telling Romeo that having sex is an ideal way of curing a broken heart. Thus, it does not come as a surprise that, given such an attitude towards sex and love, Mercutio is portrayed as being opposed to the idea of romance between men and women. When Romeo says he is sad that Rosaline has rejected his advances, Mercutio comforts him by telling him to get over it.
Love is not the only thing that Mercutio seems to have a problem with. He is also antagonistic towards female sexuality and women in general. This is best seen when he mentions Rosaline’s body parts in a rude and sexually explicit monologue that makes fun of Romeo’s obsession with her. His antagonism towards heteros...