Role in The Play
Before Romeo meets Juliet, he loves Rosaline, Capulet's niece. He describes her as wonderfully beautiful: "The all-seeing sun / ne'er saw her match since first the world begun." Rosaline, however, chooses to remain celibate; Romeo says: "She hath forsworn to love, and in that vow / Do I live dead that live to tell it now." This is the source of his depression, and he makes his friends unhappy; Mercutio comments: "That same pale, hard-hearted wench, that Rosaline, torments him so that he will sure run mad." Benvolio urges Romeo to sneak into a Capulet gathering where, he claims, Rosaline will look like "a crow" alongside the other beautiful women. Romeo agrees, but doubts Benvolio's assessment. After Romeo sees Juliet his feelings suddenly change: "Did my heart love 'til now? Forswear it, sight / For I ne'er saw true beauty 'til this night." Because their relationship is sudden and secret, Romeo's friends and Friar Laurence continue to speak of his affection for Rosaline throughout much of the play.
Read more about this topic: Rosaline
Famous quotes containing the words role in the, role in, role and/or play:
“Certainly parents play a crucial role in the lives of individuals who are intellectually gifted or creatively talented. But this role is not one of active instruction, of teaching children skills,... rather, it is support and encouragement parents give children and the intellectual climate that they create in the home which seem to be the critical factors.”
—David Elkind (20th century)
“Certainly parents play a crucial role in the lives of individuals who are intellectually gifted or creatively talented. But this role is not one of active instruction, of teaching children skills,... rather, it is support and encouragement parents give children and the intellectual climate that they create in the home which seem to be the critical factors.”
—David Elkind (20th century)
“American feminists have generally stressed the ways in which men and women should be equal and have therefore tried to put aside differences.... Social feminists [in Europe] ... believe that men and society at large should provide systematic support to women in recognition of their dual role as mothers and workers.”
—Sylvia Ann Hewitt (20th century)
“You’re gonna take the rap and play along. You’re gonna make every exact move I tell you. If you don’t, I’ll kill you. And I’ll promise you one thing, it won’t be quick. I’ll break you first. You won’t be able to answer a telephone or open a door without thinking “This is it.” And when it comes, it still won’t be quick. And it won’t be pretty.”
—Geoffrey Homes (1902–1977)