Act I (Sparks & Feuds)
The severe punishment Prince Escalus threatens to anyone who breaks the peace again in Verona’s streets.
What is the death penalty / execution?
The actual meaning of Juliet's line, "O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?"
What is "Why must you be a Montague?" (Why are you a Montague)?
the famous curse Mercutio repeats three times as he dies from his wound.
What is "A plague o' both your houses!"?
This hot-headed Capulet is nicknamed the "Prince of Cats" due to his aggressive dueling style.
Who is Tybalt?
The 14-line poetic form Romeo and Juliet speak together when they first meet at the party.
What is a Shakespearean sonnet?
The reason Romeo is weeping and heartbroken at the very beginning of the play.
Who is Rosaline (she does not love him back and took a vow of chastity)?
The heavenly body Romeo compares Juliet to during the famous balcony scene.
What is the rising sun?
Prince Escalus's revised punishment for Romeo after slaying Tybalt.
What is banishment (exile) from Verona?
She delays delivering Romeo’s marriage message to Juliet by groaning about her sore back and shortness of breath.
Who is the Nurse?
The literary technique used when the audience knows Romeo and Juliet are married, but Mercutio and Tybalt do not.
What is dramatic irony?
What Lord Capulet requires Count Paris to do before he will grant permission to marry Juliet
What is wait two years and win Juliet's heart?
The specialized skill Friar Laurence demonstrates in his opening scene while gathering plants.
What is herbalism (understanding plants hold both medicinal grace and deadly poison)?
Romeo's emotional reaction upon learning he has been banished to Mantua.
What is claiming banishment is worse than death because it separates him from Juliet?
The character who cries out, "O, I am fortune's fool!" after slaying Tybalt.
Who is Romeo?
The device demonstrated when Juliet describes Romeo as a "Beautiful tyrant!" and "fiend angelical!"
What is an oxymoron?
The accidental way Romeo and Benvolio find out about the Capulet masquerade ball.
What is reading the guest list for an illiterate Capulet servant?
The main reason Friar Laurence agrees to secretly marry Romeo and Juliet.
What is to turn the two families' hatred into love?
Friar Laurence’s three reasons Romeo should be happy rather than suicidal in Act III, Scene 3.
What are: Juliet is alive, he killed Tybalt who would have killed him, and the Prince spared his execution?
The peaceful Montague who tries to get Mercutio off the hot street to avoid a brawl with the Capulets.
Who is Benvolio?
A character whose contrasting traits highlight another character's key traits (like peacemaker Benvolio vs. hothead Tybalt).
What is a foil (or character foil)?
The primary lesson Mercutio tries to teach Romeo through his wild "Queen Mab" speech.
What is that dreams are meaningless, idle fantasies?
Friar Laurence's famous warning to Romeo right before performing the wedding ceremony.
What is "Violent delights have violent ends"?
The token of love the Nurse delivers to Romeo from Juliet to reassure him while he hides at the cell
What is a gold ring?
She defends her husband after learning he killed her cousin, stating exile is worse than ten thousand dead Tybalts.
Who is Juliet?
A dramatic speech given by a character alone on stage revealing their private thoughts to the audience.
What is a soliloquy?