Introduction
Juliet is one of two central characters in a play persistently popular for the captivating sequence of romantic dilemmas it portrays. Although romantic love has become disentangled from the political and family power struggles in which it is embroiled, this play never fades from relevance because the principle of love at all costs remains intact. Juliet is a pivotal character whose struggles resolve a political feud in the final analysis; furthermore, the personal victory she achieves, despite her death, provides a model for all those who would live for love.
In retrospect, the creation of Juliet’s character should reveal her as one in whom extreme acts of rebellion both bespeak and confirm a basic docility. Shall we then see Juliet’s character as the special case of a girl struggling against exceptional constraints, a creature apart, or might we not discern within the frustration and anguish of hundreds of girls wed every year in minor but fearfully binding duress this flickering image of suffering known today and in all manner of cultures and societies? Juliet is torn and tortured by the rigid family and social roles that bind young Italian girls of her time into a dehumanizing armature of manners, inheritance, and obedience. As with many lovers, however, Juliet’s most striking characteristic is her passion. The portrayal of passion issues forth from every word of her teaching and every deed. Juliet, for all her dreams and expectations which must content themselves with the night, is a magnificent human possession, infinitely resistant to the poetry that would destroy her. She will persist, therefore, in moving against the rebel against custom to move in style, to confront yet another girlish ambivalence, the docility longing for the lash, obedience commanding highness to command in order that it may lose itself finally in a decor: love decorates a city with new cultural patterns.
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Women in Shakespearean Society
During Shakespeare's time, females were constrained by strict societal expectations. These cultural constraints directly impacted the play 'Romeo and Juliet', as Juliet attempts to conform to these mores yet faces conflict with Romeo and her family when she seeks to assert her individuality. A woman could not have complete authority in Shakespearean times. They were generally seen as submissive to male family members; first the father and then the husband. Sarcasm accentuates the beliefs of the time as Mercutio tells Romeo that Rosaline is too old and decrepit for him, urging the younger Juliet upon Romeo. Women were also expected to behave modestly or chastely, never acting flirtatiously or aggressively towards a man. Although Juliet is clever and capable of making decisions, the inferiority of her gender is apparent through her absolute refusal to make advances towards Romeo. Lastly, women were culturally expected to marry, as it functioned as a means of societal advancement. Despite her father's intentions to "make [a] profitable" marriage for her, Juliet does not originally show much interest in the topic. Such displays of cultural restriction in her activities viewed against general societal expectations provide a stark contrast, both reflecting the values of her time and place and shedding light on Juliet’s necessary adaptability. In these ways, a society and culture that expects women to serve their family and suppress their own individuality will negatively impact Juliet in 'Romeo and Juliet'.
In Verona, one gender commonly held a clear advantage over the other. Women were historically required to conduct domestic affairs, be of service to others, and maintain their households. While an unmarried woman had a bit more freedom than a wife, her life was still at the mercy of her closest male relative. After marriage, the husband would assume the role of owning the woman and all assets and power that pertained to her. In theory, a man was held responsible for the woman's actions - in 'Romeo and Juliet', this is reflected in the Prince's warning to Capulet and Montague to control their wives or face exile. Even in the family household, where instances of love might be expected, women were merely brought in for a good political match. Only twice does she breach the cultural family atmosphere with true emotion, causing a monumental upheaval in household society. When Juliet defies Lord Capulet, the head of her family, by refusing marriage to Paris, her family and friends are astonished and disgusted: "Out, you green sickness, carrion! Out, you baggage!" In addition, Juliet and Romeo's love defies the cultural relationship of the masculine to the feminine. By coming together, the two lose the garments of their own identity. Their love "transcends the traditional idea of woman as man's object," a phrase that was not much in use during the antiquity-Renaissance. The lovers' love for each other is the idea that makes them the greatest threat to the state and to the social order.
Juliet's Challenges
Juliet can be seen to challenge a number of the expectations society places upon women. One way in which Juliet supports her character is channeled through a further act of courage. Juliet actively decides to form a romance with Romeo, a Montague, even if she cannot control her thoughts. This is an active result of the meeting, not of the reflection in the morning. By contemplating marriage to Romeo, Juliet demonstrates her willingness to defy tradition. Juliet is described as a "woman" when she asks the Nurse to find out about Romeo's familial status. Typically, aristocratic women more passively wait for proposals rather than actively seeking a partner.
Secondly, Juliet is an example of a daughter who is not an obedient and dutiful daughter. Though, until Act 3, she seems to be obedient to her father, she is overtly disobedient in questioning Lord Capulet. Since Juliet's understanding expression of love cannot encourage her to have similar obedience over the protection of her father, her requested support for action also represents her as active. When Lord Capulet teases Juliet for her unwillingness to consent to marriage with Paris, Juliet is prompting him to suggest the allowance of a new romance with Romeo. Another sign of Juliet's strength is seen as she summons her faith in an act of personal desire at the Friar’s advice. Given the fact that all estates in the realm believe that parents are gods on Earth, Juliet does not validate such an act in people's minds when she can revise her vows of loyalty to Paris in such a manner. Juliet is claiming herself as an individual, and not the Capulet's daughter, their subject, through the pledge. Finally, in Act 3, Lady Capulet reveals a token of defiance when she exclaims, denoting her aversion towards marrying Paris. This holy profession is made in reaction to her father’s threat of disownment, meaning she placed her love for Romeo above the expectations of her parents.
Finally, Juliet does not conform to her father's expectations of her. As previously mentioned, she summons some power in defying her father in the public rejection of Paris. Furthermore, she decides to negotiate with Paris on personal terms from Lady Capulet. It is interesting to split Juliet into three characters because the reader can see the obvious transformation from an obedient daughter to a romantic girl, and finally, an independent woman who has a firm mind. Juliet is challenging the expectations one woman should normally have, and undoubtedly the norms of that era. This may suggest that perhaps Juliet is meant to be a symbol of critique to the standard societal expectation which is often condescending and onerous.
Juliet Conforming to Societal Norms
Many moments in Romeo and Juliet detail the ways in which Juliet does not adhere to gendered behaviors. She rejects the coy, modest, and pious characteristics associated with civilized women. Additionally, she consistently resists the roles her family and society attempt to assign her. Yet within her family, Juliet often acts as her society expects her to. When she speaks with her parents, her speech is demurring, agreeable, and polite. With Paris, who might become one of her in-laws, she is especially perceptive of customs. When looking to secure a husband early in the play, she waits for her father to sum her up for Paris: "It is an honor that I dream not of." In doing so, Juliet reveals the internal tension encased within her character. She is intensely aware of familial and social expectations but is internally torn away when love clashes with those expectations.
Juliet follows her mother’s advice to "seek happy nights" with Paris and "eye well" the young man she may soon marry. Juliet not only refrains from disobeying her parents but also speaks politely and demurring to both of them. To conform to her society, Juliet must follow her family’s plans for her, and for much of the play, she retreats into the role society has defined for her. Juliet often behaves how her family and society would expect her to and only truly shows her autonomy in her manipulation of language with Romeo. Only when she is able to escape her family, in the privacy of Romeo’s bedchamber, does Juliet show her true, complete self, with daring, eloquence, desire, and humor.
Juliet's Actions on the Storyline and Themes
Juliet's actions have a profound effect on the storyline of 'Romeo and Juliet.' She is able to defy her parents' requests and marry whom she chooses, setting crucial events into motion that cause the play's tragic conclusion. As a result, she exhibits how love and individual choice are crucial to people's lives because once those things are lost or have negative consequences, people's lives can be destroyed. When Juliet decides to marry Romeo, this act severely heightens the tension between the Montagues and Capulets. Love causes Juliet to marry Romeo, and her identity and desires enable her to make a decision based on love and not a person's blood or name. Juliet displays that her choice to love someone transcends the limitations of what other people deem acceptable or appropriate. The choice to marry Romeo is dangerous because of Juliet's social status as a Capulet.
Juliet also shows her lack of belief in fate and agency in the scene where she refuses to marry Paris. Paris desperately wants to marry Juliet and does not believe that she should have the ability to choose for herself, even though Juliet does not love him. Juliet, as a result, is trapped by her identity as a Capulet and as a woman; everyone expects her to want to marry Paris because he is a nobleman with resources, wealth, and status. Juliet has her reasons for not conforming to her parents' wishes in marrying Paris, and she rationalizes by saying that she feels more of an attachment to Romeo. Her choice to marry Romeo is a choice with brutal consequences: it brings death, violent death, to nearly every significant character in Verona. Juliet's faulty belief in fate causes her to separate herself from society. She thinks that she is acting solely for herself but unknowingly causes the societal structures to coerce her to act and bring about the play's inevitable tragedy.
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