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Romeo and Juliet
Reading Guide
English I
Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
Chorus:
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;
Whole misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,
And the continuance of their parents' rage,
Which, but their children's end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.
Who’s Who in Verona
Montague
Capulet
Neutral
Romeo and Juliet Notes
ACT I
Scene
Brief Summary

1


2
3
Oxymoron – _______________

Romeo = lover

Tybalt = fighter


Comic relief – Nurse
Fate – find out about party
Paris wants to marry ________
The ____________ are having a
party that Romeo and Benvolio
decide to crash

_______ ________ talks to Juliet
about marrying _________
Juliet agrees to try to like him


Comic relief - __________
Juliet – obedient daughter
__________ and his _________
go to party
___________ says he should not
go---but does anyway



foreboding
“Queen Mab”
Mercutio = volatile
Romeo and Juliet meet and
________ __ _______
___________ vows revenge




dramatic irony
foreboding
Palmer’s kiss

5




4
Fight between ____________
and ___________ throughout
the streets of ____________
Prince says you fight again, you
die
Romeo is depressed over
____________
Important Elements



Close Reading: Act I, scene v – “The Palmer’s Kiss” –
Background: Fickle Romeo has seen Juliet at a party and has fallen instantly in love with
her. He sees her alone and approaches her. This entire dialogue is a sort of code. The
entire passage is full of religious metaphors.
1
5
10
15
Romeo:
If I profane with my unworthiest hand
This holy shine, the gentle sin is this:
My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.
Juliet:
Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,
Which mannerly devotion shows in this;
For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch,
And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.
(touch palms)
Romeo:
Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?
Juliet:
Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.
Romeo:
O, then dear saint, let lips do what hands do!
They pray: grant thou, lest faith turn to despair.
Juliet:
Saints do not move, though grant for prayers’ sake.
Romeo:
Then move not while my prayer’s effect I take.
Thus from my lips, by thine my sin is purged.
(kisses her)
Juliet:
Then have my lips sin that they have took.
Romeo:
Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urged!
Give me my sin again.
(kisses her)
Juliet:
You kiss by th’ book.
1. Read the above passage carefully. Mark the rhyme scheme and other poetic elements.
What poetic form is this?
2. Define the following terms:
Profane: _________________________________________________________________
Pilgrim: __________________________________________________________________
Palmer: __________________________________________________________________
3. This passage is what is referred to as an EXTENDED METAPHOR (a long comparison of
unlike things that compares the items on many levels). Complete the following chart
about all the components of the extended metaphor.
Element from
Religious Life
Romeo and
Juliet
“profane with my
unworthiest hand”
Romeo’s hand
touching Juliet’s
hand
Juliet
“holy shrine”
“blushing pilgrims”
Meaning / Explanation
Romeo believes he is unworthy of touching
Juliet and may in some way harm her.
According to Romeo, Juliet is something that
should be worshipped.
Romeo / Romeo’s
lips
“my prayer’s
effect”
“sin”
4. Paraphrase the following lines:
a. line 5: “Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,” - ____________________
_________________________________________________________________________
b. line 9: “Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?” - __________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
c. line 13: “Saints do not move, though grant for prayers’ sake.” - _________________
_________________________________________________________________________
5. Romeo’s purpose in this passage is to __________________________________________.
How does Juliet feel about that? _______________________________________________
How do you know? Use details from the text to support your answer.
ACT II
Scene
Brief Summary

_________ and ________
declare their love and plan for
___________ the next day -famous balcony scene

Romeo goes to Friar Lawerence
(FL)
FL agrees to marry Romeo and
Juliet because it might end the
feud between the families
1&2
3


4
5
6

_________ says Tybalt has
challenged Romeo to a _______
Romeo tells the nurse to have
Juliet come to FL’s that
afternoon

__________ gives _________
message about getting
__________ that afternoon

Romeo and Juliet meet at Friar
Lawrence’s cell and get
____________
Important Elements




oxymoron – “sweet sorrow”
metaphors – Romeo about Juliet
“What’s in a name”
Juliet changes

Foreboding – stumble fast that run


Foreshadowing - _________ and
__________
Puns – between Romeo and
Mercutio
Comic relief

Juliet’s impatience

Foreboding – love not lasting a
long time

Close Reading Activity – Act II, scene ii – “The Balcony Scene”
1. Read Act II, scene ii carefully.
2. Figurative Language – complete the chart on examples of figurative language found in the
passage.
Type of
Figurative
Language
Line
#(s)
Example
 133  _________________________________
-134 __________________________________
Simile
Metaphor
Oxymoron
 _________________________________
__________________________________
 156  _________________________________
__________________________________
 I hate leaving you as much as
schoolboys hate going to school.
3
 Juliet is the sun!
 Juliet’s beauty shines brightly – she is
the “light of his life.”
 26
 O, speak again, bright angel, ...
 ________________________________
_________________________________
 ___
 This bud of love, by summer’s ripening
breath, may prove a beauteous flower
when next we meet.
 _________________________________
_________________________________
 177  _________________________________
-181
__________________________________
 _________________________________
_________________________________
 93
 _________________________________
_________________________________
 the most powerful god in Roman
mythology
 161
 _________________________________
_________________________________
Allusion
Personification
Explanation
 ___
 night’s cloak
 a wood nymph in classical mythology
that wasted away in a cave until only
her voice was left
 _________________________________
________________________________
 184
 _________________________________
_________________________________
 _________________________________
________________________________
3. What effect do all of these figures of speech have on this scene?
4. Foreboding is the dropping of hints about something bad that is going to occur.
Find at least three examples of foreboding in this scene.
Line
#(s)
Example
Meaning
5. Why would Shakespeare include such dreary images in what is considered to be one
of the most romantic scenes of all time?
6. Juliet is a young girl who is experiencing love for the first time. How would you
describe her “performance” so far?
How do you know?
7. Romeo and Juliet have many different characteristics. Romeo believes in destiny, but
Juliet is more determined to control her own fate. Find a quote that proves each of
these characterizations from this scene.

Romeo = belief in fate: ______________________________________

Juliet = belief in choice: _______________________________________
8. What is Shakespeare’s purpose in including the following lines?
Juliet –
Romeo –
Juliet –
Romeo -
I have forgot why I did call thee back.
Let me stand here till thou remember it.
I shall forget, to have thee still stand there,
Remembering how I love thy company.
And I'll still stay, to have thee still forget,
Forgetting any other home but this.
ACT III
Scene
Brief Summary


1




Verbal irony/dramatic irony
Puns – “grave”
“Fortune’s fool”
Foreboding – “plague on both
your houses”




Juliet = impatient
Puns – eye, I, ay
Oxymoron – Romeo
Foreboding – suicide
Romeo learns he is banished
In desperation, he attempts
____________
Friar Lawrence sends him to
Juliet then Mantua

Foreboding - suicide

Lord Capulet tells ________ they
can get married on Thursday

Dramatic irony

After spending the night with
Juliet, Romeo leaves for
_________
Juliet refuses to marry
________, so her father disowns
her
Juliet lies and goes to Friar
Lawrence





Foreboding
Dramatic irony
Nurse = betrayal (?)
Puns, sarcasm
Juliet = takes control of her life



2
3




4
5
Important Elements


Mercutio and Tybalt _________
____________ is killed because
of Romeo
Romeo kills ___________ in
revenge
Prince banishes Romeo
___________ finds out about
Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s
banishment
__________ goes to find Romeo
and take him a ring
ACT IV
Scene
Brief Summary

1
3
4
5


Foreboding – death; being in the
tomb
Juliet = brave
Juliet lies and tells her father she
will marry _______
Lord Capulet moves the wedding
to Wednesday


Juliet = taking control
Dramatic irony

Juliet has second thoughts, but
drinks the potion anyway


Dramatic irony
foreboding

Capulets are getting ready for
the _____________

Dramatic irony


They find Juliet “___________”
Friar says to prepare for her
burial



Simile –
Metaphor –
irony


2
The plan is for _________ to
drink a __________ _________
before the wedding
When she wakes Romeo will be
there to take her away
Important Elements

ACT V
Scene
Brief Summary

1


2


3





Balthasar tells Romeo that Juliet
is ___________
Romeo buys poison to ______
____ __________


Irony
Fate
Friar Lawerence learns Romeo
did not get his message
He plans to go to the tomb
himself

irony
Romeo breaks into the tomb, but
kills __________ first
He drinks ____________
Friar Lawrence comes
Juliet wakes up; _________
herself
Everyone else shows up and all
is revealed
End of Feud





Irony
Fate
Personification
Metaphor
oxymoron
Role of fate in the play:
Responsibility:
Important Elements