Ian Czerkis
Mrs. Holevar/Mrs. Millard
Honors Language Arts 9
5th Hour
4 March 2018
Star-Crossed Vulnerabilities
In Kelly Clarkson’s song, “Love So Soft”, she talks about how both members of a relationship should be vulnerable, so they can have a lasting relationship. In her song, she says “If you want this love, gotta hold it tight, never let it go, baby, let it give your life”. Through these lyrics, she explains to the audience that for someone to love her, they would have to give their entire life to her. Shakespeare starts his play by sending Romeo and Juliet to the same party, where they meet and fall in love. He also introduces a conflict between the two families, which should’ve stopped them from dating, but doesn’t. Romeo and Juliet secretly get married and are torn apart once Romeo is banished. The banishment ultimately leads to both Romeo and Juliet committing suicide, which resolves the conflict between the two families. Through the different literary elements used in Juliet’s monologue, Shakespeare illustrates Juliet’s vulnerabilities in his play Romeo and Juliet.
Shakespeare starts by exposes Juliet’s vulnerability is through his use of analogies. Juliet starts her monologue by stating that it would’ve been better for her mother, father, and Tybalt to be dead than Romeo banished. Juliet compares her parent’s death to Romeo’s banishment and concludes that Romeo’s banishment outweighs both of her parent’s lives. This conclusion makes her vulnerable because she concludes that she would accept her parent’s death to be with Romeo. In addition to comparing Romeo’s banishment to her parent’s death, she also compares his banishment to sins in people’s minds: “I would forget it fain;/But O, it presses to my memory,/Like damned guilty deeds to sinner’s minds” (III.ii.109-111). Her analogy shows that Romeo’s banishment is an overwhelming thought and it is hard for her to focus on anything else. If Romeo’s banishment was the only thing she could think about, then it would prevent her from making smart choices. This forestallment makes her vulnerable by clouding her judgment, which has dire consequences in the days that follow. Juliet also compares Romeo’s banishment to Tybalt’s death, concluding that his banishment is worse than Tybalt dying 10,000 times. Juliet’s comparison shows that she is willing to sacrifice her beloved cousin ten thousand times before she would consider banishing Romeo. Romeo’s banishment leaves her vulnerable, which causes her to wish this terrible wish against her cousin. All of these analogies by Shakespeare help expose Juliet’s vulnerabilities.
Another way Shakespeare illustrates Juliet’s vulnerabilities is through personification. The first word Juliet personifies is the word “banished”. She uses the word as a weapon: “That one word ‘banished,’/Hath slain ten thousand Tybalts” (III.ii.113-114). Juliet uses the word “banished” to show that the banishment damaged her life. She also uses it to show how the phenomena would leave her scarred for life. Another word Juliet decides to personify is the word “woe”. Juliet wonders why “woe delights in fellowship/And needly will be rank’d with other griefs” (III.ii.116-117). Right after Juliet is informed of Tybalt’s death, she learns of Romeo’s banishment. These two sudden traumatic events provoke Juliet to wonder why pain comes not at once, but as an onslaught. Juliet is made vulnerable through these flustered thoughts and is unsure of how to comprehend what is happening. This failure to comprehend leads to a grievous mistake, which happens later in the play. The inclusion of personification in Juliet’s monologue exposes her vulnerabilities.
Shakespeare exposes Juliet’s vulnerabilities in his play, Romeo and Juliet, through the use of literary devices in her monologue. Although Juliet’s vulnerabilities had dire consequences once exposed, they help keep their relationship stable. Without vulnerabilities, there would be no risk, which is a key part of every relationship. Just as Juliet was made vulnerable so she could be with Romeo, Kelly Clarkson used her song to advise men that they need to make themselves vulnerable to be with her.
Works Cited:
Clarkson, Kelly. “Love So Soft.” Composed by Priscilla Renea et al. Reco. Sept. 2017. Meaning of Life, Shatkin, 2017.
Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet. collections, compiled by Kylene Beers et al., vol. 9, Orlando, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, pp. 183-278.