Think that's impressive? Get a load of Juliet's use of 6 oxymora when she finds out that lover boy (that would be Romeo) has killed her cousin, Tybalt: For example, at the end of the famous balcony scene, when Romeo is leaving, Juliet says "parting is such sweet / sorrow" (2.2.199-200). Shakespeare loved these things, particularly in Romeo and Juliet. If you like jumbo shrimp or boneless ribs, then you and Shakespeare have something in common: you both like oxymora.Īn oxymoron is a Greek expression that refers to the combination of two terms that are ordinarily oppositeâlike "oxy," meaning "sharp," and "moron," meaning "dull." Jumbo shrimp? Boneless ribs? Both oxymora. Yet, in the play, that's just not the case.
Typically, sex acts between men and women are supposed to result in the creation of life (making babies, that is). Oh, and guess what the word "vagina" literally means in Latin? "Sheath." So, when she thrusts the dagger into her chest, as though she's putting it into a sheath ⦠We're pretty sure you can connect the dots on that one, too.īut what does it all mean? Symbolically, Romeo and Juliet combine physical death and sexual climax. (Sound familiar? This same symbolism is used in the Da Vinci Code, where the Grail, a big V-shaped goblet, symbolizes, well, a woman's genitalia.) Juliet, in contrast, stabs herself with Romeo's daggerâi.e., a penis (source Marjorie Garber). If your mind isn't blown enough yet, we have one more for you: Romeo drinks his poison from a goblet, a traditional symbol of female sexuality. (By the way, Capulet has no idea at this point that Juliet is married to Romeoâhe still thinks she was all set to marry Paris and is still a virgin.) So, "death" (think orgasm) is linked to "deflowering" (think death). Death is my son-in-law, death is my heir" (4.5.42-44).
You can connect the dots, right?Įven Capulet gets in on the game, when Capulet sees his daughter's lifeless body and says that "death" has "lain with" (slept with) Juliet: "See, there she lies, / Flower as she was, deflowered by him.
Fun fact: Juliet's playing with the fact that "die" was slang for "orgasm." So, "when I shall die" ⦠yeah. Even Juliet links sex and death by punning on the word "die" when, day-dreaming about her impending wedding night with Romeo, she imagines Romeo being transformed into a bunch of "little stars" lighting up the night sky: "Give me my Romeo, and when I shall die / Take him and cut him out in little stars, / And he will make the face of heaven so fine" (3.2.23-25). Remind us to keep away from Sampson, K?īut crude sex/ death jokes aren't just for belligerent servants. In the very first scene, Sampson crudely puns on the term "maidenhead" (virginity) when he equates sword fighting against men with raping women: "When I have fought with the men I will be civil with the maidsâI will cut off their heads the heads of maids or their maidenheads" (1.1.23-24 26). In fact, Romeo and Juliet sees to think sex and death go together like, uh, Oreos and milk. Sex and death: pretty much the opposite of each other, right? Not in Romeo and Juliet. The Capulet/ Montague feud, which has obviously trickled down to involve their servants, is completely absurd. Pretty dumb, right? And that seems to be Shakespeare's point. The funny thing is, Sampson's too much of a coward to own up to his silly gesture because the "law" won't be on his "side" if his thumb biting causes a big old brawl (he doesn't want to get busted for causing a fracas). Sampson doesn't have a good reason to insult the Montagues' servantsâhe's basically looking to stir up trouble because his masters (the Capulets) are feuding with the Montagues.
SAMPSON No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I bite my thumb, sir. SAMPSON Is the law of our side, if I say 'Ay'? Here's how it all goes down in the play:ĪBRAHAM Do you bite your thumb at us, sir? Unless you're fluent in childish Elizabethan gestures ( anyone? Bueller?), you might be wondering what the what Sampson's up to when he spots the Montague's servants on the streets and announces, "I will bite my thumb at / them, which is disgrace to them if they bear it" (1.1.43-44).īasically, thumb biting, which involves biting and then flicking one's thumb from behind the upper teeth, is a Shakespearean version of flipping someone the bird and saying "nanny nanny boo boo." It's an insulting gesture that sounds just a wee bit (okay, a lot) immature.
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