Romeo and Juliet Marriage Quotes Page 1

Page (1 of 5) Quotes: 1 2 3 4 5

How we cite the quotes:
Citations follow this format: (Act.Scene.Line). Line numbers correspond to the 2008 Norton edition of the play.

Quote #1

CAPULET […]
My child is yet a stranger in the world;
She hath not seen the change of fourteen years,
Let two more summers wither in their pride,
Ere we may think her ripe to be a bride.
PARIS
Younger than she are happy mothers made.
CAPULET
And too soon marr'd are those so early made.
The earth hath swallow'd all my hopes but she,
She is the hopeful lady of my earth:
But woo her, gentle Paris, get her heart,
My will to her consent is but a part;
An she agree, within her scope of choice
Lies my consent and fair according voice.
(1.3.2)

When Paris first proposes the idea of marrying 13-year-old Juliet, Lord Capulet says he wants Juliet to marry a man that she loves and would choose for herself. He also says she's too young, although, as we know, the legal age for marriage in Shakespeare's day was 12 for girls and 14 for boys.

While it seems strange to us that Paris would talk to Capulet about marriage without even consulting Juliet (they've never even formally met), marriages were typically brokered between men (a girl's father and her potential husband).

Quote #2

LADY CAPULET
Marry, that 'marry' is the very theme
I came to talk of. Tell me, daughter Juliet,
How stands your disposition to be married?
JULIET
It is an honour that I dream not of.
(1.3.4)

At the beginning of the play, we learn that young Juliet has never even considered the idea of marriage.

Quote #3

LADY CAPULET
What say you? Can you like the gentleman?
JULIET
I'll look to like, if looking liking move:
But no more deep will I endart mine eye
Than your consent gives strength to make it fly.
(1.3.5)

When Lady Capulet asks Juliet to think about whether or not she could marry Paris, Juliet promises to obey, although, she pretty much warns her mom not to hold her breath. As we know, when Juliet falls in love with Romeo, she will rebel against her parents' wishes.

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