Romeo and Juliet

Character Guide

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Romeo Montague

A young man of the house of Montague who begins the play lovesick over a woman named Rosaline, then falls suddenly and deeply in love with Juliet at a Capulet feast.

Juliet Capulet

The thirteen-year-old daughter of Lord and Lady Capulet, who falls in love with Romeo the night they meet despite their families' feud.

Benvolio

Romeo's cousin and loyal friend, a peacemaker who tries to understand and ease Romeo's moods and de-escalate street conflicts.

Mercutio

A witty, quick-tempered kinsman of Prince Escalus and friend to Romeo, known for his bawdy jokes and his mockery of both love and Tybalt's dueling fashions.

Friar Lawrence

A Franciscan friar and Romeo's confessor, skilled in herbal medicine, who agrees to secretly marry Romeo and Juliet hoping it might end the feud.

Nurse

Juliet's loud, earthy caretaker and confidante since infancy, who serves as a go-between for the young lovers.

Tybalt (Prince of Cats)

Juliet's fiery, quarrelsome cousin, a skilled duelist who despises the Montagues and is enraged to find Romeo at the Capulet feast.

Paris

A young nobleman and kinsman of the Prince who seeks Lord Capulet's permission to marry Juliet.

Lord Capulet

Juliet's father, head of the Capulet household, initially cautious about marrying off his daughter too soon.

Lady Capulet

Juliet's mother, who encourages her daughter to consider Paris as a suitor.

Montague

Romeo's father, head of the Montague household, worried about his son's mysterious melancholy.

Lady Montague

Romeo's mother, who appears briefly expressing relief that her son avoided an early street brawl.

Prince Escalus (the Prince)

The ruler of Verona who has grown weary of the ongoing violence between the Montagues and Capulets and threatens death to those who disturb the peace again.

Rosaline

A woman Romeo is infatuated with at the play's opening; she never appears onstage and has sworn to live chaste.

Glossary

Wherefore

An archaic word meaning 'why', not 'where' — as in Juliet's famous line asking why Romeo must be a Montague.

Coz

A familiar shortening of 'cousin', used between kinsmen like Romeo and Benvolio.

Benedicite

A Latin blessing meaning 'bless you', used by Friar Lawrence as a greeting.

Shrift/shrive

Confession and absolution given by a priest; to 'shrive' someone is to hear their confession.

Prick-song

Written (as opposed to improvised) vocal music; Mercutio uses it to mock Tybalt's overly precise, rule-bound dueling style.

Passado, punto reverso, hay

Italian fencing terms for specific sword thrusts, mocked by Mercutio as fashionable jargon among affected duelists.

Princox

An insulting term for a conceited, insolent young person, used by Capulet to scold Tybalt.

Palmer

A pilgrim, especially one who had visited the Holy Land; Romeo and Juliet play on this word in their shared sonnet of first meeting.

Swounded

An archaic form of 'swooned', meaning fainted.

Osier cage

A basket woven from willow branches, used by Friar Lawrence to gather herbs and flowers.

Distemperature

A disturbance or disorder, here referring to an unsettled state of mind or body.

Enanmour'd

An archaic spelling of 'enamoured', meaning deeply infatuated or in love with something.

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