Romeo and Juliet Metaphors and Similes Quotes

Civil blood makes civil hands unclean quote Romeo and Juliet

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.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Prologue. The opening lines of Shakespeare’s tragic love story introduces us to the ancient feud between two great houses in Verona, the Capulets and Montagues. There is irony in the repeated use of the word "civil" in the Chorus’s introductory words. While Verona’s citizens ought to be civil, we learn that their hands are metaphorically stained ("unclean") with the blood of the victims of their civil war. There is also irony in the description of the warring families being "alike in dignity," since we later learn that they are alike in their undignified behavior.

Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,
Profaners of this neighbour-stained steel, –
Will they not hear? What, ho! you men, you beasts,
That quench the fire of your pernicious rage
With purple fountains issuing from your veins,
On pain of torture, from those bloody hands
Throw your mistemper’d weapons to the ground.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 1. Prince Escalus storms into the play’s first scene, as the ancient feud between the Capulets and Montagues flares up into a violent street brawl. Verona’s authority figure threatens the culprits with violent punishment if they don’t lay down their weapons. He uses a series of metaphors to compare the fighters to beasts who quench the fire of their hate by spilling fountains of blood. In "mistemper’d weapons" we also have an example of personification.

But all so soon as the all-cheering sun
Should in the furthest east begin to draw
The shady curtains from Aurora’s bed,
Away from the light steals home my heavy son,
And private in his chamber pens himself,
Shuts up his windows, locks far daylight out
And makes himself an artificial night.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 1. A worried Montague reveals the extent of his son Romeo’s depression. When the sun rises Romeo doesn’t just hide himself away in a room, but he shuts up the windows and locks the daylight out. Montague’s speech includes the use of personification in "all-cheering sun," while "draw the shady curtains" is a metaphor for sunrise.
Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs - quote

Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs;
Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes;
Being vex’d a sea nourish’d with lovers’ tears.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 1. Romeo is not finding love very easy. He uses three metaphors to explain the heartbreaks it causes. He compares it to a smoke made up of lovers’ sighs, a fire burning in the eyes of lovers, and when twarted a sea filled with lovers’ tears. This is one of Shakespeare’s most famous definitions of love, showing how it be either a source of great happiness or heartbreak.

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.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 2. Capulet agrees that Paris may woo his daughter Juliet. But he stresses that even if he consents to the marriage, she has the final say and may exercise her own free will. However, he later changes his mind and tries to force Juliet into a marriage with Paris. The word "heart" in this passage is a metaphor for love.

One fire burns out another’s burning,
One pain is lessen’d by another’s anguish.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 2. Benvolio is trying to get the lovesick Romeo to forget about Rosaline, by encouraging him to look at another girl. He uses the image of quenching one metaphorical love fire by starting another. There is irony and foreshadowing here, since Romeo will be replacing his heartbreak pain over the loss of Rosaline by another pain – his doomed love for Juliet.

When the devout religion of mine eye
Maintains such falsehood, then turn tears to fires;
And these, who often drown’d could never die,
Transparent heretics, be burnt for liars!
One fairer than my love! the all-seeing sun
Ne’er saw her match since first the world begun.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 2. Romeo uses vivid religious metaphors and hyperbole as he counters Benvolio’s suggestion that looking at another woman will make him forget all about Rosaline. Romeo says how his eyes worship Rosaline, and if he lied his tears would turn into fire and be burnt at the stake as heretics. He shows himself to be rather shallow here, valuing Rosaline’s physical beauty above all else.

This precious book of love, this unbound lover,
To beautify him, only lacks a cover.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 3. Lady Capulet uses a vivid metaphor to compare Paris to a "precious book of love" that needs only a cover – Juliet – to complete him and make him more beautiful. She is trying to persuade her daughter Juliet to marry Paris. The lines that precede this with an extended book metaphor are: "Read o’er the volume of young Paris’ face, And find delight writ there with beauty’s pen; Examine every married lineament, And see how one another lends content And what obscured in this fair volume lies Find written in the margent of his eyes."

That book in many’s eyes doth share the glory,
That in gold clasps locks in the golden story;
So shall you share all that he doth possess,
By having him, making yourself no less.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 3. Speaking to Juliet before the Capulet ball, Lady Capulet tries to get her daughter to notice Paris so that she will marry him. She metaphorically compares Paris to a book and Juliet to the "gold clasps" or cover. She says that by becoming Paris’s wife, Juliet will share in his wealth and status.

LADY CAPULET: Speak briefly, can you like of Paris’ love?
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.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 3. Juliet quibbles and refuses a straight answer when Lady Capulet asks if she can love Paris. Juliet’s mother wants her to agree to her father’s plan for her to marry the young nobleman. But in Juliet’s clever noncommittal response, she agrees to look at Paris with the intention of liking him, if looking can cause her to like him. She uses a Cupid-like metaphor to say that her eye won’t fly flirtatious darts of love at Paris beyond what her mother consents. She puts on the appearance of obeying her parents, but at the same time she is keeping her options open and in effect disobeying them.

MERCUTIO: Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.
ROMEO: Not I, believe me: you have dancing shoes
With nimble soles: I have a soul of lead
So stakes me to the ground I cannot move.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 4. Mercutio tries to persuade Romeo to dance at the Capulets’ party to forget his lovesick troubles. Romeo responds with a metaphor saying that he is weighed down with a soul made of lead. He uses a pun when he refers to his friend’s "nimble soles" and then speaks to his own heavy "soul."

MERCUTIO: You are a lover; borrow Cupid’s wings,
And soar with them above a common bound.
ROMEO: I am too sore enpierced with his shaft
To soar with his light feathers, and so bound,
I cannot bound a pitch above dull woe:
Under love’s heavy burden do I sink.

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 4. Mercutio tries his best to talk Romeo out of his gloom and not be a party pooper when they are at the Capulets’ ball. He advises him to metaphorically "borrow Cupid’s wings" and soar because he is in love. But Romeo, whose love is unrequited, puns that he is too "sore" to "soar." In another pun, "bound" is used in two different senses, first to mean constraint, and secondly to mean leap. This reflects the conflicting aspects to romantic love.
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