Come, civil night,
Thou sober-suited matron, all in black,
And learn me how to lose a winning match,
Play’d for a pair of stainless maidenhoods.
Hood my unmann’d blood, bating in my cheeks,
With thy black mantle; till strange love, grown bold,
Think true love acted simple modesty.
– William Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet, Act 3, Scene 2. Juliet calls on the night to help her win her love Romeo so that they can both lose their virginities, "a pair of stainless maidenhoods." The night is personified by being presented as a "sober-suited matron," who will help Juliet achieve her sexual fulfillment. A falconry metaphor is used, "hood my unman’d blood, bating in my cheeks," when Juliet asks the night to hide her nervousness and the blood rushing to her cheeks. In falconry an untamed hawk is controlled by hooding it so that it won’t beat its wings wildly and harm itself.