I have no joy of this contract to-night:
It is too rash, too unadvised, too sudden;
Too like the lightning, which doth cease to be
Ere one can say "It lightens."

– William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2. Juliet appears skeptical to Romeo’s first declaration of love for her in the balcony scene. In a simile she compares its rashness and suddenness to lightning, which flashes one moment and disappears the next. This image paints love as something unpredictable and even dangerous. Foreshadowed here is the play’s tragic ending for the two lovers. In this fledgling relationship Juliet appears to be the more cautious and mature one. She asserts her free will in this passage, wanting Romeo to slow down and not rush things. Romeo on the other hand wants to dive right in. Moments later he tells Juliet that he cannot be satisfied without an "exchange of thy love’s faithful vow for mine." Juliet’s words and her wanting to take a step back because everything is happening too fast also highlights the theme of appearance vs reality.