For instance, Benvolio, whose name means "goodwill," tries to act as a peacemaker by dividing the servants, but the quick-tempered "fiery Tybalt" forces him to draw his sword, and the atmosphere changes from harmony to hatred within a few lines.
The sudden switch from the comedic interplay between the servants to a potentially life-threatening situation demonstrates the rapidly changing pace that drives the action of the rest of the play. In their bawdy quarrel, the servants' references to "tool" and "naked weapon," together with repeated images of striking and thrusting, illustrate how images of love and sex are intertwined with violence and death - and will continue to be throughout the play. Benvolio advises him to forget Rosaline by looking for another, but Romeo insists that this would be impossible.Ī spirited exchange of vulgar jokes between servants opens the play and immediately links sex with conflict. They exit as Romeo enters in his sad state - a victim of an unrequited love for the cold and unresponsive Rosaline. At last, Prince Escalus arrives and stops the riot, forbidding any further outbreaks of violence on pain of death.Īfter Escalus dismisses both sides, Montague and his wife discuss Romeo's recent melancholy behavior with Benvolio and ask him to discover its cause. The fight rapidly escalates as more citizens become involved and soon the heads of both households appear on the scene. While attempting to stop the fight, Benvolio (Romeo's cousin) is drawn into the fray by Tybalt, kinsman of the Capulets. The scene opens with a brawl on the streets of Verona between servants from the affluent Montague and Capulet households.
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