Mercutio’s ‘Queen Mab’ Speech
At the time Mercutio makes his famous “Queen Mab” speech in Shakespeare s Romeo and Juliet, he and Romeo, together with a group of their friends and kinsmen, are on the way to a party given by their family s arch-enemy, Lord Capulet. Their plan is to crash the party so that Romeo may have the opportunity to see his current love, Rosaline, whom they know has been invited to the Capulet s masque that evening.
Romeo, whom his friends seem to consider generally very witty and fun, originally thought the party-crashing would be a wonderful idea, but suddenly is overcome by a sense of great foreboding; although they “mean well in going to this mask . . . tis no wit to go” (I, iv, 48-49). This annoys Mercutio, who does not recognize Romeo s reluctance as a genuine premonition, but feels it is simply another example of Romeo s lovesick whims. Romeo tries to explain to Mercutio that it is based upon a very disturbing dream, and Mercutio passes that off as silly, telling him that “Dreamers often lie.” Here he is not saying that Romeo himself is a liar, but that people should put no faith in dreams. But Romeo is insistent; dreamers lie “in bed asleep, they do dream things true” (I, IV, 52).
This suddenly launches Mercutio into a speech that alters the entire pace of the scene. Up to now, the conversation has been typical of a group of people walking through the streets short phrases, a generally relaxed mood. With Mercutio s words, “O, then I see Queen Mab hath been with you!” he plunges into a forty-two line speech which is actually composed of only two sentences, giving him barely enough breath to pause between phrases. The gist of the speech concerns Mab, whom Celtic mythology considered to be the midwife of the fairies, and who also is held to be responsible for human beings dreams.
The Queen Mab speech is totally fanciful, describing, as if to a child, this tiny little creature who flies through the air in a small carriage, driven by a “wagoner” who is a gnat. On the surface this seems like it should be charming, but when one boils it down, it isn t charming at all. For example, Queen Mab s “cover” of her carriage is made of grasshopper wings, which implies that someone must have pulled the grasshopper s wings off to make it. Same for the spider s legs, which serve as the wagon s spokes, and the riding-whip, which is made of a cricket s bone. Mercutio points out that the entire apparatus is not “half so big as a round little worm / Pricked from the lazy finger of a maid” but do living maid s fingers have worms in them?
He leaps off the topic of Mab s carriage, however, to describe its route. Mab s function is apparently to drive over the sleeping forms of human beings, and cause them to dream of things appropriate to their station in life. For example, she causes lawyers to dream of fees, ladies of love, and soldiers of warfare. Here, again, this sounds fanciful enough; yet he somehow veers off into a deluge of images that are at complete odds with the sweet, almost childlike story it seemed he was going to tell. It is not enough that soldiers dream of war: they must dream of “cutting foreign throats, / Of breaches, ambuscadoes, Spanish blades, / Of healths five fathom deep; and then anon, / Drums in his ear, at which he starts and wakes, / And being thus frighted swears a prayer or two / And sleeps again” (I, iv, 83-87). In other words, Mercutio began his speech with a reverie and ended with nightmares. Mab does not seem like such a cute little creature now.
In a sense, this is how the play goes, as well. Romeo begins by having a harmless crush; at the point in the story when Mercutio gives his speech, Romeo s infatuation with Rosaline is about to lead him to the home of yet another girl, Juliet, with whom he will fall madly in love. This love affair, however, is doomed in every respect. It is doomed not only because the Montagues and Capulets are sworn enemies; it is doomed also because Romeo and Juliet are too young to handle such a violent passion as their love turns out to be.
It is not accidental that Shakespeare begins this play by describing the feud, which has separated Verona in two, and the first scene deals, not with love, but with a street brawl. Romeo and Juliet s Verona is a very violent place, and it would be strange indeed if these two children of Verona experienced a sweet and gentle love.
What is just as interesting as Mercutio s speech itself is how hysterical he gets while delivering it. At the beginning of the scene, when we first meet the friends on the way to the party, Mercutio comes off as a swift, wisecracking joker. He and Romeo obviously enjoy a close bond, and they enjoy exchanging teasing banter with one another. They manage to do this even as Romeo insists that he is far too depressed over Rosaline to be good company. The conversation up to Mercutio s fateful “O, then I see Queen Mab hath been with you!” is reasonably light.
With those words, the entire mood changes; it is almost as if a stone, set at the top of a hill, has been loosed, and it gains momentum as it plunges downhill. As Mercutio s images become less “cute” and more patently alarming, the rhythm in Shakespeare s iambic pentameter becomes more driving, and Shakespeare allows less and less “breathing room” between phrases. By the end of the passage, Mercutio is literally galloping through his speech. Romeo, the very person everyone felt needed cheering up, is forced to interrupt Mercutio “Peace, peace, Mercutio, peace! / Thou talkst of nothing” to calm him down (I, IV, 95-96).
What has happened? Mercutio probably doesn t even know. But it seems fairly clear that Mercutio has caught a good dose of the foreboding that Romeo himself feels, despite the fact that he has already dismissed it as silly. The two friends are very close, and it is certainly not unlikely that they would be closely attuned to one another s moods. Whatever the reason, however, Mercutio s hysteria itself serves as a sort of foreshadowing of the disaster to come.
There is a very good reason for putting this speech toward the end of Act I. It is our introduction to Mercutio, and it presents him as a charming, likeable character, which makes it all the more heartbreaking when he is killed by the brutal Tybalt later on. Also, at this moment Romeo is about to meet Juliet, but as yet has not; that “consequence yet hanging in the stars” has not shown its lovely and yet deadly face. And, in a very real sense, the feeling we had when Mercutio began his speech that it resembled the loosing of a giant boulder, plunging downhill out of anyone s control is replicated in the structure of the play itself. Here at the end of scene IV in the first act, in this last moment before Romeo and Juliet fatefully meet, is the last moment when the stone is still poised at the mountaintop. In the next scene it will be let go, and then there is nothing anyone on earth can do to stop it.
In this context, Romeo s last words in this scene are tremendously significant. His sense of dread, after Mercutio s strange behavior, has deepened rather than diminished, and for the first time he actually defines what it is he feels: he senses that the events which are about to unfold will result in his death the ultimate dreamless sleep. He is, of course, right. The violence, which Queen Mab will set in motion that night, is no dreams, but real. And yet Romeo seems to realize that there is nothing to be done except face the future squarely; there is no running from it. “But he, that hath the steerage of my course, / Direct my sail!” (I, IV, 112-13). His final words, “On, lusty gentlemen!”, are to Mercutio and their other friends, but they might have been addressed to himself as well. It is his passion, his impetuosity, his lust, which will spell his doom all of it foreshadowed in Mercutio s “talk of dreams.”
Другие работы по теме:
Speech Essay Research Paper SpeechKennedy I don
Speech Essay, Research Paper Speech Kennedy, I don’t know much about you so I have to make something up. Maybe you can change it a little according to how you like it. I cannot help you much on this speech, it is up to you to tell people about yourself. I’m not quite sure how to help you on this one actually. Because you would be telling the class about yourself.
The Role Of Mercutio In Romeo And
Juliet. Essay, Research Paper The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, is a play that consisted of many parts. It had rising action, falling action, and climax, along with many other parts crucial to a good play. Woven into the drama of Shakespeare s love story, were the characters of the play.
Macbeth Essay Research Paper Lady MacBeth hated
Macbeth Essay, Research Paper Lady MacBeth hated Duncan when he came to the land. She hated the fact that he stood a chance of being king over her husband which ment she stood a chance of not being queen. Knowing this,
Analysis Of A Motivational Speech By Queen
Elizabeth I Essay, Research Paper The human desires of greed, wealth, and power have been embedded into the world’s history as political figures have led invasions of other countries countless numbers of times. Whether invaded or being invaded, a country requires strong and capable leaders to see them through this difficult time.
I Have A Dream (MLK) (A Speech
Summary) Essay, Research Paper On August 28, 1963 on the steps of Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., one of the most profound civil rights Leaders recited a speech for all to live by. Martin Luther King Jr. was the man who made history that day in 1963, with the world-renowned speech ?I have a Dream?.
Motivation Speech Essay Research Paper IV BROADCAST
Motivation Speech Essay, Research Paper IV. BROADCAST PROGRAMMING: BASIC LAW AND POLICY The First Amendment and federal law generally prohibit the FCC from censoring material in broadcasting. Stations choose the material they determine as best for their community. The FCC does not advise on artistic standards, formats, grammar or the quality of their programming.
A Character I Am Essay Research Paper
Throughout all the pain, love, and suffering brought to the two lovers in “Romeo and Juliet”, there was one character that provided a humorous break from all of the emotional tragedy. Mercutio, relative of the Prince and friend of Romeo, was this character that most resembles myself. Mercutio added comedy to an otherwise tragic play.
Queen Elizabeth Essay Research Paper Queen Elizabeth
Queen Elizabeth Essay, Research Paper Queen Elizabeth sacrificed many elements of her life for her country. She sacrificed her love, her dreams, and her most prized possession. She sacrificed her hair, which, during the Elizabethan Age was a woman’s most prized possession. Queen Elizabeth made the decision to forgo her beauty and all else in order to display her love for England.
Effects Of The Speeches Of Brutus And
Antony Essay, Research Paper Julius Caesar is one of Shakespeare’s greatest works. It’s about a group of conspirators who kill their king, Julius, in order to be free. Antony, opposed to the assassination, felt that he should avenge Julius’s death. He delivered a speech that convinced the Romans that the murder was unjust, invoking their rebellion.
Antony Speech Analysis Essay Research Paper Emotional
Antony Speech Analysis Essay, Research Paper Emotional Speech Analysis William Shakespeare?s ?Julius Caesar? is a well-written stage play. Shakespeare included many good speeches in his plays; one of the best was the one delivered by Antony. Antony?s speech came very shortly after Julius Caesar?s death, and the city was in much chaos.
The Movies Essay Research Paper The speaker
The Movies Essay, Research Paper The speaker in the movie viewed in class on February 5, 2001 gave a very good presentation on the procedures performed during C.P.R. and the benefits of knowing this life saving procedure. Although the speech was audience capturing, there were a few improvements that would have helped improve her presentation.
Bc Speech Assignment Essay Research Paper Research
Bc Speech Assignment Essay, Research Paper Research Assignment #4 Your fourth speech is a research-based persuasive speech. Since your primary goal will be to convince your audience to take a specific action your research burden is higher. Your research is due via email on the date listed on your course schedule.
Persuasive Speech Essay Research Paper Christopher AdairPersuasive
Persuasive Speech Essay, Research Paper Christopher Adair Persuasive Speech To begin with I need an attention getter, so I thought I would get their attention by vaguely suggesting something about a decision everyone has to make when they are sixteen. From there I will tell everyone how and why I am qualified to give this presentation, and why it is important to listen to what I have to say.
Filtered Speech Experiment Essay Research Paper Filtered
Filtered Speech Experiment Essay, Research Paper Filtered Speech Experiment Purpose The purpose of the filtered speech experiment was to look for three things. The first was to see/hear which frequencies can be eliminated from speech signal and conversely which frequencies can not in order to understand speech.
Prom Speech Essay Research Paper 2000 SpeechWhen
Prom Speech Essay, Research Paper 2000 Speech When we were younger, we couldn t wait to graduate from high school and be done with school. Well, now it s here and we are still pretty exited to be finished, but graduation has taken on a whole new meaning for us.
Birds Essay Research Paper The forum speech
Birds Essay, Research Paper The forum speech given on Friday the 14th of April was very interesting to me. Dr. Kirsten Murtagh, the Associate Vice President of The Northern Campuses of FAU, gave her speech on bird watching in Southern Florida. She started out her talk with a quote from Walt Whitman. He said that vagueness and ignorance helps enjoyment.
Speech Essay Research Paper There are two
Speech Essay, Research Paper There are two opposite points of view to this problem. One side suggests not to place any cods on speech on campuses of college institutions and another side strongly believes that speech must be protected by law. Mrs. Jennifer Kelley is following position of free speech in the article called Speech Codes Should Not Be Permitted on Campuses.
Queen Of The Damned Essay Research Paper
Queen of the Damned is basically the story of the origin of vampires. All vampires originated from a single vampire, Akasha, and she became known as the queen. The
Big Friendly Giant Essay Research Paper The
Big Friendly Giant Essay, Research Paper The BFG Beginning: My book is about a Big Friendly Giant (BFG) who goes around every night in different towns and blows dreams, that he captures, into little
Spanish Armada Essay Research Paper Reasons for
Spanish Armada Essay, Research Paper Reasons for the Armada In 1587, King Philip of Spain saw England as a dangerous nuisance. King Philip had many reasons to want to get rid of Queen Elizabeth:
Speech On Blacks Essay Research Paper Blacks
Speech On Blacks Essay, Research Paper Blacks on the Eastern Shore I enjoyed Clara Smalls presentation about blacks on the eastern shore. It was interesting to learn that in the early 1600?s blacks were primarily indentured servants. Blacks only worked for so long then could be released. Some blacks even owed land and had slaves of their own.
Worker Bees Essay Research Paper THE BEE
Worker Bees Essay, Research Paper THE BEE ESSAY The worker bees live a very short life. Their average life span is about six weeks. The worker bees are the sterile females of the bee population. They feed honey and pollen to the queen of the hive. The worker bees are called nurse bees when they enter into this stage.
Queen Elizabeth I Essay Research Paper Queen
Queen Elizabeth I Essay, Research Paper Queen Elizabeth I Back in the 1680 s, there was a time of great King s and Queen s. Such a queen was born to King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn on September 9, 1533. She was born at Greenwich Palace and her name was Elizabeth. When she was three years old, her mother was beheaded for adultery.
The Victorian Age Essay Research Paper The
The Victorian Age Essay, Research Paper The United States during the second half of the 1800s was in a stage called “The Victorian Age.” The basic style of this time was actually borrowed from the English or to be more exact Queen Victoria hence the name Victorian Age.
Hamlet Essay Research Paper There are many
Hamlet Essay, Research Paper There are many reasons why one would think that Queen Gertrude is clueless about the murder of King Hamlet, yet others think she was involved in the murder. People have their own opinions on this but I believe that Queen Gertrude had an idea about the murder. There are many reasons and facts contributing to my opinion on this.
Cleopatra
– Queen Of Egypt Essay, Research Paper Cleopatra – Queen of Egypt What would you be doing when you’re 17? Most teens would party, but when Cleopatra was 17, she became the Queen of Egypt. Cleopatra V11 was born in 69BC.
Demonstration Critique Essay Research Paper Demonstration Critique
Demonstration Critique Essay, Research Paper Demonstration Critique During my demonstration speech, I was affected by my speech anxiety. Some of the viewable symptoms were the shaking of my hands and also the stuttering of speech. I was able to control myself and relax after I started getting into my information.
Lady Macbeth Essay Research Paper At the
Lady Macbeth Essay, Research Paper At the start of the play, Lady Macbeth seems to have a very strong character – almost stronger than Macbeth’s – but by the end she is reduced to being afraid of the dark. At the beginning she is Macbeth’s ‘dearest partner of greatness’, but at the end she is his ‘fiend-like queen’.
The World Essay Research Paper In an
The World Essay, Research Paper In an important speech, oral delivery is key, ingredients to oral delivery are tone, volume, rate, enthusiasm and clarity, how
Hamlet Act III Essay Research Paper In
Hamlet Act III Essay, Research Paper In Act III of Hamlet much of the plot begins to take it?s turn. It shows to King Claudius that he is found out, he will no longer be able to go on as if he did nothing.