This GCSE English Literature quiz takes a look at language in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet contains some of the best-known of Shakespeare’s verse. You might well have heard many of the most famous lines quoted, or even seen them reused on Valentine’s cards. Yet the language in this play is not entirely light and fanciful, but is instead full of violence and dark passion. Much of the play centres on the contrast between the visible and public and the hidden and private, and so the language, too, contains multiple meanings which repay careful reading.
Characters in Romeo and Juliet are sharply delineated by their linguistic choices, with recognisable words and phrases being picked up and echoed by other characters in different circumstances throughout the play.
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The themes of the play are evident through the plot and actions of characters, and often more subtly through the repetition of related language. One useful revision technique would be to collect examples of vocabulary related to each of the themes of the play. Consider which character uses each of these collected examples and what the implications might be for their specific choices.
Analysing language in a text
An audience’s understanding and interpretation of a play is, of course, affected by its performance, including each individual actor’s pace, tone and gesture. Although in reading you do not have access to these aspects of the play, the written language is the foundation and substance through which its meaning is conveyed.
Authors choose language with precision. Beyond the literal meaning of each word lies a weight of symbolic meaning and other associations. Imagery such as metaphor, simile and personification, adds shades and layers of meaning. Sometimes these effects are subtle and at other times they will practically leap out at you.
It is always worthwhile to pay close attention to the language choices in a text. Such efforts will be rewarded by a deeper understanding. Make a special effort to look beyond the surface meaning, taking the time to consider what else is going on besides the obvious. Analyse carefully the language that the author has put even more care into choosing. This practice will help you to decipher the text’s more elusive meanings.
Answer the questions below to develop your understanding of the way language choices affect our interpretation of a text.
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1.
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"A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, / Whose misadventured piteous overthrows / Doth with their death bury their parents' strife." How is the word "bury" used here? |
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| [ ] |
To refer to their buried love |
| [ ] |
To refer to the lovers' ill fate |
| [ ] |
As a simile |
| [ ] |
Metaphorically |
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2.
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CAPULET'S WIFE: So shall you share all that he doth possess
By having him, making yourself no less.
NURSE: No less, nay, bigger. Women grow by men.
To what does Nurse refer? |
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| [ ] |
Pregnancy |
| [ ] |
Increased wealth |
| [ ] |
Increased love and affection |
| [ ] |
Illness |
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3.
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"If I profane with my unworthiest hand / This holy shrine..." - Romeo. Which of the following is true? |
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Romeo compares himself to a pilgrim and the Capulet home to a shrine |
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Romeo compares Juliet to a pilgrim and himself to a saint |
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Romeo compares himself and Juliet to pilgrims |
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Romeo compares himself to a pilgrim and Juliet to a saint |
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4.
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"Call me but love and I'll be new baptized. / Henceforth I never will be Romeo." What does Romeo mean by being "new baptized" here? |
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He will become a Christian |
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He will take a new name |
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He promises to be a good man if Juliet overlooks his hateful name |
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He hints that he wishes to get married as quickly as possible |
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5.
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"Within the infant rind of this weak flower / Poison hath residence, and medicine power." Why are these lines spoken by Friar Laurence significant? |
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Love, like the medicinal flower, can also be deadly |
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The small and the weak can also be powerful, as the younger members of the feuding families reveal themselves to be |
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Friar Laurence foreshadows the later use of the potion which feigns death and the actual poison used by Romeo |
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All of the above |
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6.
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"Why, is not this better now than groaning for love? Now art thou sociable, now art thou Romeo, now art thou what thou art by art as well as by nature." Mercutio's words relate most closely to which of the following lines? |
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"His name is Romeo, and a Montague, / The only son of your great enemy" |
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"Why, Romeo, art thou mad?" |
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"O Romeo, Romeo, / wherefore art thou Romeo?" |
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"'Tis he, that villain Romeo" |
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7.
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"I would have thee gone — / And yet no farther than a wanton's bird, / That lets it hop a little from his hand." Juliet compares Romeo to which of the following? |
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A free bird of prey |
| [ ] |
A farmyard animal |
| [ ] |
A bird intended for roasting |
| [ ] |
A captive bird |
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8.
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"O sweet Juliet, / Thy beauty hath made me effeminate, / And in my temper softened valour's steel." What does Romeo imply here? |
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| [ ] |
Romeo's reflexes have been dulled and he is not capable of fighting Tybalt |
| [ ] |
Juliet's beauty is not as great as that of a good swordfighter |
| [ ] |
Loving Juliet has made Romeo less of a fighter |
| [ ] |
All of the above |
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9.
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Hearing that Tybalt has been killed by Romeo, Juliet laments, "Was ever book containing such vile matter / So fairly bound?" Which of the following lines does NOT express the same sentiment? |
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| [ ] |
"Just opposite to what thou justly seem'st —" |
| [ ] |
"Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?" |
| [ ] |
"O that deceit should dwell / In such a gorgeous palace!" |
| [ ] |
"Thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend / In mortal paradise of such sweet flesh?" |
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10.
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"O brother Montague, give me thy hand. / This is my daughter's jointure, for no more / Can I demand." Which words indicate Capulet's change of heart? |
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| [ ] |
Brother, thy, hand |
| [ ] |
Montague, daughter, demand |
| [ ] |
Hand, daughter, more |
| [ ] |
Daughter, jointure, demand |
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|
1.
|
"A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, / Whose misadventured piteous overthrows / Doth with their death bury their parents' strife." How is the word "bury" used here? |
|
| [ ] |
To refer to their buried love |
| [ ] |
To refer to the lovers' ill fate |
| [ ] |
As a simile |
| [x] |
Metaphorically |
|
|
|
2.
|
CAPULET'S WIFE: So shall you share all that he doth possess
By having him, making yourself no less.
NURSE: No less, nay, bigger. Women grow by men.
To what does Nurse refer? |
|
| [x] |
Pregnancy |
| [ ] |
Increased wealth |
| [ ] |
Increased love and affection |
| [ ] |
Illness |
|
|
|
3.
|
"If I profane with my unworthiest hand / This holy shrine..." - Romeo. Which of the following is true? |
|
| [ ] |
Romeo compares himself to a pilgrim and the Capulet home to a shrine |
| [ ] |
Romeo compares Juliet to a pilgrim and himself to a saint |
| [ ] |
Romeo compares himself and Juliet to pilgrims |
| [x] |
Romeo compares himself to a pilgrim and Juliet to a saint |
|
|
|
4.
|
"Call me but love and I'll be new baptized. / Henceforth I never will be Romeo." What does Romeo mean by being "new baptized" here? |
|
| [ ] |
He will become a Christian |
| [x] |
He will take a new name |
| [ ] |
He promises to be a good man if Juliet overlooks his hateful name |
| [ ] |
He hints that he wishes to get married as quickly as possible |
|
|
|
5.
|
"Within the infant rind of this weak flower / Poison hath residence, and medicine power." Why are these lines spoken by Friar Laurence significant? |
|
| [ ] |
Love, like the medicinal flower, can also be deadly |
| [ ] |
The small and the weak can also be powerful, as the younger members of the feuding families reveal themselves to be |
| [ ] |
Friar Laurence foreshadows the later use of the potion which feigns death and the actual poison used by Romeo |
| [x] |
All of the above |
|
|
|
6.
|
"Why, is not this better now than groaning for love? Now art thou sociable, now art thou Romeo, now art thou what thou art by art as well as by nature." Mercutio's words relate most closely to which of the following lines? |
|
| [ ] |
"His name is Romeo, and a Montague, / The only son of your great enemy" |
| [ ] |
"Why, Romeo, art thou mad?" |
| [x] |
"O Romeo, Romeo, / wherefore art thou Romeo?" |
| [ ] |
"'Tis he, that villain Romeo" |
|
|
|
7.
|
"I would have thee gone — / And yet no farther than a wanton's bird, / That lets it hop a little from his hand." Juliet compares Romeo to which of the following? |
|
| [ ] |
A free bird of prey |
| [ ] |
A farmyard animal |
| [ ] |
A bird intended for roasting |
| [x] |
A captive bird |
|
|
|
8.
|
"O sweet Juliet, / Thy beauty hath made me effeminate, / And in my temper softened valour's steel." What does Romeo imply here? |
|
| [ ] |
Romeo's reflexes have been dulled and he is not capable of fighting Tybalt |
| [ ] |
Juliet's beauty is not as great as that of a good swordfighter |
| [x] |
Loving Juliet has made Romeo less of a fighter |
| [ ] |
All of the above |
|
|
|
9.
|
Hearing that Tybalt has been killed by Romeo, Juliet laments, "Was ever book containing such vile matter / So fairly bound?" Which of the following lines does NOT express the same sentiment? |
|
| [ ] |
"Just opposite to what thou justly seem'st —" |
| [x] |
"Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?" |
| [ ] |
"O that deceit should dwell / In such a gorgeous palace!" |
| [ ] |
"Thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend / In mortal paradise of such sweet flesh?" |
|
|
|
10.
|
"O brother Montague, give me thy hand. / This is my daughter's jointure, for no more / Can I demand." Which words indicate Capulet's change of heart? |
|
| [x] |
Brother, thy, hand |
| [ ] |
Montague, daughter, demand |
| [ ] |
Hand, daughter, more |
| [ ] |
Daughter, jointure, demand |
|
|
