The story of tragic love - writers and poets of all times and peoples turned to such a plot. Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet was no exception. It was not the English classic that became the founder of such a plot. But the opportunity to show the all-consuming happiness of loving people, which can even overcome a sad end, is precisely the idea of ​​Shakespeare’s work.

History of creation

He loves her. She loves him. Relatives are against their union. The lovers solve this problem in their own way: the imaginary death of the beloved, which led to the true death of the young man. This plot has been known since the time of Ovid, who so colorfully described the love story of Pyramus and Thisbe in his Metamorphoses. The only difference with Shakespeare’s plot was that it was not the poison that caused the death of the young man in love, but the sword.

Of course, Shakespeare was familiar with the work of Ovid. But he also thoroughly studied the novella of the Italian Luigio da Porta, who back in 1524 described the love of Romeo and Juliet from Verona in “The Story of Two Noble Lovers.” This story has been changed many times (Juliet was initially 18 years old; before her death, she manages to talk to Romeo, but then dies of longing for her lover).

The main source that served as the basis for Shakespeare’s immortal work was Arthur Brick’s poem “Romeo and Juliet,” created by him in 1562. Shakespeare slightly reworked the plot: the events take place over 5 days in the summer (for Brick - 9 months in the winter). He finished work on the work in 1596 (the exact date of creation is unknown, but it was printed right then).

The plot of the work

Two noble families from Verona, the Montagues and the Capulets, have been at war for many centuries. Even the master's servants are drawn into the conflict. After another massacre, Duke Escalus of Verona warns that the culprit will be punished at the cost of his own life.

Romeo, a member of the Montague family, is in love with Rosalind, who is Juliet's friend. Mercutio's friend and brother Benvolio are trying in every possible way to drive away sad thoughts from Romeo.

At this time, the Capulet family is preparing for the holiday. Invitations have been sent to all the noble people of Verona. At the holiday, Senor Capulet's 13-year-old daughter, Juliet, is to be introduced to her groom, Count Paris.

Romeo and his friends also come to the ball at the Capulet house. After all, here he hopes to meet Rosalind, who is the owner’s niece. To prevent anyone from recognizing them, the young men decide to use masks. Their plan was exposed by Juliet's cousin Tybalt. To prevent a possible conflict, the owner of the house tries to stop Tybalt.

At this time, Romeo meets Juliet's gaze. Sympathy is born between young people. But on the path to happiness there is a huge obstacle: the centuries-old enmity between the Montagues and the Capulets.

Romeo and Juliet swear loyalty to each other and decide to get married, believing that this will put an end to the bad relationship between their relatives. Romeo, through the nurse, negotiates with the monk Lorenzo to carry out the ceremony.

A few hours after the wedding, the young man witnesses Tybalt killing his friend Mercutio. Romeo, in a rage, deals a fatal blow to Tybalt himself.

Tragic events led to the Duke deciding to expel the young man from Verona. Friar Lorenzo invites Romeo to wait a certain time in Mantua.

At this time, Juliet's parents inform her that they are preparing to marry her to Paris. In desperation, the girl turns to Lorenzo. He gives her a special sleeping pill to simulate death. Romeo doesn't know about this.

When the young man saw Juliet sleeping, he decided that she had died. Romeo kills Paris and takes the poison himself.

Juliet wakes up and sees Romeo's lifeless body. In desperation, she stabs herself. The death of the lovers reconciles the Montague and Capulet families.

Main characters

The daughter of Senor Capulet, surrounded since childhood by the love and care of loved ones: parents, cousin, cousin, nurse. At just 14 years old, she has not yet met love. The girl is sincere, kind and does not delve into family conflicts. Obediently follows the will of the parents. Having met Romeo, she completely surrenders to the first feeling, because of which she dies as a result.

A romantic young man from the Montague family. At the beginning of the novel, he is in love with Rosalind, Juliet's cousin. His love for Juliet transforms him from a frivolous reveler into a serious young man. Romeo has a sensitive and passionate soul.

Benvolio

Montague's nephew, Romeo's friend. The only one of all the characters who does not support family feud and tries to completely avoid conflicts. Romeo trusts Benvolio completely.

Nephew of Prince Verona. Juliet's groom. Shakespeare describes him as handsome and with a kind soul: he also does not support family conflict. Dies at the hands of Romeo.

Friar Lorenzo

A confessor who takes an active part in the life of Romeo and Juliet. Secretly marries lovers. He is ready to pray for everyone, and passionately wants to stop the war between the Montagues and the Capulets.

Tybalt- Juliet's cousin, who supports the blood feud between the families. He kills Mercutio, and himself dies at the hands of Romeo.

Mercutio- Romeo's friend, a young rake, narcissistic and sarcastic. Was killed by Tybalt.

The main idea of ​​the work

In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare shows true human values ​​that can destroy traditions. Love has no barriers: it is not afraid of any prejudices. Young people are ready to go against society for the sake of their happiness. Their love fears neither life nor death.

The tragedy in verse “Romeo and Juliet”, written by W. Shakespeare, was created at the end of the sixteenth century. The love story of a young girl and a boy could well have been taken from life. The historical background and life situations described in the plot are so believable.

Two ancient and powerful Italian families, the Montagues and the Capulets, have been at enmity with each other for several centuries. But fate would have it that the children from these famous Verona families fall in love with each other. The love story of Romeo and Juliet forms the basis of the plot.

Among the minor characters in the tragedy is the nephew of the head of the Montague family. Benvolio, that’s the young man’s name, is Romeo’s cousin and closest friend.

The enmity between eminent families did not engulf the young man. He resists this with all his nature. During skirmishes with the “enemy,” his natural love of peace and prudence prevail over him. His calls to the warring parties are always aimed at stopping hostility and senseless bloodshed.

Benvolie, along with Romeo and his friend Mercutio, takes part in the brawls. But all this happens for the purpose of protection from the attacking opposing side. Benvolio was never among the instigators of fights and quarrels. On the contrary, he made every effort to reconcile representatives of the warring families.

In a fight in the market, where servants from the houses of Montague and Capulet fought, Benvolio made his first attempt to stop the bloodshed. He called for reason, trying to neutralize the cruelty and hatred that had settled in the souls of these people. His intention was thwarted by Tybalt, the evil and aggressive nephew of the head of the Capulet clan. During another skirmish, when Mercutio and Tybalt provoked a clash, the hero also failed to achieve reconciliation. Tybalt and Mercutio died in that fight.

Benvolio loved and protected him as best he could. Romeo also valued Benvolio's friendship. Only to him did he reveal his heartfelt secret. But Benvolio’s friend reacted to Romeo’s mental anguish like a seasoned ladies’ man. He did not take them seriously and gave advice to forget about Juliet, because there are so many beautiful girls around. The ease with which he gives advice to Romeo shows that Benvolio himself was never truly in love.

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Benvolio, a young man, nephew of Lord Montague, close friend of Romeo and Mercutio.

Against the backdrop of vengeful enmity, besides our main character of the play, Benvolio is the most prudent character, revenge did not darken his eyes, the thirst for blood did not seize his soul. He, the only one in all the clashes of warring clans, is, although weak, but an obstacle, a stopping force, appealing to the minds of people, to peace.

Benvolio's role in the play is not large, but important. He is like a black crow against the backdrop of black flocks on both sides. Yes, he fights on the side of the Montagues, but only in defense, attacking, inciting quarrels is not in the rules of the young man. His goal is to end the hostility. And this is clearly stated in the play. Who else was against the feud? Who else did Shakespeare pit against hostility in his play (besides the prince)? Juliet, Romeo? Perhaps, but their attitude towards her is ignored in the play; they are too caught up in their inner experiences to see what is going on around them. Unless Paris, a relative of Prince Verona, expressed his bewilderment at such a long confrontation.

At the very beginning of the play, during a fight between servants in the market, amid all this general turmoil and cruelty, Benvolio bursts onto the stage calling on people to stop and disperse. This is his first attempt in the play to extinguish the hatred reigning in the hearts.

Benvolio:
Weapons away - and immediately back to your places!
You don't know what you're doing, you fools.

(Knocks their swords out of their hands.)

And perhaps he would have succeeded if “the furious Tybalt,” Capulet’s nephew, who was extremely hostile, had not suddenly appeared.

Tybalt:
How did you get involved with this guy?
This is your death - turn around, Benvolio!

Benvolio:
I want to reconcile them. Put down your sword
Or let's separate them together.

But Tybalt does not share Benvolio's good intentions, and the fight continues, Benvolio's attempt was unsuccessful. Of course, how could it be otherwise, because he is alone against everyone with his different beliefs. Benvolio makes the second attempt in the play to avoid bloodshed, trying to stop the hot-tempered Mercutio, who is going out of his way to get into trouble, trying to get Tybalt excited for a duel.

Benvolio:
Please, Mercutio, let's leave.
Today it's hot. Capulets are everywhere.
We can't avoid troubles
And the blood boils in my veins from the heat.

Benvolio pronounces these words of warning even before meeting Tybalt, as if he feels something is wrong, feels that a terrible disaster will happen. Although, on the other hand, these words can be interpreted from the point of view of the cowardice of the young man, here everyone will decide for himself who Benvolio is for him - an opponent of enmity or a cowardly “hero”, constantly trying to leave, hide, and avoid clashes. I'll probably stick with the first option. And I hope many will agree with me.

Benvolio:
In vain we make noise among the crowd.
One of two things: let's retire - either
Let's discuss the dispute with a cold soul
And we'll go our separate ways. They are watching from everywhere.

The second attempt was equally unsuccessful, but unlike the first, it entailed much more serious consequences. If you think about it and imagine for a minute that Benvolio was able to persuade Mercutio to leave? Mercutio and Tybalt would have remained alive, Romeo would not have been expelled from Verona, and later would have been aware that Juliet did not drink poison, but only a magical sleeping pill. But this didn’t happen...it’s all just “if only”.

Benvolio dearly loves his family, for the sake of the peace of Romeo’s parents, who are worried about their son, consumed by unknown sadness, he promises to find out its source. At the same time, Lord Montague says that Romeo did not open his heart to anyone, although many friends tried to find out the reason for his sadness.

Benvolio:
Have you tried to question him?

Montague:
And I and our many friends;
But he alone is the adviser of his feelings.
He - I won’t say that he’s not true to himself,
But he is so uncommunicative and secretive,
So inaccessible to any questions...

However, Romeo believed that Benvolio's friend was the only one worthy of his trust, which suggests that he regards him as a loyal, devoted comrade and adviser. And this again characterizes Benvolio from the best side.

Benvolio:
Is love to blame?

Romeo:
No!

Benvolio:
Not love?

Romeo:
Yes. Dislike for me
Beloved.

Benvolio also dearly loves Romeo, is interested in his fate, his experiences, tries to alleviate them by giving wise advice, to participate in his fate, to help his friend. One senses that the topic of love relationships does not scare him, without hesitation, he readily gives advice, “knocks out a wedge with a wedge,” invites Romeo to look around, take a closer look at other girls. It seems to me that Benvolio is also a womanizer, a supporter of love affairs. Since love seems so simple and easy to him, a real all-consuming passionate feeling is not familiar to him. Most likely, he had fleeting hobbies that he immediately forgot about, fluttering from one to another. We know how difficult it is to tear someone out of your heart...

Benvolio:
No, brother, I’d rather cry.

Romeo:
Dear friend, what are you talking about?

Benvolio:
About the heart of a friend.
Listen to me: forget about her...
Give free rein to your eyes: to other beauties
Look carefully...
Your eyes, crystal scales,
Let them weigh the charm of other beauty.

But Benvolio’s bright image is darkened by Mercutio’s unexpected attack, which describes his character in a completely different way, completely refuting the prudence and good character that we wrote about at the beginning.

Mercutio:
You remind me of one of those fellows who, upon entering a tavern, slams their sword on the table and exclaims: “God grant that I don’t need you!” - and after the second cup they poke the servant with a sword when there is no need for it.

Benvolio:
Do I really look like such a young man?

Mercutio:
Still would! You are one of the most hot-tempered guys in all of Italy. If they touch you a little, you get angry; and if you get a little angry, you offend everyone. Yes, you can quarrel with a person because he has one more or less hair in his beard than you; you can quarrel with a person who cracks nuts just because you have hazel eyes. What eye but yours will see this as a reason for a quarrel? Your head is full of enthusiasm, like an egg is full of yolk, although it was beaten so many times during quarrels that it is surprising how it is still not broken, like an egg. Once you got into a fight with a person because he was coughing on the street and this seemed to wake up your dog, who was sleeping in the sun. Didn’t you once attack a tailor because he dared to put on his new doublet before Easter, and someone else because he laced his new shoes with old ribbons? And you are the one who persuades me not to start quarrels!

Benvolio:
Well, if I were such a bully like you, everyone would willingly buy the right to my inheritance, and he would have to wait no more than an hour and a quarter.

Mercutio:
You're a headless fellow!

Unexpected turn. The characterization leaves us bewildered, but we remember that Benvolio is an opponent of quarrels and inciting hostility. How so? Mercutio describes him as an explosive person, to whom “only give a reason.” But let's remember what Mercutio's friend is like? Mercutio is a rather extraordinary character, he is a dreamer; if any other hero of the play had spoken in a similar way about Benvolio, we would have to believe it, willy-nilly, but since... Shakespeare put these words into the mouth of the chatterbox Mercutio; we can easily question their meaning. But we still remember that every joke contains only a fraction of a joke. So, who knows, who knows...

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List of Romeo and Juliet characters

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Characters ranked by priority

• Romeo Montague- the main character of the play. All the deaths and events of the play are connected with him. Unlike Juliet, in addition to Romeo's death, events with her are indirectly connected.

• Juliet Capulet- main character. In Italy, it is customary to call Juliet first, and then Romeo, only if we are not talking about a play.

• Mercutio- one of the main characters of the play, Romeo's best friend, relative of the prince, very active, the image of an Italian of that time. He fought with Tybalt on equal terms, but when Romeo intervened, Mercutio was wounded by Tybalt from under Romeo's hand. Before dying he pronounces a curse. Pushkin considers him the best character after two lovers.

• Benvolio- Romeo's friend and cousin. Doesn't play an important role, appears a lot, along with Mercutio. He does not respect Tybalt and believes that he, in turn, learned to fight from a book, but unfortunately he is wrong. In the musical, Benvolio tells Romeo that Juliet is dead, while in Shakespeare it is Balthasar. It stands out from everyone only twice, and then not for long.

• Tybalt- one of the main negative characters of the play, the son of Signor Capulet's brother, was killed by Romeo, avenging the death of Mercutio. One hour was a relative of Romeo, since Romeo married Juliet.

• Nurse- Juliet's nanny. He plays a very important role in the play, which cannot be said in the musical.

• Count Capulet- Juliet's father wanted to marry her to Paris. Also Tybalt's adoptive father.

• Lady Capulet- Juliet's mother, Tybalt's adoptive mother.

• Count of Montague- Romeo's father, appears in the films and in the play itself, but appeared in the musical only in the English version.

• Brother Lorenzo- Franciscan friar who favors Romeo and Juliet. He secretly marries them. After Tybalt's murder and exile, Romeo advises the young man to take refuge in the neighboring city of Mantua. When Juliet is ready to take poison so as not to marry Paris, the monk saves the girl by giving her a potion that will plunge the girl into a death-like sleep for three days. Meanwhile, Romeo, summoned by letter, will arrive.

• Prince Escalus- the first Prince of Verona, father of Paris and uncle of Mercutio. Also punished by heaven by losing two loved ones. Also says the final phrase. Doesn't really show itself. Comes only three times, after the main events.

• Paris- Juliet’s fiancé, after her “false death”, comes to the grave with a page, meets Romeo and wants revenge. Romeo says he doesn't want a fight. But Paris does not calm down. And Romeo kills him. Romeo fulfills Paris's last request, since Paris is a relative of Mercutio. Appears only twice.

• Lady Montague- Romeo's mother, Benvolio's aunt. In the play he speaks only three phrases. Her husband says she is dead as he approaches Juliet's tomb.

• Balthazar- assistant and one of Romeo's friends, very devoted to him.

• Pietro(Peter)- the nanny's assistant, the chief among the servants and the only servant of the nanny among all the servants.

• Abram- One of the servants, the only one of the Montagues' servants, not counting Balthazar, whose name is mentioned in the play.

• Gregory- One of the Capulet servants, friends Peter and Samson, smart, cowardly and the only one who understands everything Tybalt says.

• Samson- One of Cappulet’s servants, Gregory’s friend, does not like to think a lot and “lose his face in the dirt,” as they say in the play itself.

• Giovanni- a Franciscan monk, was supposed to deliver Lorenzo's letter to Romeo in Mantua, but was delayed in another city due to the plague quarantine.

• Pharmacist- a character selling medicine, from whom Brother Lorenzo bought the “poison”.

• Uncle Capulet- Juliet's uncle.

• Death- appears in musicals where her role is increased, especially in the first French one. In the play she was not as a separate character.

• Stefano- cameo role, Paris's page.

• Page Mercutio- Mercutio calls him to go get a doctor.

• Choir- read the prologues to acts 1 and 2 of the play.

• Three musicians- cameo characters appear twice, playing instruments.

• First Citizen- cameo role, one of the high-ranking citizens of the prince.

• Citizens of Verona- cameo role, neighbors of two families, Capulets and Montagues.

• First, second and third servants- Capulet servants are preparing the premises for the ball.

• First, second and third guards- present at the death of Romeo and Juliet.

• Guard- it is known that both houses have guards. She is in Shakespeare's book, but she appears only for a few seconds.

• First bailiff- The man who kept order in Verona. Speaks and appears only once.

• Mummers- nameless people appear at the Capulets' ball.

• Torchbearers- people appear in scene 4 of Shakespeare.

• Boy with a drum- just like the torchbearers, appears only in Shakespeare's play.

• Servants- characters, their appearance was. as if theoretically, they seemed to exist, but it was not indicated that they were. In the play, no one except the above-mentioned servants had lines.

Pseudo-characters - appeared, but did not say anything

• Nurse's Husband- the now deceased nurse tells about him in the play to Signor and Signora Capulet.

• Count Anselmo and his sister- were invited to the ball, the play clearly indicated that the count had come.

• Signor Martino- was invited to the ball, it is known that he came.

• Valentine- brother Mercutio, was invited to the ball, it is known that he came.

• Signora Martino

• Signor Martino's daughter- was invited to the ball, but whether she came or not is not known, most likely yes.

• Signora Vertruvio- I was invited to the ball.

• Signor Placenzio with his sisters- They were invited to the ball, the play did not indicate that they came.

• Uncle Capulet's wife- She was invited to the ball, it was clearly indicated in the play that she came.

• Rosaline- Mentioned as Romeo's love. but did not appear and did not speak. Because of this, she was mistakenly listed as mute in the French musical.

• Libya- Rosalina's sister. was invited to the ball.

• Signora Valenzio- Tybalt's brother. Was invited to a ball.

• Signor Lucio and his daughter Elena- We were invited to the Capulets' ball.

• Gatekeeper- the first servant asks that the second servant ask the gatekeeper to let Susanna Grindstone, Nellie, Anton and Potpen through.

• Uninvited guests- Susanna Grindston, Nelly, Anton and Potpen. They were uninvited and were detained by the gatekeeper.

• Tiberno- the nurse said when Juliet asked her who it was.

• Petruchio- It is not completely known whether he was, since the nurse answered Juliet like. But most likely he is.

Characters appearing only in musicals and films

• Servants- Extras.

• Leonard- one of Montague's servants sings at the ball so that Romeo meets Juliet. Appears only in the 1968 film.

• Brother John- Also one of the Frankian monks. Appeared only in the 1968 film.

• Death- appears in musicals where her role is increased, especially in the first French one.

• Uncle Montague- First he is killed on the street. Appeared only in the 1968 film.

• Ted Montague- Appears only in the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet. Relative of Romeo.

Play adaptations

• The film The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride is an adaptation of the plot and most of the characters.
• In season 6, episode 3 of the television series Happy Together (TV series) - the title and some of the characters are taken.
• The series Give Sunny a Chance is a hidden parody - two shows, internecine feuding and two characters falling in love.
• In the comic strip "The Simpsons" there is an issue with the plays of William Shakespeare, where there is the play "Romeo and Juliet".

Notes

• In Act 1, Scene 2, Benvolio says: At the usual Capulet festival, among the recognized beauties of Verona. Rosaline will also be at dinner - the beauty you love. From this it follows that Romeo, before meeting Juliet, was in love with Rosaline.
• Shakespeare attributes to the words of Mercutio some English superstitions, for example Mercutio says: ... like the worms that live under the nails of sloths. - There was a belief that lazy girls got worms in their fingers. Tangles that are dangerous to comb. - In England it was believed that combing such a tangle was dangerous to human life.
• Shakespeare adds English characters - for example, the First Servant mentions Potpen - the buffoon characters that Shakespeare introduces in small insert scenes like this have purely English names even when the main characters in the play are Italians and French. Sometimes the names of these persons have a comic meaning. For example, the name Potpen is made up of two words meaning “pot” and “pan”.
• Mercutio speaks some phrases in French - this is not correct, since until the 16th century they mostly spoke Italian, and the actions take place in the 14th century. But Shakespeare writes in the 16th century, when there was a transition from fashionable Italian to fashionable French.

Um, well, you still won’t believe it if I say that they are magical?..

For some reason, Dent decided to go along the pseudo-scientific path and engage in pseudo-linguistics, namely, to understand where the names of the heroes of the tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” (hereinafter the abbreviation RJ will be used) come from, what they mean, why and what he wanted to possibly say to all of this Shakespeare, if, of course, he was alive and well on this sinful earth.
I warn you right away - what follows is my reasoning and my “dancing” around words. These thoughts represent only my humble opinion and are not the ultimate truth.

I’ll start, perhaps, with a small reservation - as everyone knows, Shakespeare borrowed the plot of the tragedy from a poem by a certain Arthur Brooke (which I could not find), who took it from the Italian short story writer Matteo Bandello, and also, around the same time, “about Verona lovers” was written by a certain Luigi da Porto (which of them wrote first, alas, I do not know). Therefore, it is worth distinguishing between which characters and which names Shakespeare introduced himself, and which ones he borrowed from Italian short stories.
The heroes who, without changes in name, “wander” in every return to the motif are, in fact, Romeo and Juliet themselves. As originally they were and remain so. The name of the Franciscan brother Lorenzo has not changed. Count Paris di Lodrone appears in Bandello, de Porto does not mention the name of the groom (only the family), Shakespeare does not give the name of the family. The English names of the Duke, Mercutio (who comes to the fore only in tragedy), Tybalt, Romeo's servant, underwent significant transformations. And, in the end, Shakespeare introduces new characters - Benvolio, servants of both houses, gives the name of Friar Lorenzo's novice, who was tasked with delivering a letter to Romeo (At the same time, Shakespeare made him a monk...). The surnames of the two warring clans suffered minimal changes, but more on that later. In the calculation of the essay, I do not take into account the numerous off-screen and off-stage characters, relatives of both houses, who are not properly mentioned anywhere.
The list of characters opens with the Duke of Verona, whose name is Escalus. Actually, in the tragedy the name, “signor”, ​​“duke”, but not Escalus, is not mentioned anywhere else.
What does de Porto and Bandello write?
"...happened in Verona in the time of Signor Bartolomeo Della Scala..."(de Porto)
“In those days the ruler of Verona was Bartolomeo della Scala...”(Bandello)
Who are the della Scalas? We quote good old Wikipedia: “The Scaligers (Italian della Scala) are a noble Ghibelline family in Verona, who ruled Verona from 1262 to 1387”. (by the way, while the author was quoting, he accidentally found out that “scala” from Italian means “stairs”. I’m not going to look for deep motives here yet) Bartolomeo himself did not rule so much - three years (from 1301 to 1304), although and entered history in a way already known to us.
So now we have an idea of ​​what the Duke was named. Shakespeare changed the name della Scala for his own reasons. Perhaps he wanted to make the tragedy more or less timeless, not wanting to tie events to a cruelly defined period, did not want specifics, did not consider it important (in which, by the way, he was not so wrong - with the same success he could have simply written “The Duke is the Ruler of Verona”).
Let's move on to the next one on the list. "Paris, a young nobleman, relative of the Duke." In the short stories, this character is very common - in de Porto he is generally mentioned as a certain groom from the Counts of Lodrone. Bandello's is a little better - it is said that his name is Parisa, he even appears for a few lines, however, he also soon disappeared in an unknown direction. In Shakespeare, the image is revealed more, but this is not what this essay is about. The Englishman's surname is not mentioned, except that he is a relative of the Duke (maybe di Lodrone and the Duke's relatives, but there is not a word about this in the short stories).
What does the name Paris mean? In fact, the only known hero who bore this name is the infamous Paris, the son of Priam, because of whom the ten-year Trojan War broke out. I cannot explain why they chose that name. Maybe I just liked Bandello.
But there was an interesting story with his last name. According to the note to Bandello's novella, the Count's family name "Lodrone" is consonant with "ladrone", which in Italian means "robber", "bandit". I doubt that this is a special reference, because there really is a place called Lodrone, although where - Dent is unclear on the damn map. Maybe it’s a joke, maybe for them he was actually a bandit - so-and-so, he wants to marry a married woman, but his lovers suffer... Shakespeare, as already mentioned, did not mention his last name - and he did not fully know Italian.
The surnames of the families have another source, even earlier than the short stories:
“Come, careless one, just take a glance:
Monaldi, Filippeschi, Cappelletti,
Montagues - those are in tears, and those are trembling!(A. Dante, “The Divine Comedy”, Purgatory, Song Six, stanza 106). This appeal to Italy is said to refer to the two parties that existed at that time in Italy: the Guelphs - supported the papal power and the Ghibellines - the power of the Holy Roman Emperor. According to folk tradition, the Montagues and Cappelletti are taken to opposite sides of the barricades, but “and although I, reading some ancient chronicles, met with these two families, supposedly standing together for the same party, I will nevertheless tell you this story as I heard it, without changing anything in it.”(De Porto). The name Montague did not change from source to source, the evolution of the second was Cappelletti (Dante), also from de Porto, then Bandello dropped the second “p”, and finally - the good old Capulets. The etymology of the surnames is not known to me.
About the names of the main characters' parents. What are the names of Romeo's father and mother? in none it is not said in the novella, just as it was not added by Shakespeare. According to de Porto and Bandello, Juliet's father and mother's names were Antonio and Giovanna. There is not a word about this in Shakespeare.
Go ahead. Romeo. Wikipedia, although it says that “Romeo - from Latin “pilgrim””, gives me deep doubts - at least my Latin dictionary does not suggest such a meaning. Most likely, the banal “Roma”. Rome, Roman - maybe a claim to some kind of antiquity. And it’s just a name, what can you do?
Next in line is Mercutio. I’ll just say a few words about the role of this jester in the novels. There is no role to tell the truth. Not a single story mentions his friendship with Romeo, nor does he get killed in any of the stories. In de Porto he is the same passable character as Paris. Bandello only gives a small characterization, very similar to the image of Shakespeare:
“Juliet found herself between Romeo and Marcuccio, nicknamed “cross-eyed.” He was a courtier and famous for his courtesy; everyone loved him for his sharp tongue and all sorts of jokes, for he always had some funny invention ready to make the company laugh, and he knew how to have fun without offending anyone.”
De Porto named the same person Mercuccio Guerzio; no prerequisites for Mercutio, except for some similarity of names, were found. Therefore, I will immediately move on to Mercutio, to this jester.
One of the versions is suggested by Wikipedia “Mercutio - from English. Mercury". Mercury - mercury, metal, mobile, fluid, usually remaining in a liquid state. (I use Wikia, and she uses some “MPGU lectures on Shakespeare”; I just quote). An interesting theory, although not very well supported. Let's dance further from this - mercury received its English name from Mercury, and in alchemy the sign of the metal is the same as the symbol of Mercury's rod with snakes. Who is Mercury? God is the patron god of merchants, the patron of the arts, but is a rogue, cunning, resourceful, prone to tricks and jokes. This, not completely, but correlates with the image of Mercutio - an ironic, cheerful, somewhat vulgar and cynical person, Romeo's friend. Also (here the author will have to dig into the zodiac meanings, so he asks not to judge strictly, since he was mistaken) people born under the dominance of Mercury are eloquent, inclined to the arts, smart and cheerful (*bow to the great Internet*). I’ll say right away that there is nothing to back it up; the author of the essay is not strong in astrology at all.
After Romeo and Mercutio, it would be a shame not to mention Benvolio, the former’s cousin and friend of both. Unlike others, he was lucky - he was invented entirely by an Englishman. The name Benvolio also suits the character quite well. From Latin "benvolus" means "benevolent, supportive, devoted." Actually, we see the first meaning at the very beginning (the desire to resolve the conflict peacefully, an attempt to bring Tybalt to reason), the second and third - in relation to friends.
After cousin Montague, it was time to turn to Signora Capulet’s nephew, Tybalt. In the novels his name is Tebaldo, which is a completely normal Italian name: “Teobaldo (Theobaldo), Tibaldo (Tibaldo), Tebaldo (Tebaldo) from the ancient Germanic name Theudebald: þeud (people) + bald (brave)”. (taken from the site kurufin.ru, a link was required - the link was supplied). A name is like a name. Now let's move on to Shakespeare.
The twisted Tybalt, according to the notes, goes back to the medieval "Romance of the Fox", where there is such a character, the cat Tibert, "king of cats", who is "clever and wise" (but was still easily fooled by Reynard), who later appears in the stories The liar-fox is sometimes a conspirator, sometimes just a scoundrel, but most importantly - one of the main opponents of the Fox. What does Tybalt have to do with this, I don’t know - Tybalt’s character is outlined, in my opinion, even worse than Benvolio’s character. But this, so to speak, allusion runs like a red thread through the play - Mercutio constantly calls his enemy “rat-catcher” (translated as “pied catcher”) and “King of Cats”.
So, in a roundabout way, we reached the second main character of the story - Juliet. Everything is quite simple here - Julia, Julia, in Italian her name is “Giulietta”. In the tradition of the French and English "Juliette" and "Juliet" respectively. The similarity with the name of the month “July” is visible. (Shakespeare) Juliet was born on Peter's Day, celebrated on June 29 (according to the old style - July 12). Among the novelists, she was born on the day of St. Euphemia; this saint is commemorated in Orthodoxy on July 11 and September 16 (according to the Julian calendar), and among Catholics on September 16. So either Shakespeare personally changed the date of birth of his heroine, or the Italians were secretly Orthodox... Although at the same time there was no Gregory XIII with his calendar transformations, so everything is fine, sorry, I got confused myself. Or were they?!
(Something strange is happening with the birth of Juliet - in my edition of the tragedy, the notes generally say that “Juliet was born on the harvest festival, i.e. August 1.” Meanwhile, Wikia says that Catholics celebrate the harvest festival on the day of the Archangel Mikhail, it’s actually September 29th... What am I smoking, what?!)
Perhaps this is all I can say on this topic. Having sorted out the names of the main (and not so) characters, I was not too close to understanding the meaning of life, but I did understand somewhat what the gentlemen writers might have had in mind when they named the characters.