9
GCSE ENGLISH LITERATURE
FOR TEACHING FROM 2015
CPD AUTUMN 2016
SHAKESPEARE EXEMPLAR UNANNOTATED
1
2
Mercutio is a very important character to the play. He is neither a Montague nor a Capulet.
The name Mercutio comes from the word mercurial which means “quick to change”. In Act 1
scene 4, it is the first time the audience meet Mercutio. He states:
“We must have you dance”
and this is aimed at Romeo, who is upset because Rosaline doesn’t love him back. This
suggests Mercutio is good friends with Romeo and that he cares about his feelings as he
encourages him to join in the fun.
In the same scene Mercutio makes a speech about the way he feels about love. He states:
“Oh then I see Queen Mab hath been with you”
This suggests he has a good imagination as Queen Mab is not a real character. He then
also states:
“Her chariot is an empty hazelnut”
This is also shows his imagination is very vivid, as he can describe an imaginary person in
great detail. In act 2 scene 1 Mercutio is outside the Capulets mansion and is searching
Romeo, after the ball has finished. Whilst with Benvolio, he makes rude/sexual jokes about
Romeo’s love, Rosaline. This is found in the text as he states:
“Oh that she were an open arse and he a pop’rin pear”
This shows the audience he has good humour and also shows his laid back attitude. He
doesn’t take life too seriously. Further in the text he states “quivering thigh” which also
shows he is making rude jokes.
In this scene Mercutio calls for Romeo, but says other names he thinks Romeo is best suited
to. He states:
“Romeo! Humours! …Passion! Lover!”
The use of exclamation marks shows his anger. It also suggests he is a little jealous about
Romeo not spending much time with his friends.
In act 2 scene 4 Mercutio comes across as being very rude towards the Nurse as he states
“her fans the fairer face”. This shows he doesn’t mind a joke even if it is offensive and is just
there to have a laugh nothing more. It also shows his humour.
In the last scene act 3 scene 1 that Mercutio is in, the mood and atmosphere change
completely. At the start of the scene Benvolio is trying to calm Mercutio down as he seems
to be in a bit of an irritable mood. I get this from Benvolio’s quotation:
3
”these are the mad blood stirring ”
Later on in the scene when the Capulets arrive Benvolio is very aware, alert, anxious and
worried about their presence, as a soon as he sees them he states “by my head here come
the Capulets”. Mercutio on the other hand is very laid back about their presence and doesn’t
seem to feel a difference in atmosphere/ambience. He states “By my heel, I care not”.
When Romeo arrives on the streets of Verona, Tybalt asks to fight Romeo; however Romeo
doesn’t intend to fight due to just having married a Capulet. When Romeo refuses to fight
Tybalt and walks away, Mercutio states “O calm, dishonourable, vile submission”. The use
of these words show that Mercutio is disgusted and sort of ashamed with Romeo’s decision
not to fight. Mercutio is important by the fact that if he wasn’t in the play, he wouldn’t be in
this scene, then a fight between Mercutio and Tybalt wouldn’t have occurred which was
started by Mercutio when he challenged Tybalt for a “walk” in other words a duel.
When Mercutio is stabbed he states “a plague on both your houses”. This suggests he is
very angry with the fact that he was stabbed, because of an argument between both the
Capulet family and the Montague family. He repeats this phrase many times throughout the
ending and the exclamation marks on the end both emphasise his hatred and anger for the
events that have occurred due to the argument between the two families.
When Mercutio is asked whats wrong he states “ a scratch a scratch” and also states “Ask
for me tomorrow and you will find me a grave man”. This suggests that he cannot resist a
joke even when death is near. I believe that if Mercutio wasn’t in the play than the other
deaths wouldn’t have happened, as I believe Mercutio’s death lead to more tragedies
occurring. Mercutio’s death changed the direction of the play. If Mercutio didn’t die than
perhaps Romeo would have been able to just leave without anyone hurt and without Tybalt
dieing there wouldn’t be anyone to want to get revenge at, therefore no more deaths.
4
'Even though Mercutio dies at the beginning of Act 3, he is very important to the play as a
whole.' Show how Mercutio could be described as important to the play as a whole. [25]
*5 of this question's marks are allocated for accuracy in spelling, punctuation and the use of
vocabulary and sentence structures.
Mercutio is a key character in the play “Romeo and Juliet”. His witty character influences the
structure, plot and form of the play.
Mercutio, whose first memorable scene is in Act One Scene four persuades Romeo to go to
the Capulet ball. He tells Romeo “you must dance”. This is key to the plot and storyline of the
play, as if Romeo didn’t go to the ball, he wouldn’t have met Juliet, and he would still be in
love with Rosaline. Therefore the play would have been completely altered, so Mercutio is
very important from the start.
Another way in that Mercutio is important is that he is an anti-dote to Romeo’s love filled and
obsessive character. Mercutio is very clear from the Queen Mab speech that he doesn’t
believe in love:
“O then I have seen Queen Mab hath been with you”
Showing that he thinks that love is imaginary. This contrast in opinion balances out the over
filled love talk from Romeo. Many people in the audience may not agree with Romeo’s view
of love and fate and may appreciate the change in opinion to balance the play out, as, if the
whole play focused on how love is everything and if you can’t find love you will be unhappy,
the play would lack wit and would be very onesided and even quite heavy.
Mercutio’s character loves sexual puns and sometimes crude jokes and we find examples of
these on many occasions in the play “heran open arse and thou a poperin pear”. These lighthearted jokes make the play appeal to everyone, as from an audiences’ point of view, you
will find very different kind of people watching the play and some may enjoy the drama
,however others could appreciate the lighter, more jokier moments. Also, in the midst of the
drama, Mercutio brings light to situations and brings the humour aspect. Even in his last
moments he jokes he’s only got “A scratch, a scratch” despite him being fatally wounded. He
also puns “Ask for me tomorrow you’ll find me a grave man” – grave meaning serious, but
also grave meaning he’ll be in a grave, reiterating that he breaks up the heavy drama.
5
Mercutio’s death is a turning point in the play, as beforehand the play hasn’t seen tragedy
even though the play is classed as a tragedy . This is until Mercutio’s death in act three
scene one, where Mercutio dies. This death is the cause of why Romeo kills Tybalt, then
why Romeo is banished and then resulting in Paris, Romeo and Juliet eventually dying. You
could say Mercutio’s death is the start, or a catalyst for the future deaths of the play. Without
Mercutio, the other deaths may have been prevented, which is why he is so important as a
character.
Another reason to why Mercutio is important is that his imagination is fertile and he is a
loquacious person. He is known to trail off and let his imagination run wild, an example is
the Queen Mab speech. However Mercutio also lets his emotions and anger get the better
of him:
“ O foul, dishonourable, vile submission”
Speaking of when Romeo surprises Mercutio by deciding to not initially fight Tybalt. He can
also be rude “for her fans the fairer face”. All of these different personality traits add to the
play with his childlike imagination, aggression and his wit, he assures the play is suited for
everyone.
To conclude, Mercutio is vital to the plays structure, as without him the play would actually
alter significantly. Also he appeals to everyone, from his sexual jokes and puns to his
imagination, he brings a lot to the play, which without him would change the play. Despite
his final scene only being at the start of act three, his actions contribute to some moments in
the rest of the play.
6