ABSTRACT
In these contrasting speeches Romeo shows two of the emotional poles that the actor in this play must swing between. In the first speech his enjoyable dream has energised his spirits and the language he uses is romantically uplifting. Notice the long/soft vowel/consonant sounds he combines: 'presage' , 'bosom' , 'ground', 'dream', 'kisses', 'lips', 'sweet', 'love', 'joy'. The speech carries Romeo back to the sweet dreaminess of the balcony scene (Act 2, scene 2). When Balthasar enters, having just travelled back from Verona, Romeo overwhelms him with questions. The actor can either do this quickly, leaving Balthasar no room to reply, or wait for replies which never come because the news is so dire, using each question to try and get a response. In the second
speech, after Balthasar's report, the mood has darkened. Romeo now believes Juliet is dead. Romance turns to desperation. The wretched apothecary's shop becomes the image and stimulus for his suicide plan and the actor can use details from the image to feed his dejection. The language has a deathly pall to it: the vowel/consonant sounds have now lowered in tone and have an ominous ring: 'green earthen pots, bladders and musty seeds', etc. A world of delight has become dark and morbid.
