Romeo and Juliet

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay. 

Scaffolded/Short-Answer Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the play over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Mercutio has many clever and joking lines. He often wants to cheer up Romeo and make others laugh.

• How does the tone of the play change when Mercutio is killed? (topic sentence)
• How do events in the rest of the play show that Mercutio’s death is an important turning point in the plot? Name at least three events and use details from the text to support your ideas.
• Finally, discuss in your concluding sentence or sentences how Mercutio’s death connects to the theme of feuds and rivalry.

2. Consider the setting of the famous balcony scene and the placement and movement of the characters throughout it.

• What might Shakespeare have been suggesting with the use of the balcony, symbolically? (topic sentence)
• What are three ways that the imagery of this scene relates to the theme of love’s complexities? Cite details from the scene for each imagery idea.
• Finally, describe in your concluding sentence or sentences how the overall setting and scene contribute to the emotions that spark between Romeo and Juliet at the Capulet feast.

3. The Nurse is a “comic relief” character in much of the play, as well as a caretaker who shows genuine love for and devotion to Juliet.

• Why does the Nurse’s attempt to persuade Juliet to marry Paris surprise many readers? (topic sentence)
• What are two or three conclusions that Juliet seem to draw once the Nurse offers this counsel? Cite actions or lines to support your ideas.
• Finally, discuss in your concluding sentences how the Nurse is meaningful beyond her comic relief role—and beyond what Juliet might understand. In other words, what might the Nurse represent about love’s complexities?

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Choose one of the play’s major recurring images (e.g., the moon, stars, and sun; light and darkness; plants and flowers; birds). Then trace the appearance of your chosen motif throughout the play. (Use the “Find” feature within an online text for help.) How does Shakespeare’s use of the image change as the play goes on? How do his choices in the way he uses the image affect the tone and atmosphere of the surrounding moments? How does word choice and connotation in the language that accompanies the image contribute to or mirror the unfolding of events? Ultimately, what might Shakespeare be suggesting about the symbolic value of that changing, recurring image?

2. Consider Friar Lawrence’s monologue on the properties of herbs at the start of Act II, Scene iii. What might readers infer indirectly about his traits and qualities, based on this speech? How do his ideas about moderation play out in his own behavior—and how does the play seem to support or undermine those ideas? How might this monologue connect to a theme or themes in the play? As you compose your essay, incorporate at least three quoted lines or phrases from the speech that strengthen your points of discussion. Cite your quotations with act, scene, and line number.

3. Many of the play’s characters seem skeptical or cynical about romantic love. How does the play explore the theme of love’s complexities—its power, its silliness, its beauty, its dangers? Ultimately, what message about romantic love is most strongly conveyed? What motifs support this message, and what examples of character actions and reactions contribute to it? Is Shakespeare’s message valid today? Why or why not?