Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
One of Romeo's closest friends, Mercutio entreats Romeo to forget about his unrequited love for a girl named Rosaline and come with him to a masquerade ball at Lord Capulet's estate, through use of his Queen Mab speech. There, Mercutio and his friends become the life of the party, but Romeo is drawn to Capulet's daughter, Juliet. He finds ...
Mercutio is the instigator of many fights with his rather mean spirited humor, and often insults Tybalt, a renowned swordsman. It is Tybalt's temper that leads to Mercutio's death, and Romeo's banishment and the tragedy that follows. After Romeo receives a death threat from Tybalt, Mercutio expects Romeo to engage Tybalt in a duel.
Romeo, Montague's only son, is depressed, wishing to fall in love with someone. His humorous and rebellious friend, Mercutio, urges him and another of his friends, Benvolio , to go to a Capulet party later that evening. They attend the party, covered in white sand to look like Capulets, and Romeo falls in love with Juliet at first sight.
Romeo, now considering Tybalt his kinsman, refuses to fight. Mercutio is offended by Tybalt's insolence, as well as Romeo's "vile submission", [1] and accepts the duel on Romeo's behalf. Mercutio is fatally wounded when Romeo attempts to break up the fight, and declares a curse upon both households before he dies. ("A plague on both your houses!
In the first printed edition of Romeo and Juliet (the so-called "First Quarto" or "Bad Quarto", published in 1597 [2]), Mercutio called down syphilis (pox) [3] instead of plague (plague). [1] There are also well-founded doubts [4] that in early editions, syphilis was indeed mentioned. Shakespeare may have used the word pox to mean not syphilis ...
Mercutio loses his temper and begins fighting Tybalt himself. Romeo tries to stop the combat by rushing between them, and Tybalt then stabs Mercutio under his arm. Mercutio dies from the wound, angering an already emotional Romeo. Enraged, Romeo duels and kills Tybalt in return, leading to his own exile by Prince Escalus.
Despite Romeo's efforts to stop the fight, Tybalt mortally wounds Mercutio, who curses both the Montague and Capulet houses before dying. Enraged over his friend's death, Romeo retaliates by fighting Tybalt and killing him. Romeo is subsequently punished by the Prince with banishment from Verona, with the threat of death if he ever returns.
In the play, Mercutio is not Romeo's rival but his and Benvolio's mutual best friend and acts as a reckless free spirited jokester, who truly cares for Romeo but lets his own hot-bloodedness override his weariness of the feud ('A plague on both your houses!'). The Mercutio of the anime shares little in common with his play counterpart.