Poison
Friar Lawrence remarks in his first appearance in Act 2 Scene 2, that every plant, herb, and stone has its own special properties and that there is nothing in nature that cannot be put to both good and bad uses. The Friar also points out that all plants have within them either medicinal qualities or dangerous poisons. This can be seen to be symbolic of humanity as both vice and virtue live in the plant, as in a person. This demonstrates that poison and plants are not intrinsically evil but is instead created for evil purposes through the work of human hands. This is strongly evident through the potion that Friar Lawrence gives Juliet. This potion was made to emulate the appearance of death. However, through human error, with Friar’s Lawrence’s letter not being delivered, the potion does indeed result in death: Romeo’s suicide. This demonstrates that more often than not, humans cause death, even if it is not intended. Towards the end of the play Romeo also suggests that society is to blame for the Apothecary’s decision to sell to him a lethal potion, as this action is illegal. However, the man is skeletal, fragile, and hungry, and as Romeo points out, there are no laws in place that will help him make money.
Poison throughout the course of the play is symbolic of man’s innate ability to turn positivity into negativity, good into bad. This is perhaps best epitomised by the futile Capulet/Montague feud which turns the sweet young love between Romeo and Juliet into poison. Unlike many of the other Shakespearean tragedies, Romeo and Juliet does not have an evil antagonist; rather, it is good people who qualities are turned into poison by the world in which they live, that cause the most damage.
Thumb biting
The first instance of thumb-biting occurs in Act 1 Scene 1. Here Sampson initiates a brawl between the Montagues and the Capulets by flicking his thumbnail from behind his upper teeth. This is a very juvenile, yet vulgar display and is utilised by Sampson to start a fight with the Montagues, though he does not want to be accused by the Prince of starting a street brawl by explicitly using an insult. Therefore, it can be seen that the thumb-biting is essentially a meaningless gesture that is representative of the stupidity of the Capulet Montague feud and of rowdy violence in general.
Queen Mab
In Act 1 Scene 4, Mercutio delivers one of longest speeches in the entire play about the fairy Queen Mab, who rides through the night and brings dreams to sleepers. One of the most noteworthy attributes of Queen Mab is that she generally delivers dreams to individuals that bring out the worst in them – their vices – such as greed, violence, or lust. Queen Mab and her carriage do not merely symbolise the dreams of sleepers; they also symbolise the power of waking fantasies, daydreams, and desires. Through the use of Queen Mab imagery, Mercutio is able to suggest that all desires and fantasies are as nonsensical and fragile as Mab, and that love is basically a corrupting influence. This is a stark contrast to the point of view shared by Romeo and Juliet as they believe that their love is pure, everlasting, passionate, and real.
Night
Night is a very important symbol that is used throughout the play. It is under the cover of darkness that all of the passionate love scenes occur. These scenes end when the sun comes up, threatening to reveal the lovers, and the romantic atmosphere set by the moon contrasts with the heat of the sun and its opposite effects, inspiring rage and violence amongst the young men of Verona. Often, night is thought of as both a time for romance and liberation, but also as a time of danger. The night provides the cover needed for Romeo and Juliet to express their love to one another in a place where they are free from the social rules that will divide and separate them forever. Yet the night is dark, and the promise of the hidden love and life lures the young couple into dangerous territory, and a frightful situation that will inevitably prove to be fatal for them.
Daggers and swords
Daggers and swords are symbolic of the external force of violence in the play. The weapons are physical representations of masculinity, rage, hatred, and passion. For the servants and kin of the two leading households, their swords and daggers represent their loyalty and connection to their households. For fighting men, such as Tybalt and Mercutio, their weapons are seen as the epitome of masculinity and as a motivator to commit murder for ones honour. For Benvolio, who is milder tempered than the others, the use of swords speaks to their ignorance and irresponsibility, and he censures them as “fools” who “know not what [they] do.” The Prince, who serves as a judge between the two households refers to the weapons of his “rebellious subjects” as “neighbor-stained steel” and “mistempered.” He suggests that both the weapons and the men are ill-made, as they express hatred toward those whom, in a well-ordered society, they should love and attempt to resolve conflict instead.
Light and dark imagery
The importance of the motif of light and day/night imagery is expressed in the opening scene of the play. After the street brawl, Montague and Lady Montague stay behind to speak to Benvolio about Romeo’s worrying behaviour; he was not present at the brawl and Lady Montague has not seen him all day. She fears that Romeo is avoiding the sunlight because he has fallen into deep depression. As such it can be seen that in this instance, light represents happiness and the darkness is a place of sadness and depression.
The visual contrast between light and dark is one of the most consistent motifs demonstrated in the play. This contrast is never given a definitive metaphoric meaning – light is not always good, and dark is not always evil. One of the more important instances of this motif is Romeo’s lengthy meditation on the sun and the moon during the balcony scene, in which Juliet, metaphorically described as the sun, is seen as banishing the “envious moon” and transforming the night into day. A similar blurring of night and day occurs in the early morning hours after the lovers’ only night together. Romeo, forced to leave for exile in the morning, and Juliet, not wanting him to leave her room, both try to pretend that it is still night, and that the light is actually darkness: “more light and light, more dark and dark our woes.”
