[CHARACTER] Explore the significance of Mercutio in the play

“If love be rough with you, be rough with love, prick love for pricking”

Direct contrast to Romeo’s idealized notions of a pure, non-physical idea of love – mocks his vision – anti-romantic character regarding love as a purely physical pursuit, much like the Nurse

“O calm, dishonorable, vile submission!”

Conveys his Mercurial character – volatile and feisty nature – similar to Tybalt – likes to provoke fights and brawls – tricolon “calm, dishonorable, vile” – escalating – “vile submission” conveys his immense sense of pride and incredulity that Romeo turned down a fight displaying “submission” - impactful – exclamative only emphasizes his impulsiveness – catalyst for the tragedy that soon ensues

Queen Mab speech – “Which oft the angry Mab with blisters plagues”

Cynicism – dreams bring false hope, false ambition – semantic field of illness and disease – spreads like infection or a plague – trickery of Queen Mab – dismissing dreams as nothing but idle fantasies

“Hot days” “Mad blood stirring”
Hot – pathetic fallacy – tense, angry, foreboding atmosphere - circular motion – no end to the hate – personification of blood as mad – inevitable violence which resides in their blood, their veins – innate – violence is inflamed by the summer's heat -

“A plague o both your houses!” “Worms’ meat out of me”               

His death emphasizes the pointless nature of the feud and its infectious nature - marks a distinct turning point in the play as tragedy begins to overwhelm comedy, and the fates of the protagonists darken – Mercutio = comic character – demise of Mercutio signifies the end of happier times – reader’s response: sympathy