Act V

Scene I

157. Romeo is in Mantua

158. Foreshadowing: A5,S1,L6

159. Balthasar brings the news of Juliet’s death to Romeo.

160. Romeo wants to leave immediately for Verona.

161. Balthasar tries to get him to wait for more news.

162. Romeo HAS NOT gotten any letters from Fr. Laurence.

163. Soliloquy: A5, S1, L36-60

164. Romeo plans to go to Verona, kill himself and lie forever in the Capulet’s tomb with Juliet.

165. Definition: Apothecary; a person who deals in herbs & potions; druggist, pharmacist. A5, S1, L 39

166. The poison that Romeo wants to get is illegal in Mantua. Anyone who sells it can be executed.

167. Romeo describes this apothecary as being very poor and desperate. So he will probably sell this illegal poison to Romeo.

168. Romeo tries to buy the poison but the apothecary doesn’t want to break the law.

169. Romeo points out that the apothecary is already starving to death, so what is there to be afraid of.

170. Apothecary still doesn’t want to sell him the poison, but he needs the money so he does.

171. Romeo pays the man telling him that “gold” is a poison that kills men’s souls. So “gold” is worse than the poison he bought. Romeo says that he, not the apothecary, is the one breaking the law by selling a deadly “poison.”

172. Definition: cordial – a sweet tasting liquor that is drunk in times of joy. A5, S1, L88

173. Romeo equates the poison to a cordial. He sees his death as something joyous not evil.

Scene 2

174. Meanwhile, back in Verona, Fr. Laurence meets Fr. John who was suppose to deliver a letter to Romeo.

175. Fr, John says that he did not go to Mantua because he was quarantined in a house, and he couldn’t even give Fr. Laurence’s letter to anyone to deliver to Romeo.

176. Theme: A5, S2, L17

177. Fr. Laurence realizes that Juliet will wake in 3 hours, so he must go and free Juliet.

178. Fr. Laurence plans to send a another letter to Romeo, telling him that Juliet is alive, hiding in Fr. Laurence’s room, and Romeo must come an get her.

Scene 3

179. Paris and his servant come to the graveyard. He wants to put flowers at Juliet’s tomb. He tells his servant to hide and watch for anyone who might be coming.

180. As Paris lays the flowers, his servant signals that someone is coming. Paris hides and waits to see who comes.

181. Romeo and Balthasar arrive next. He tells Balthasar to forget everything he sees and to not interrupt him.

182. Romeo tells Balthasar that he is going to open the tomb to retrieve a very important ring. He also tells Balthasar to leave or he will kill him.

183. Balthasar doesn’t believe Romeo’s excuse for opening the tomb, so he hides and watches.

184. Metaphor: tomb is compared to a mouth and stomach. A5, S3, L45-48

185. Personification: tomb is given a jaw. A5, S3, L47

186. Paris sees Romeo and thinks that he is there to desecrate the tomb. So Paris tries to stop him.

187. Romeo says he is there only to kill himself, so Paris should leave him alone in the graveyard and live.

188. Paris refuses and fights Romeo. Paris’s servant sees them fighting and goes to get the guards.

189. Romeo kills Paris.

190. Theme: A5, S3, L82-83

191. Imagery: light; the tomb is a lantern. A5, S3, L84-86

192. Soliloquy: A5, S3, L88-120

193. Romeo drinks the poison and dies.

194. Fr. Laurence arrives. Balthasar tells him that Paris and Romeo fought.

195. Fr. Laurence enters the tomb and finds Romeo and Paris dead.

196. Juliet wakes up.

197. Fr. Laurence tries to get Juliet to leave the tomb because the guards are coming.

198. Theme: A5, S3, L158-159

199. Fr. Laurence explains what happened to Juliet. He plans to hide Juliet in a convent. She refuses. He leaves and hides.

200. Juliet finds the vial that poisoned Romeo. She tries to drink it too but the vial is empty. Then she kisses Romeo hoping that some poison remains on his lips. None of this works.

201. Juliet hears the guards. She grabs his dagger and stabs herself. She dies. (CLIMAX)

202. Guards arrive and find three dead bodies. The Chief Guard sends another guard to find the Prince and the families.

203. The other guards find Balthasar and Fr. Laurence hiding in the graveyard. They are to be held until the Prince arrives.

204. Juliet’s parents and the Prince arrive. The Prince wants to know what happened.

205. Lord Montague arrives and tells them that his wife died of grief because Romeo was exiled.

206. Theme: A5, S3, L217

207. Fr. Laurence says he knows what happened. He also says he is both guilty and innocent for the deaths.

208. Fr. Laurence tells the entire story of Romeo and Juliet. Balthasar fills in the holes.

209. Balthasar gives Romeo’s letter to the Prince to read. The letter confirms everything that Fr. Laurence says.

210. The Prince tells both families that they are the ones responsible for the deaths. Their hate caused this. The Prince also blames himself because he didn’t strictly enforce the law and stop the feuding.

211. Lord Capulet and Lord Montague end their feud. Lord Montague will build a statue of Juliet out of pure gold so that all may know of her love and loyalty.