Act 1, Scene 5: the lovers meet
The lovers meet and fall head over heels in love
In Act 1, Scene 5 of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the two protagonists meet for the first time. There is a costume ball at Lord Capulet’s house one night, and Romeo and his friends have snuck in wearing masks.
Romeo is immediately struck by Juliet’s beauty, and it would almost seem that he falls in love with her because of her looks: “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.” (1.5.51-52). His words bring to mind his previous infatuation with Rosaline whose beauty he also praised to the skies. He also claimed to love her. This gives the impression that Romeo easily fancies himself in love and perhaps cannot tell real love from sexual attraction.
Romeo soon approaches Juliet and asks her - in a very poetic way - if he can kiss her. Juliet plays along, which shows how they instantly click. They have a conversation which is full of fla...
