Romeo Y Julieta

VOLUME IV BOOK IX

ROMEO AND JULIET

By William Shakespeare

Dramatis Personae

BALTHASAR servant to Romeo.
ESCALUS prince of Verona. (PRINCE)

SAMPSON

PARIS a young nobleman, kinsman to the prince.

GREGORY

MONTAGUE
CAPULET

heads of two houses
at variance with
each other.

An old man, cousin to Capulet. (SECOND CAPULET)

PETER servant to Juliet’s nurse.
ABRAHAMservant to Montague.
An Apothecary. (APOTHECARY)
Three Musicians.
(FIRST MUSICIAN)
(SECOND MUSICIAN)
(THIRD MUSICIAN)

ROMEO son to Montague.
MERCUTIO kinsman to the prince, and friend to Romeo.
BENVOLIO nephew to Montague, and friend to Romeo.
TYBALT nephew to Lady Capulet.
FRIAR LAURENCE
FRIAR JOHN

servants to Capulet.

Page to Paris; (PAGE) another Page; an Officer.
LADY MONTAGUEwife to Montague.
LADY CAPULET wife to Capulet.

Franciscans.

JULIET daughter to Capulet.
Nurse to Juliet. (NURSE)
Citizens of Verona; several Men and Women,
relations to both houses; Maskers,

Guards, Watchmen, and Attendants.
(FIRST CITIZEN), (SERVANT), (FIRST SERVANT), (SECOND SERVANT), (FIRST WATCHMAN), (SECOND
WATCHMAN), (THIRD WATCHMAN), Chorus.
SCENE Verona: Mantua.

Romeoand Juliet

PROLOGUE
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life;
Whole misadventured piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents’ strife.
The fearful passageof their death-mark’d love,
And the continuance of their parents’ rage,
Which, but their children’s end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours’ traffic of our stage;
The which if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

ACT I
A dog of that house shall move me to stand:
I will take the wall of any man or maid of Montague’s.

SCENE I
Verona.A public place.

SAMPSON

[Enter SAMPSON and GREGORY, of the house
of CAPULET, armed with swords and bucklers]
SAMPSON

Gregory, o’ my word, we’ll not carry coals.

GREGORY

No, for then we should be colliers.

SAMPSON

I mean, an we be in choler, we’ll draw.

GREGORY That shows thee a weak slave; for the weakest
goes to the wall.

True; and therefore women, being the
weakervessels, are ever thrust to the wall: therefore I
will push Montague’s men from the wall, and thrust his
maids to the wall.
SAMPSON

The quarrel is between our masters and us
their men.
GREGORY

Ay, while you live, draw your neck out
o’ the collar.
GREGORY

’Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant: when
I have fought with the men, I will be cruel with the
maids, and cut off theirheads.
SAMPSON

SAMPSON

I strike quickly, being moved.

GREGORY

But thou art not quickly moved to strike.

SAMPSON

A dog of the house of Montague moves me.

To move is to stir; and to be valiant is to
stand: therefore, if thou art moved, thou runn’st away.
GREGORY

GREGORY

The heads of the maids?

Ay, the heads of the maids, or their
maidenheads; take it in what sensethou wilt.
SAMPSON

GREGORY

Volume III Book IX

They must take it in sense that feel it.

5

Romeo and Juliet: ACT I
SAMPSON Me they shall feel while I am able to stand:
and’tis known I am a pretty piece of flesh.

’Tis well thou art not fish; if thou hadst, thou
hadst been poor John. Draw thy tool! here comes
two of the house of the Montagues.
GREGORY

My naked weapon is out:quarrel,
I will back thee.

Fear me not.

GREGORY

Part, fools!
Put up your swords; you know not what you do.
BENVOLIO

[Enter TYBALT]

How! turn thy back and run?

SAMPSON

[Enter BENVOLIO]

[Beats down their swords]

SAMPSON

GREGORY

[They fight]

No, marry; I fear thee!

What, art thou drawn among these
heartless hinds?
Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death....