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;
Whose misadventured piteous overthrows
Do with their death bury their parents' strife.
The fearful passage of 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.
From the passage, we learn that two high-class households are in a massive feud that started long ago - "From ancient grudge" - and it's still going on - "break to new mutiny" - and innocent bystanders get hurt/scared by their constant fights (referring to the third line) so there's blood on both of their hands. Soon, both families have one child each - the Montagues with a boy named Romeo, and the Capulets with a girl named Juliet - and from the moment that they were born, their eventual death would soon become certain. The passage refers to their love as "death-mark'd", which means that their love was dangerous from the beginning and that their death was inevitable. Furthermore, their death was the only way to end the feud between the two households.
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Romeo and Juliet Prologue Analysis
RandomStudying Romeo and Juliet in school and need a push to get your analytical juices flowing? Then read this! I wrote this last year, so it might not be as good as it could be, but hopefully it helps you :)
