Romeo and Juliet

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1. 
   amethystrose Teacher
   High School - 9th Grade

   In order to fully understand the passage, you need the preceding lines:

   But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?

   It is the East, and Juliet is the sun.

   Here Romeo is looking up at the window to Juliet's bedroom.  Shakespeare is using a metaphor to compare Juliet's beauty to the rising sun.

   Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,

   Who is already sick and pale with grief

   That thou, her maid, art far more fair than she.

   When the sun rises, it "kills" the darkness of the night.  The moon is personified as being so envious of Juliet's beauty that it is "sick and pale with grief" that Juliet is "far more fair" than the moon is.  In other words, Romeo is saying that Juliet is pretty hot!  By telling the sun (Juliet) to "arise", Romeo means that he wishes that Juliet would come out onto the balcony to light up the night.

   Sources:

   http://www.enotes.com/romeo/act-ii-commentary

   http://www.enotes.com/romeo/act-ii-scenes-1-2-summary-ana...

   http://www.enotes.com/romeo/imagery-language

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   • Flag as inappropriate

   Posted by amethystrose on Wednesday January 30, 2008 at 4:11 AM
   
   

2. 
   brandih

   There is an in-depth explanation of this entire quote in the Shakespeare quotes section.

   Sources:

   http://www.enotes.com/shakespeare-quotes/soft-what-light-...

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   • Flag as inappropriate

   Posted by brandih on Wednesday January 30, 2008 at 9:43 AM
   
   

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