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Give an example of a metaphor in Act 2, Scene 2 of Romeo and Juliet.

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Act 2, Scene 2, of Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous scenes in all of theater history. It is the balcony scene, where Romeo and Juliet become infatuated with one another. There are many metaphors in this scene. I will list two of the famous metaphors and give a description of what they suggest.

But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? / It is the East, and Juliet is the sun! (II.ii.2-3)

In this line, Romeo proclaims that the light breaking in the window is "the East," and Juliet is "the sun." This is a metaphor, as he is describing Juliet as the sun. In this metaphor, Juliet is given natural, dynamic qualities. Furthermore, the sun was an important image in Renaissance times, and comparing Juliet to it is a high compliment.

This bud of love, by summer's ripening breath, / May prove a beauteous flower when next we meet. (II.ii.127-128)

Juliet describes their love as a flower. In this meeting, their love is only a bud, but time will grow their love in the same way that summer ripens and opens the bud of a flower.

Answer

This scene in Romeo and Juliet is defined by Romeo's use of lofty, figurative, courtly language, which stands in contrast to Juliet's generally more down-to-earth speech. Romeo uses the language of a young lover in court, which causes him to use metaphors such as this one:

With love's light wings did I o'er-perch these walls

In answer to Juliet's serious inquiry as to how he came to be in her father's orchard, Romeo says that he has flown over the walls of the orchard on the wings of love. In this context, the wings are metaphorical: Romeo is saying that being in love with Juliet gives him the sensation of being able to fly, or walk on air.
When Juliet protests, very rationally, that this will not save Romeo if her family finds him here, Romeo says, "I have night's cloak to hide me from their sight." In this statement, it is the "cloak" which is metaphorical. Romeo is saying that Juliet need not worry, because he will be concealed from the sight of any who would be alarmed by his presence by the "cloak" of darkness.
Romeo also uses an extended (hyperbolic) metaphor to describe the moon early in the play, when he says that "her vestal livery is but sick and green." Here, he casts Juliet as the moon's maid and commands, "be not her maid, since she is envious." This metaphorical language is used to praise Juliet's beauty, saying that she is fairer than the moon itself and that the moon is "sick and green" with jealousy over this fact.

Answer

A metaphor is a comparison of one thing to another without the use of "like" or "as" to depict the difference as you would a simile. In Act Two, Scene Two of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is riddled with metaphors for Juliet in order to declare his love and affection for her.  One example of a metaphor in his dialogue is when he compares her to the sun as she enters the scene: "It is the East, and Juliet is the sun!"  By comparing her to the sun, he is saying Juliet is a someone who makes him happy or can lift his spirits when she is physically near him.

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

Give an example of a metaphor in Act 2, Scene 2 of Romeo and Juliet.

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