There are several examples of characters keeping secrets in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. All of the secrets, however, are well known to the audience. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony throughout the play and while some characters may be unaware of what is really going on, the audience knows the whole story.
In the opening scene, Romeo has a secret which is causing him to be depressed and to spend long stretches of his day walking alone or in the darkness of his room. Lord Montague asks Benvolio to discover what secret is bothering his son. Romeo eventually confesses to Benvolio that he loves a woman who does not reciprocate that love. He says,
Well in that hit you miss. She’ll not be hit
With Cupid’s arrow. She hath Dian’s wit,
And, in strong proof of chastity well armed,
From love’s weak childish bow she lives uncharmed.
Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee
Doth much excuse the appertaining rage
To such a greeting. Villain am I none.
Therefore farewell. I see thou knowest me not.
An you be mine, I’ll give you to my friend.
An you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets,
For, by my soul, I’ll ne’er acknowledge thee,
Nor what is mine shall never do thee good.
Trust to ’t; bethink you. I’ll not be forsworn.
What secrets did Romeo and Juliet share and keep?
Romeo and Juliet kept their love and marriage a secret from everyone other than Friar Laurence, the Nurse, and Romeo's servant Balthasar . Neither the Montagues nor Capulets knew of the relationship and even Romeo's best friend, Mercutio, is ignorant of his friend's new love interest. This ignorance on...
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Mercutio's part leads directly to his fight with Tybalt. He doesn't realize why Romeo backs down to Tybalt, who is Juliet's cousin, and so engages the Capulet in a sword fight which ultimately leads to both of their deaths.
One of the major consequences of keeping the marriage a secret from Juliet's parents is the arranged marriage with Count Paris, which prompts the Friar's plan to have Juliet fake her death. Lord Capulet knows nothing about his daughter's love for Romeo and agrees to allow Paris to marry her as a way of easing the family's grief over the death of Tybalt. Juliet bravely goes through with the plan and keeps it a secret from her parents and the Nurse. At one point, before taking the Friar's potion, she seems intent on not going through with it and calling the Nurse back, but overcomes her fears and drinks the mixture which makes her appear dead for almost two days.
Romeo too keeps a secret of the fact that he has bought poison in Mantua and intends to kill himself after hearing from Balthasar that Juliet is dead. Romeo never gets the Friar's message informing him of his plans and impetuously vows to die with Juliet in the Capulet tomb. Unfortunately, he takes the poison only a few moments before Juliet awakens. In the end, the secrets kept by Romeo and Juliet contribute to their demise. The secret of Romeo and Juliet's love and the Friar's plot aren't revealed to the rest of the characters until after Romeo and Juliet are dead, when the Friar tells the entire story to the Prince.