Romeo Montague () is the male

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetim ...

''. The son of

Lord Montague William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'' contains a relatively distinctive cast of characters. In addition to the play's eponymous protagonists, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, the play, which is set in Verona, Italy, contains roles fo ...

and his wife,

Lady Montague William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'' contains a relatively distinctive cast of characters. In addition to the play's eponymous protagonists, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, the play, which is set in Verona, Italy, contains roles fo ...

, he secretly loves and marries

Juliet Juliet Capulet () is the female protagonist in William Shakespeare's romantic tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. A 13-year-old girl, Juliet is the only daughter of the patriarch of the House of Capulet. She falls in love with the male protagonist R ...

, a member of the rival House of Capulet, through a priest named

Friar Laurence Friar Laurence or Friar Lawrence is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet''. Role in the play Friar Laurence is a friar who plays the part of a wise adviser to Romeo and Juliet, along with aiding in major plot developments ...

. Juliet then becomes Juliet Montague. Forced into exile after slaying Juliet's cousin,

Tybalt Tybalt () is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet''. He is the son of Lady Capulet's brother, Juliet's short-tempered first cousin, and Romeo's rival. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert / Tybalt ''"the ...

, in a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...

, Romeo commits

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

upon hearing falsely of Juliet's death. The character's origins can be traced as far back as

Pyramus Pyramus and Thisbe are a pair of ill-fated lovers whose story forms part of Ovid's ''Metamorphoses''. The story has since been retold by many authors. Pyramus and Thisbe are two lovers in the city of Babylon who occupy connected houses. Their ...

, who appears in

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

'', but the first modern incarnation of Romeo is Mariotto in the 33rd of

Masuccio Salernitano Masuccio Salernitano (1410–1475), born Tommaso Guardati, was an Italian poet. Born in Salerno or Sorrento, he is best known today for ''Il Novellino'', a collection of 50 "novelle" or short stories, each prefaced by a letter of dedication to ...

's ''Il Novellino'' (1476). This story was reworked in 1524 by Luigi da Porto as ''Giulietta e Romeo'' (published posthumously in 1531). Da Porto named the character Romeo Montecchi and his storyline is near-identical to Shakespeare's adaptation. Since no 16th-century direct English translation of ''Giulietta e Romeo'' is known, Shakespeare's main source is thought to be Arthur Brooke's English verse translation of a French translation of a 1554 adaptation by

Matteo Bandello Matteo Bandello ( 1480 – 1562) was an Italian writer, soldier, monk, and, later, a Bishop mostly known for his novellas. His collection of 214 novellas made him the most popular short-story writer of his day. Biography Matteo Bandello wa ...

. Although both Salernitano and da Porto claimed that their stories had historical basis, there is little evidence that this is the case. Romeo, an only child like Juliet, is one of the most important characters of the play, and has a consistent presence throughout it. His role as an

idealistic In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected to ide ...

lover has led the word "Romeo" to become a synonym for a passionate male lover in various languages. Although often treated as such, it is not clear that "Montague" is a surname in the modern sense.

Origins

The earliest tale bearing a resemblance to

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''Romeo and Juliet'' is

Xenophon of Ephesus Xenophon of Ephesus ( el, Ξενοφῶν ὁ Εφέσιος; fl. 2nd century – 3rd century AD) was a Greek writer.''Suda'' ξ 50 His surviving work is the '' Ephesian Tale of Anthia and Habrocomes'', one of the earliest novels as well as ...

' ''

Ephesiaca The ''Ephesian Tale of Anthia and Habrocomes'' ( el, Ἐφεσιακά or Τὰ κατὰ Ἀνθίαν καὶ Ἁβροκόμην) by Xenophon of Ephesus is an Ancient Greek novel written before the late 2nd century AD. Translator Graham Ander ...

'', whose heroic figure is a Habrocomes. The character of Romeo is also similar to that of

's ''

'', a youth who is unable to meet the object of his affection due to an ancient family quarrel, and later kills himself due to mistakenly believing her to have been dead. Although it is unlikely that Shakespeare directly borrowed from Ovid while writing ''Romeo and Juliet'', the story was likely an influence on the Italian writers whom the playwright was greatly indebted to. The two sources which Shakespeare most likely consulted are Brooke's translation of da Porto and William Painter's ''The goodly historye of the true, and constant Love between Romeo and Juliet''.Hunter & Lichfield, p. 11

Film portrayals

''Romeo and Juliet'' has been adapted into film several times, and the part of Romeo has been played by several actors, including *

Leonard Whiting Leonard Whiting (born 30 June 1950) is a British retired actor and singer widely known for his role as Romeo in the 1968 Zeffirelli film version of ''Romeo and Juliet'', a role which earned him the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year � ...

Franco Zeffirelli Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli (12 February 1923 – 15 June 2019), was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post-World War II era, ...

's 1968 film, ''Romeo and Juliet'', opposite

Olivia Hussey Olivia Hussey (born Olivia Osuna; 17 April 1951) is an English film, stage, and television actress. Her awards include a Golden Globe Award and a David di Donatello Award. The daughter of Argentine opera singer Andrés Osuna, Hussey was born in ...

as Juliet. *

Leslie Howard Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary ''Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and '' Vanity Fair'' and was one ...

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of ...

's 1936 film, ''Romeo and Juliet'', opposite

Norma Shearer Edith Norma Shearer (August 11, 1902June 12, 1983) was a Canadian-American actress who was active on film from 1919 through 1942. Shearer often played spunky, sexually liberated ingénues. She appeared in adaptations of Noël Coward, Eugene O'N ...

as Juliet. *

Laurence Harvey Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...

* Leonardo DiCaprio in

Baz Luhrmann Mark Anthony Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962), known professionally as Baz Luhrmann, is an Australian film director, producer, writer and actor. With projects spanning film, television, opera, theatre, music and recording industries, he is re ...

's modernized 1996 version, ''

Romeo + Juliet Romeo Montague () is the male protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy '' Romeo and Juliet''. The son of Lord Montague and his wife, Lady Montague, he secretly loves and marries Juliet, a member of the rival House of Capulet, through a pr ...

'', alongside

Claire Danes Claire Catherine Danes (born April 12, 1979) is an American actress. She is the recipient of three Primetime Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. In 2012, ''Time'' named her one of the 100 most influentia ...

as Juliet. *

Douglas Booth Douglas John Booth (born 9 July 1992) is an English actor and musician. He first came to public attention following his performance as Boy George in the BBC Two film ''Worried About the Boy'' (2010). He also starred in the BBC adaptations of ' ...

Carlo Carlei Carlo Carlei (born 16 April 1960 in Nicastro) is an Italian film director. He has directed movies such as ''Fluke'' and ''Romeo & Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the roman ...

's 2013 ''Romeo and Juliet'' film adaptation, opposite

Hailee Steinfeld Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress and singer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Hailee Steinfeld, various accolades, including a Peabody Award, and nominations for an Academy Award ...

as Juliet. *

Orlando Bloom Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom (born 13 January 1977) is an English actor. He made his breakthrough as the character Legolas in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series ''The Fellowship of the Ring'' (2001), ''The Two Towers'' (2002), a ...

in a Broadway adaption in 2013. *

Jordan Luke Gage Jordan Luke Gage (born 8 April 1992) is a British actor. Though he has appeared in several television shows, Gage is best known as a musical theatre performer, most notably originating the roles of Romeo in the 2019 jukebox musical ''& Juliet'' ...

in the West End musical ''

& Juliet ''& Juliet'' is a 2019 coming-of-age stage musical featuring the music of Swedish pop songwriter Max Martin, with a book by David West Read. The story focuses on a "what if" scenario, where Juliet does not die at the end of Shakespeare's '' ...

''.

Other portrayals

Nice Peter Peter Alexis Shukoff (born August 15, 1979), best known as his stage name Nice Peter or Bluesocks, is an American musician and Internet personality. A self-described "Comic/Guitar Hero", he is best known for the comedy on his YouTube channel, Ni ...

in an episode of the Youtube comedy series

Epic Rap Battles of History ''Epic Rap Battles of History'' (ERB) is a YouTube web series and music project created by Peter "Nice Peter" Shukoff and Lloyd "EpicLLOYD" Ahlquist. The series pits historical and pop culture figures against one another in a rap battle format. ...

References

Bibliography

External links

Complete listing of all of Romeo's lines
{{Authority control Literary characters introduced in 1597 Fictional Italian people in literature Fictional exiles Fictional princes Fictional murderers Male Shakespearean characters Male characters in literature Male characters in film Characters in Romeo and Juliet Fictional suicides Teenage characters in film