Act III reading check questions

1. If you were to assign blame to anyone at this point in the action, who would it be, and why?

2. Suppose Mercutio had killed Tybalt in the sword fight.  How might the action of the play have changed?  If he had lived, could Mercutio have persuaded Romeo to act differently?  Do you think the old feud would still have erupted again?  Explain.

3. Romeo’s killing of Tybalt is the turning point of the play – the point when something happens that will turn the action toward either a happy ending or a tragic one.  What actions does the killing set in motion, with possible tragic consequences?

4. We already know that the play ends in the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.  Their willingness to die comes as no surprise to us, because we have been forewarned.  Point out the instances in this act where each young person mentions this willingness to die if they are separated.

5. How does the nurse offend Juliet in this act and cease to be her friend?  How does this development add to the tragedy of the events that follow?

6. What have the events of this act revealed to you about the characters of Romeo and Juliet?  Describe how the young lovers are changing.  What hard lessons are they learning about life?

7. By the end of Act III, we have reached the highest point of suspense.  Suspense causes us to ask questions, to wonder anxiously “What will happen next?”  Write down the questions you are asking at the end of Act III.