Affiliation:
1. School of Liberal Arts, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
Abstract
There is a curious moment in the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet. Thinking she speaks in solitude, Juliet says, “Romeo, doff thy name, / And, for thy name, which is no part of thee, / Take all myself”. Emerging from the shadows, Romeo replies, “I take thee at thy word” (Act 2, Scene 1, 92). Suddenly, Juliet’s utterance has seemingly become binding: because they have been overheard by Romeo, her words have become her word. But is Juliet truly bound by her words given that she did not know they were being overheard, let alone intend for them to be binding? Using J. L. Austin’s notion of the performative, I consider the nature and status of Juliet’s utterance, its influence on the remainder of the scene, and what insight it might afford into the play as a whole.
Reference30 articles.
1. Tsohatzidis, S.L. (2018). “Uptake in Action”. Interpreting J. L. Austin: Critical Essays, Cambridge University Press.
2. Cavell, S. (1979). The Claim of Reason, Oxford University Press.
3. Levenson, J. (2000). Romeo and Juliet, Oxford University Press.
4. Form and Formality in Romeo and Juliet;Levin;Shakespear. Q.,1960
5. Urmson, J.O., and Sbisà, M. (1976). How to Do Things with Words, Oxford University Press.