Is Mercutio Bipolar?
Have you ever encountered someone with bipolar disorder? In the play “Romeo and Juliet” two star crossed lovers are cursed with an unfortunate fate. Juliet, a young Capulet women, falls for Romeo whom belongs to the rival household; The Montagues. Romeo’s closest companion, Mercutio, is believed to be bipolar. Bipolar disorder is an illness that can cause mood swings, leaving you feeling depressed one moment and cheerful the next. This was shown through Mercutio's character interaction. Mercutio suffers from bipolar disorder in the play Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare, therefore illustrating Shakespeare incorporated foreshadowing of devastating events through Mercutio's character traits.
Firstly, Mercutio expresses bipolar qualities in his dying scene. In Act 3 Mercutio goes from being a violent to a more comical character. This scene first starts with an argument between houses, Mercutio ends with getting stabbed and killed by Tybalt. A scholarly article states “In this scene of his death, Mercutio proves to have a quick temper and a dangerous love mockery” (The Facts On File Companion to Shakespeare). This shows how quickly his …show more content…
For instance, when Mercutio was sarcastic even on his last breath he said “A plague o' both your houses! I am sped” (III.i.91). This hinted on what would happen later on in the play, the conflict between the houses would cause Romeo and Juliet to die. This signified that the rivalry would cause deaths and catastrophic occurrences. Additionally, when Mercutio was showing a vary in moods after the Capulet party he said “He heareth not, he stirreth not, he moveth not. The ape is dead”(II.i.15-16). In this Mercutio is saying that Romeo cannot hear him and that he is dead. This foreshadows an event later in the book when Romeo is dead, it’s as if Mercutio warned him but didn’t listen and took his life later