How Is The Relation Between Juliet And The Nurse Shown, In Act 2?
An exam model answer.
At the end of Act 2, we see the playful and close relation between the Nurse and Juliet. As we already know, Juliet has been with the Nurse since birth, which has developed into a very close-knitted relationship. We see when Juliet is waiting impatiently for news from the Nurse of Romeo and the wedding preparations, the Nurse sees this as an advantage to ‘tease’ Juliet. When Juliet asks the Nurse of the news, the Nurse asks ‘ Where is your mother?’. This evidently frustrated Juliet and manifests that the Nurse wishes to prolong the news to see how Juliet will react. This would appear to an Elizabethan audience as shocking, as a women of such standing would never dare to disobey or upset their masters and in this case the Nurse does just that. But this goes to show how the Nurse is ever so comfortable with Juliet, that she can tease and play around with Juliet. The reason being that they have known each other since Juliet’s birth, that it a very motherly and affectionate relationship.
Shakespeare also presents an untraditional relationship, as Juliet flatters and cajoles the Nurse, who effectively is her servant and a modern as well as an Elizabethan audience would seek this to be queer and ‘not-done’. Be this as it may, Juliet states ‘Sweet, sweet, sweet Nurse’ which delineates how Juliet seeks the Nurse to be. Even though we witness the repetition to be hyperbolic and unnecessary, Juliet does this in a bid to extract information from the Nurse. This manifests how Juliet does not see the Nurse’s standing to be necessary and she still loves her dearly, regardless of what society may think.
Simultaneously, we see that the Nurse feels congenial around Juliet and has no fear of her. Instead, she orders Juliet: ‘Give me leave awhile’ which would make audiences of all eras surprised but it almost seems natural because of how paired the two are. The imperative verb ‘Give’ manifests how commanding the Nurse can be to her own master. Shakespeare does this to show that the Nurse is not the typical type of servant but she and Juliet are an atypical pair, that Shakespeare portrays to be doting and loving.
