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What happens in Act 5, Scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet?
Romeo and Paris fight outside Juliet’s tomb, and Romeo kills Paris. Inside the tomb, Romeo drinks poison and dies. Juliet awakens to find Romeo dead and stabs herself. Friar Lawrence explains everything and the Capulets and Montagues agree to end their feud.
Read our Summary & Analysis of Act 5, Scene 3. (4-minute read)
Read our brief “What Does the Ending Mean” essay for the play. (3-minute read)
Are there any important quotes in Act 5, Scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet?
As Act 5, Scene 3 is the play’s final act, it contains several quotes that are the last we hear from a variety of characters. The most important of these, of course, are the heart-braking final words of Romeo and Juliet as each chooses to die rather than to go on living in a world without the other. We also hear the final utterances of Capulet and Montague, the heads of the two houses whose feud led to their heirs’ deaths. True to form, their words of regret and peacemaking quickly start to devolve into a contest in one-upmanship. Prince Escalus speaks the play’s final lines, as he pronounces the story of Romeo and Juliet the saddest of all time.
Read explanations from the final quotes from Romeo, Juliet, and others. (4-minute read)
Was Romeo and Juliet an original work by Shakespeare?
It was not. Shakespeare borrowed heavily from an existing work that told the same story, as was a common practice before copyright laws existed. But while the original work is almost entirely forgotten now, Romeo and Juliet is arguable the best-known story in Western literature. Its enduring popularity is due in no small part to brilliant changes (such as accelerating the timeline) and additions (including the creation of the Mercutio character) introduced to the story by Shakespeare.
Read more about the “Background on Romeo and Juliet.” (half-way down the page). (3-minute read)
Okay, did you get all that?
Congratulations on getting through the play! If you need a full review, SparkNotes offers a Full Play Summary as well as a Full Play Analysis of Romeo and Juliet designed to help you better understand and appreciate this amazing play.
Read our Full Play Summary of Romeo and Juliet. (4-mintue read).
Read our Full Play Analysis of Romeo and Juliet. (4-mintue read).
