Romeo and Juliet The Nurse Quotes

The Nurse

Quote 4

NURSE
O, he is even in my mistress' case,
Just in her case. O woeful sympathy!
Piteous predicament! Even so lies she,
Blubbering and weeping, weeping and blubb'ring.—
Stand up, stand up. Stand an you be a man.
For Juliet's sake, for her sake, rise and stand.
(3.3.92-97)

Nice to know some things don't change (not): excessive "weeping and blubbering" was considered just as unmanly in the sixteenth century as it is today.

The Nurse

Quote 5

NURSE
Marry, bachelor,
Her mother is the lady of the house,
And a good lady, and a wise and virtuous
I nursed her daughter that you talked withal.
I tell you, he that can lay hold of her
Shall have the chinks. (1.5.125-130)

When Juliet's Nurse says that any man lucky enough to marry Juliet "shall have the chinks," she means that he'll make a lot of money. Juliet's parents have plenty of dough and Juliet, an only child, will have a large dowry. In the 16th century, marriage was often seen as an economic transaction. But, as we soon learn, Romeo and Juliet don't feel this way. Keep reading…

The Nurse

Quote 6

NURSE
Pray
you, sir, a word. And as I told you, my young lady
bade me inquire you out. What she bade me say, I will
keep to myself. But first let me tell you, if you
should lead her into a fool's paradise, as they say, it
were a very gross kind of behavior, as they say. For
the gentlewoman is young; and therefore, if you
should deal double with her, truly it were an ill
thing to be offered to any gentlewoman, and very
weak dealing. (2.4.165-174)

Because Romeo and Juliet are convinced that their feuding families will never understand them, they turn to their mentors (Juliet's Nurse and Friar Laurence) for help. Here, the Nurse makes arrangements that help facilitate the young lovers' union. Nice, right? Yes—until Romeo is banished from Verona, and the Nurse tells her to get over it and move on.