Romeo and Julliet speech

hi i am acting a speech from act 3:scene 2 in Romeo and Julliet. have a problem though...could some really bright shakespeare informed person tell me what these phrases actually mean, i would be very grateful:

1. come civil night, thou sober suited matron all in black, and lear me how to lose a winning match
2. play'd for a pair of stainless maidenhoods

Reply 1

electric_egg

b9muslove

hi i am acting a speech from act 3:scene 2 in Romeo and Julliet. have a problem though...could some really bright shakespeare informed person tell me what these phrases actually mean, i would be very grateful:

1. come civil night, thou sober suited matron all in black, and lear me how to lose a winning match
2. play'd for a pair of stainless maidenhoods

Juliet is preoccupied with the arrival of nighttime, since she will be able to see her new husband and give herself to him. The night may be dark (sober suited) but it gives security (matron).
What Juliet is going to lose once Romeo arrives is her virginity. Yet in doing so she will 'win' him forever with their 'match'. This phrase seems to be Juliet imagining the implications of their spending their first night together as husband and wife.

'Stainless maidenhoods' implies something to do with virginity.

As for 'really bright shakespeare informed person'.....I've studied the play but nicked some of these ideas off the internet. Try sparknotes.com or - haha - nosweatshakespeare.com!

Best of luck!

Reply 2

buttons7

1

b9muslove

hi i am acting a speech from act 3:scene 2 in Romeo and Julliet. have a problem though...could some really bright shakespeare informed person tell me what these phrases actually mean, i would be very grateful:

1. come civil night, thou sober suited matron all in black, and learn me how to lose a winning match
2. play'd for a pair of stainless maidenhoods

"i wish the night would come quicker, so that romeo and i can lose our virginities" is basically what it means. you could do a detailed commentary on the choice of words and metaphors but that probably isn't necessary for reading the play out. nevertheless...

"thou sober suited matron all in black" is a reasonably positive metaphor for night (matron...nurse), "civil night" could quite well refer back to the civil strife in which romeo and juliet find themselves (the montague/capulet conflict). "learn me how to lose a winning match" means "teach me how to lose a winning match;" the juxtaposition of 'lose' and 'winning' serves as a reminder of how she will 'lose' her innocence but 'win' a husband, 'match' furthermore echoes the idea of the couple. "play'd for a pair of stainless maidenhoods" means that the prize of the match is her "stainless" virginity, and i think also romeo's (although why she's calling his a 'maidenhood' is anyone's quess). the metaphor of the game basically implies that the night will win their innocence, but that she will be happy with that because she wants to consumate their relationship; thus the lost match will be a gain to her.

Reply 3

b9muslove

OP

1

electric_egg

Juliet is preoccupied with the arrival of nighttime, since she will be able to see her new husband and give herself to him. The night may be dark (sober suited) but it gives security (matron).
What Juliet is going to lose once Romeo arrives is her virginity. Yet in doing so she will 'win' him forever with their 'match'. This phrase seems to be Juliet imagining the implications of their spending their first night together as husband and wife.

'Stainless maidenhoods' implies something to do with virginity.

As for 'really bright shakespeare informed person'.....I've studied the play but nicked some of these ideas off the internet. Try sparknotes.com or - haha - nosweatshakespeare.com!

Best of luck!

thanks for the replies. lol, anyone who can even decipher a shakespeare website is bright to me! hope you enjoy university

Romeo and Julliet speech

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