<P> Romeo and Juliet is sometimes considered to have no unifying theme, save that of young love . Romeo and Juliet have become emblematic of young lovers and doomed love . Since it is such an obvious subject of the play, several scholars have explored the language and historical context behind the romance of the play . </P> <P> On their first meeting, Romeo and Juliet use a form of communication recommended by many etiquette authors in Shakespeare's day: metaphor . By using metaphors of saints and sins, Romeo was able to test Juliet's feelings for him in a non-threatening way . This method was recommended by Baldassare Castiglione (whose works had been translated into English by this time). He pointed out that if a man used a metaphor as an invitation, the woman could pretend she did not understand him, and he could retreat without losing honour . Juliet, however, participates in the metaphor and expands on it . The religious metaphors of "shrine", "pilgrim", and "saint" were fashionable in the poetry of the time and more likely to be understood as romantic rather than blasphemous, as the concept of sainthood was associated with the Catholicism of an earlier age . Later in the play, Shakespeare removes the more daring allusions to Christ's resurrection in the tomb he found in his source work: Brooke's Romeus and Juliet . </P> <P> In the later balcony scene, Shakespeare has Romeo overhear Juliet's soliloquy, but in Brooke's version of the story, her declaration is done alone . By bringing Romeo into the scene to eavesdrop, Shakespeare breaks from the normal sequence of courtship . Usually, a woman was required to be modest and shy to make sure that her suitor was sincere, but breaking this rule serves to speed along the plot . The lovers are able to skip courting and move on to plain talk about their relationship--agreeing to be married after knowing each other for only one night . In the final suicide scene, there is a contradiction in the message--in the Catholic religion, suicides were often thought to be condemned to hell, whereas people who die to be with their loves under the "Religion of Love" are joined with their loves in paradise . Romeo and Juliet's love seems to be expressing the "Religion of Love" view rather than the Catholic view . Another point is that although their love is passionate, it is only consummated in marriage, which keeps them from losing the audience's sympathy . </P> <P> The play arguably equates love and sex with death . Throughout the story, both Romeo and Juliet, along with the other characters, fantasise about it as a dark being, often equating it with a lover . Capulet, for example, when he first discovers Juliet's (faked) death, describes it as having deflowered his daughter . Juliet later erotically compares Romeo and death . Right before her suicide, she grabs Romeo's dagger, saying "O happy dagger! This is thy sheath . There rust, and let me die ." </P>

Who dies at the start of romeo and juliet