Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Lia Hudgins
Mr. King
English I Honors
23 May 2019
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy about two “star crossed lovers” drawn apart by their
familial grudges (Shakespeare 7). But one of the biggest tragedies in this play is not of the
teenagers themselves, but rather one of the strongest upholders of the grudge, Lord Capulet.
Capulet is Juliet’s father, which means he hated the Montagues. Juliet was supposed to as well,
but unfortunately for her, she falls in love with one right as she’s about to be married to someone
as arranged by Capulet himself. From there, we see some extreme reactions from the father in
question, those reflective of bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder can be classified as “a brain
disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out
day-to-day tasks.”(National). Lord Capulet displays this kind of emotional instability- he seems
Act III is the first place in which we really begin to see how Capulet’s emotions work. In
Scene 4, his nephew Tybalt has just been killed in a duel, and he is meeting with Juliet’s suitor,
the County Paris. He speaks somberly about how he and his daughter are taking the current
events, saying “Look you, she loved her kinsman Tybalt dearly, and so did I. Well, we were born
to die.” (Shakespeare 153) then he thinks about the wedding that is to take place between Juliet
and Paris, and suddenly his mood changes dramatically. He even ups the stakes some by moving
the wedding time up, “Acquaint her here of my son Paris’ love, and bid her—mark you me?—on
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Wednesday next— but soft, what day is this?” (Shakespeare 155) That day is Monday, and then
he sets the wedding for Thursday, forgetting completely that family has just died. Death
should’ve kept him devastated for a while, but he skips right over it at the mention of something
else. This is an example of what is called a Manic Episode in the types of bipolar episodes, in
which “They talk more, are easily distracted, their thoughts race, and they don’t sleep enough. It
often leads to reckless behavior.” (WebMD) The rest of the play’s cast is much more conflicted
Bipolar disorder comes in many forms that make it very hard to diagnose, but “People
with bipolar disorder often switch from feeling overly happy and energetic (or irritable) to
feeling very sad.” Which is a telltale sign, and doubles in the play as Capulet’s most dramatic
and well-known scene (WebMD). He strolls in, happy knowing his wife has talked to Juliet, and
is surprised to see her still in tears. “How now, a conduit, girl? What, still in tears? Evermore
show’ring?” (Shakespeare 165). It’s like he’s joking about the fact that his nephew had died the
day previous. When Juliet tells him she won’t marry Paris, and that she cannot be proud of what
she hates, Capulet switches from his happy mood immediately, even delving into abusive
tendencies to get his point across to her. In nearly every interpretation, he is seen slinging her
across the room and in the play itself, he says “An you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the
streets, for, by my soul, I’ll ne’er acknowledge thee, nor what is mine shall never do thee good.”
the day before. There is no rational person that would do this. Capulet is seen here displaying
symptoms of Bipolar I, he is having severe reactions and immediately slips into a depressive
episode.
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Many people will argue that this doesn’t convince that Capulet has bipolar disorder
because Romeo often shows many of the same signs- the changing mood and reckless behavior
as a result. Even though there’s evidence against it, many argue that Romeo has bipolar disorder
as well or that neither character has it, but they fail to understand the diagnosis process, and how
it varies in diagnosing teenagers and adults. Teenagers are rarely diagnosed as bipolar because it
is somewhat normal for them to act in that way. Mood swings are frequent in all teenagers, and
to combat this idea that they are all bipolar, a new disorder has been named as “Disruptive Mood
Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD).” (WebMD). However, adults are not usually so severe in the
mood swings and changes, that’s why they are usually more frequently and accurately
diagnosed, it’s also what makes this argument the stronger one. It’s the exact reason we can
diagnose Capulet with bipolar disorder and not Romeo. Romeo is still a growing boy with
Capulet showed a level of emotional instability that can be mistaken with nothing else but
the bipolar disorder he possessed but had no clue of. It’s important to look at the the most
important climax of the play, where we see Capulet’s true emotions come into the words, and his
disorder get the best of him. It is sad that he was unable to receive treatment or even to be
diagnosed, and it obviously impacted his life in many negative ways. He tried to do what he
thought was best for his family, and instead drove his daughter to suicide. But was it Capulet
himself, or was it his gripping case of bipolar disorder that’s responsible for his demise?
Works Cited
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“Bipolar Disorder Diagnosis: Similar Symptoms to ADHD, Depression, and More.” WebMD,
WebMD, www.webmd.com/bipolar-disorder/guide/bipolar-easy-to-recognize.
www.webmd.com/bipolar-disorder/ss/slideshow-bipolar-disorder-overview.
Grohol, John M. “Mental Disorders & Conditions - DSM5.” Psych Central, 18 May 2019,
psychcentral.com/disorders/.
“Bipolar Disorder.” National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/bipolar-disorder/index.shtml.
3.4.0.