“O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” does not ask where Romeo is; it asks why he has to be Romeo, a Montague, the son of her family’s enemy, and it opens Juliet’s argument that a name should not decide who we may love.
Wherefore Art Thou Romeo: The Full Passage
O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father and refuse thy name,
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
[Romeo, aside] Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this?
’Tis but thy name that is my enemy.
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What’s Montague? It is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face. O, be some other name
Belonging to a man.
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet.
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo called,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And, for thy name, which is no part of thee,
Take all myself.
[Romeo] I take thee at thy word.
Call me but love, and I’ll be new baptized.
Henceforth I never will be Romeo.
Text based on the 1599 Quarto of Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, scene 2, with modernized spelling and punctuation. The 1597 printing reads “By any other name” in the rose line.
At a Glance
Here are the key facts about “Wherefore art thou Romeo” for quick reference.
What “Wherefore Art Thou Romeo” Means
The whole passage in plain English, before the line-by-line detail.
Alone at her window, as she thinks, Juliet speaks aloud to the man she has just met and fallen in love with: “O Romeo, Romeo, why are you Romeo?” She is not looking for him. She is lamenting that he is Romeo Montague, the son of her family’s enemy. She begs him to disown his father and give up his name, or, if he will not, simply to swear that he loves her, and she will stop being a Capulet.
Hidden below, Romeo wonders whether to keep listening or to answer.
Juliet goes on. Only his name is her enemy; the man himself is not. What is a “Montague” anyway? It is not a hand or a foot, an arm or a face, or any part of a person. A rose would smell just as sweet if it were called something else, and Romeo would keep all his perfection if he had another name. Let him throw his name away, she says, and in exchange for something that is no part of him, take all of her.
Romeo can hold back no longer. He steps out and takes her at her word: call me only “love,” he says, and I will be baptized again with that name. From now on, I will never be Romeo.
Wherefore Art Thou Romeo, Line by Line
Each line, with the sense of it in plain English.
Where the Passage Comes in Romeo and Juliet
What has just happened makes the question urgent.
Earlier that same night, Romeo slipped into the Capulets’ feast in a mask and fell in love with Juliet at first sight. They spoke and kissed, and only afterward learned who the other was. Juliet’s reaction to the news was immediate: “My only love sprung from my only hate!”
After the feast, Romeo cannot bring himself to leave. He climbs the orchard wall into the Capulets’ garden while his friends search for him in vain. Then Juliet appears at her window above, and he whispers the famous “But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?” She does not know he is there. When she speaks, she is thinking aloud about the one fact that stands between them: his name.
After this passage, the two declare their love openly, and before the scene ends, Juliet tells him that if he means marriage, he should send word tomorrow. They are married the next afternoon. For the whole story, see our full guide to Romeo and Juliet, and for the other plays, our guide to all of Shakespeare’s plays.
Themes
The three big ideas the passage turns on.
Names and Identity
Juliet’s argument is that a name is only a label, separate from the person who carries it. A rose is a rose whatever we call it; Romeo is Romeo whatever his family. But in Verona, names are not labels. They are allegiances, and people die for them. Our guide to the themes of Romeo and Juliet follows this idea to the end of the play.
Love Against the Feud
The feud between the Montagues and the Capulets has no stated cause; it is simply an inherited hatred. Juliet sees through it at once: the enemy is “but thy name,” not the man. Her speech is the first time anyone in the play questions the feud itself, and it is a young girl in love who does it.
Choosing Love over Family
“Deny thy father,” Juliet says, and then offers to do the same herself: “I’ll no longer be a Capulet.” In a world where daughters obeyed their fathers and families arranged marriages, this is a radical thought. Within days, she will act on it, defying her father rather than giving up her husband.
Form and Language
How the passage is built, and why it sounds the way it does.
“Wherefore” Means “Why”
In Shakespeare’s English, “wherefore” meant “for what reason.” We still use it in the phrase “the whys and wherefores.” Because it sounds like “where,” the line is often performed and parodied as if Juliet were searching for Romeo, but the rest of the speech makes the meaning clear: she is asking why he must carry the name he does.
The Rose
The rose was the traditional flower of love, and Juliet’s example is perfectly chosen: its sweetness is in the flower, not the word. The line is so familiar that it is usually quoted as “a rose by any other name,” though the 1599 printing, which many modern editions follow, reads “By any other word.”
A List of Body Parts
“It is nor hand, nor foot, / Nor arm, nor face.” Juliet proves that a name is not part of a person by listing the parts of a person, one by one, and showing that “Montague” is none of them. It is a simple, almost childlike argument, and that is its force.
The Language of Vows
Romeo’s reply borrows from the language of solemn promises. “I take thee at thy word” sounds like the acceptance of a contract, and “new baptized” turns a new name into a sacrament. Even before the wedding, the lovers are already speaking as if they were bound.
A Closer Reading: Calling His Name While Wishing It Away
Juliet argues that Romeo’s name means nothing, yet she cannot stop saying it, and that contradiction is the most human thing in the speech.
Her first line says “Romeo” three times: “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” Later she says it three more times: “So Romeo would, were he not Romeo called,” and “Romeo, doff thy name.” The whole speech is a plea for him to give up his name, and it is filled with that name, repeated the way a person in love repeats it, for the pleasure of the sound.
What Juliet really objects to is not “Romeo” but “Montague,” the family name, the one that makes him her enemy. The first name she loves; the last name she wants gone. Her logic says names are empty, but her voice says otherwise: the name “Romeo” already means something to her that no other word could. Romeo, taking her at her word, offers to give up even that and be called simply “love.” The irony the play saves for its final line is that the names survive after all. The Prince’s last words are “Juliet and her Romeo.”
Common Questions
The questions readers ask most often about “Wherefore art thou Romeo,” answered briefly.
What Does “Wherefore” Mean?
“Why.” “Wherefore art thou Romeo?” means “Why are you Romeo?” Juliet is asking why the man she loves has to be a Montague.
Is Juliet Looking for Romeo?
No. She is not asking where he is, and she does not know he is nearby. She is lamenting who he is.
Does Juliet Know Romeo Is Listening?
No. She believes she is alone, and she is startled when he answers: “What man art thou that, thus bescreened in night, / So stumblest on my counsel?” She even admits that if she had known he was there, she would have been more reserved.
Is It “A Rose by Any Other Name” or “Any Other Word”?
Both appear in early printings. The 1599 printing, which many modern editions follow, reads “By any other word would smell as sweet.” The 1597 printing reads “name,” the version most people quote.
Is There Really a Balcony?
The scene is known as the balcony scene, but Juliet simply appears “above,” at a window; Romeo’s own words describe “yonder window.” The balcony is a tradition of staging rather than something the text names.
Related Reading
Three pages that take “Wherefore art thou Romeo” further.