John Steinbeck once said, “It is so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shone.” In order to appreciate something for all that it really is, we must learn to compare it to its opposite. These opposites complement each other and bring out the worst in each other. Additionally, they also produce energy through the voltage they create. This is true of opposition everywhere, including in literature. Authors use it often, making their works more interesting and accessible. In the play Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare uses light and dark imagery to create tension that reflects the energy we encounter in our daily lives. In particular, this energy is found in the setting, characterization and theme of love. All scenes in the play take place either in the light of day or in the darkness of night. Although it may seem obvious, the opposition between these settings plays an important role in conveying the mood of the characters and events. Traditionally, the brightness of the sun is used to represent hope and joy. However, Shakespeare often uses daylight to create irony by creating a dark mood. In the opening scene of Act 1, Lady Montague searches for her son. When Benvolio says he saw him walking towards the woods, Montague replies: “Several mornings we saw him there. / With tears increasing the fresh morning dew” (1.1.128-129). Montague states that Romeo is crying in the forest, as he does most mornings. This connects his sadness to dawn and establishes that the brightness of the day often carries a solemn feeling. Likewise, it creates irony in the fact that although the setting is bright and cheerful, Romeo's mood is dark. The meaning...... middle of paper...... they hadn't appeared, he could have stayed at Juliette's side. This is important to the play as a whole because envy is a dangerous thing; it is resentment caused by something belonging to another. Faced with this feeling, we can sometimes be pushed to commit completely cruel acts, and even to take what does not belong to us. Here, Romeo and Juliet's ability to be together is removed, as their love is a love that most would not understand. The other Capulet and Montague, who never crossed the barriers of their name, were never able to experience love without borders as Romeo and Juliet learned to do. In the play Romeo and Juliet, an energy that duplicates that of our daily lives is created through William Shakespeare's use of light and darkness. This imagery is distinctly found in the setting, characterization and theme of love..