It is Act I scene 3 that you need to examine carefully to
find the answer to this question. You might want to think how this scene would be
staged. It appears that the Nurse has a comic function as she constantly gives her
commentary on what Lady Capulet is trying to say when she has a serious talk with Juliet
about the husband her parents have selected for her. Though well-intentioned, it is
clear that her interruptions could be viewed as annoying or humorous. Many productions
have Lady Capulet either ignoring the Nurse or getting increasingly annoyed with her
comments, and some have Juliet moving to protect
her.
However, it is clear that the Nurse believes that
marriage is a good thing and should be aspired to. No mention of course is made of love.
Marriage for the Nurse is obviously about marrying for advancement. Note how the Nurse
says that her one wish is to see Juliet married. When Juliet says marriage is "an honour
that I dream not of," the Nurse agrees with her, saying she has obviously "sucked wisdom
from thy teat." When Lady Capulet announces who the man is, the Nurse's agreement only
focuses on the physical appearance of Paris:
A man, young lady! Such a
man
As all the world.--Why, he's a man of
wax.
The Nurse clearly
focuses on the outward appearance. To her, Paris is wealthy, of good social standing and
handsome. What more could her Juliet want? Note her comment to Lady Capulet's words that
Juliet would make herself "no less" by marrying
Paris:
No
less? Nay, bigger! Women grow by
men.
This is a very revealing
remark. From the Nurse's point of view, marriage was the only way for a woman to "grow"
and to become more important. Love does not enter into the equation. This is why we can
see later on in the play that the Nurse urges Juliet to forget about Romeo and marry
Paris. Marriage is an alliance designed to improve your position and nothing
more.
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