A Window into Shakespeare’s Poetry. Review of Alessandria today

Romeo’s famous invocation under Juliet’s balcony is a treasure of literature that reveals the mastery of William Shakespeare in transfiguring a simple moment into an epic of images and feelings. “Silence! What light breaks through that window up there?” it is not just an exclamation of amazement, but the beginning of a soliloquy that embodies the romantic core of the drama “Romeo and Juliet”.

Romeo, overpassionate and longing, sees in Juliet not only a beloved but also a sun who eclipses the moon with her beauty. This metaphor expands in the contrast between the bright light and the envious shadow, between the boldness of youth and her pale jealousy. The stars themselves are reduced to mere sparks in the face of the brilliance of Juliet’s eyes. Nature responds to this radiation of love, and the birds may sing believing that the sun has dispelled the darkness of the night.

With this poem, Shakespeare offers a reflection on the ephemeral yet eternal nature of young love. Romeo, in his ardent speech, demonstrates how Juliet’s presence transforms his world, giving it a new meaning and a new cosmic order. In a few lines, the author takes us from the solemnity of silence to the exuberance of a love that knows no boundaries.

This poem can be appreciated for its rhythm and the richness of the images; it is a fragment of dialogue that echoes the universal desire for closeness and union with the loved one. In it, Shakespeare manages to capture the essence of romanticism and the emotional intensity that still strikes and moves us today.

“Silence! What light breaks through that window up there?” by William Shakespeare

Silence! What light breaks through that window up there?
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.

Rise, vivid sun, and kill the envious moon,
already sick and pale with pain
because you, her handmaid, surpass her by so much in beauty.
Do not be her handmaiden, for the moon is envious.

Her vestal cloak is already a dull green,
and only madmen wear it. Throw it away.
She’s my woman; oh, she is my love!
if only he knew he was.
He speaks, but he doesn’t say anything. How it happens?

His eyes speak; I will answer you.
No, I’m too bold; she doesn’t speak to me;
but two of the brightest stars in the sky,
having to leave, his eyes beg
to sparkle in their spheres until they return.

What if his eyes were really in the sky, and the stars in his face?
The splendor of his face would then debase the stars
how does daylight make a torch; her eyes in the sky
they would flow through the space plane so bright
that the birds would sing, believing the night was over.

Look how he rests his cheek on his hand!
Oh, if I were a glove on that hand
and I could touch her cheek!

Poem by:

bibliotecamo.it

Read also:

https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare