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Public Violence
Cultural Reference
Act 1,
Scene 1
Lines 68-70

Discussion of public violence in London during Shakespeare's time in myShakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Scene 1.

Officer

Clubs, bills, and partisans! Strike; beat them down!
Down with the Capulets! Down with the Montagues!   
[Enter the elderly Lord Capulet in his nightgown and Lady Capulet]

Capulet

What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho!

Public violence was a rather frequent occurrence in Shakespeare’s London, and the police officer on the scene often had to rely on the local citizens to help restore the peace. Here the officer calls on the local residents to grab their arms and help him stop the fighting between the feuding Capulets and Montagues.