Vol. 08 · Shakespeare ·Romeo and Juliet, Act II.ii ·Romeo
"What light through yonder window breaks?"
Not quite the line.
How it's usually quoted
"What light through yonder window breaks?"
What Shakespeare actually wrote
"But soft! what light through yonder window breaks?" Romeo — Romeo and Juliet, Act II.ii
Why it matters
"But soft!" is the stage direction written in — Romeo shushes himself as Juliet appears. Dropping it loses the hush, the moment of noticing, that opens the balcony scene.
More from the canon.
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