Rosaline follows the romantic pursuits of a side character from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, leaving viewers to wonder what happens to her and who she ends up with in the original story. Shakespeare’s tragedy play labels Rosaline as Romeo’s former object of devotion. Though typically unseen in the play and its adaptations, she still impacts the plot by inadvertently pushing Romeo toward eventually meeting and falling in love with Juliet, her cousin. In Rosaline, the character eventually moves on from Romeo and ends up with her suitor, Dario, part of the happy ending that changes events from Romeo and Juliet.
Within the text of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Rosaline does not end up with anybody – certainly not Romeo, despite the strong connection between the two that drives the passionate hero into melancholy. The ending of Rosaline sees the characters heading in separate ways after the title character has spent the movie chasing Romeo. Yet she finds another lover in Dario. In the play, Romeo reveals that Rosaline renounced love and vowed to lead a life of chastity. That original text never gave her the avenue to reciprocate and freely express her emotions, romantic or otherwise, and while her fate beyond the story is unknown, the implication is that she remained alone.
Why Rosaline Doesn’t End Up With Romeo
In the original Shakespeare, Rosaline could not end up with Romeo as she only serves as a plot device, the impetus for his and Juliet’s doomed fate. In Romeo and Juliet (and its many movie adaptations), instead of secretly being in a relationship with a Montague, as portrayed in her eponymous movie, Rosaline is said to have refused his advances. These unrequited feelings urged him to sneak into a Capulet party, where he met and became enamored by Juliet. The story of Romeo’s short-lived love for the outspoken Rosaline also starkly contrasts with the intensity and seriousness of his emotions toward Juliet, making their narrative more devastating. His one-sided relationship with Rosaline in Romeo and Juliet also tones down the feelings of hatred he has for the Capulets, allowing him to develop a more mature relationship with Juliet once he is able to see beyond his family and her family’s feud.
Rosaline spends the better part of her movie, which is loosely based on Shakespeare’s play, chasing after Romeo, sending letters and anxiously waiting for his response while simultaneously driving Juliet into the arms of other men. She exhausts all means possible to interrupt Romeo and Juliet’s affair by stealing him back, yet she can not explain the rationale behind her emotions. Eventually, she realizes her regret and guilt at missing the chance to reciprocate Romeo’s affection. Moreover, her wounded pride has probably pushed her to single-mindedly execute her plan, oblivious to the possibility of hurting her cousin. At the end of Rosaline, she accepts that the ideal relationship she is still holding on to does not exist. She finally sees how Romeo and Juliet are really in love, for they are willing to abandon everyone for the sake of their relationship, and she chooses Dario instead.
Does Rosaline End Up With Dario In Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet?
In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Rosaline is an unseen character, the object of Romeo’s one-sided infatuation. While her fate beyond the events of the play is unknown, she certainly does not end up with Dario since the character does not even exist in Shakespeare’s text. Rosaline invents Dario Penza to flesh out the main character’s world and provide her with an alternate happy ending. Apart from offering Rosaline an avenue to learn what true love is supposed to feel like, Dario also makes her realize how they would always be considered as the side characters to Romeo and Juliet, no matter what their contributions are. While attaching her identity to a man seems counterproductive, at least Rosaline gives her an opportunity to create and prosper in her own story.
