Despite his only lasting through the first scene of Act III, Mercutio serves several purposes in "Romeo and Juliet." First of all, he is a foil [a character who by strong contrast underscores the distinctive qualities of another character] to Romeo who also provides comic relief. It is ironic, then, that he dies since he poses no real threat to anyone. It is this irony, however, that serves to advance the theme of fate throughout the rest of the play.
In the early part of the play--to the enjoyment of the audience--Mercutio banters with Romeo: "Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance (I,iv,3). His light-hearted and playful language is in sharp contrast to Romeo's heavy oxymoron's about love. While Romeo speaks of "brawling love" and "loving hate" and "heavy lightness" and "serious vanity" (I,i,149-150), Mercutio builds an entire monologue about a little fairy queen, Mab, who tickles lovers' brains and makes them dream of love until Romeo angrily bids him to be silent because he "talk'st of nothing (I,iv,73). Still, Mercutio teases Romeo in Act II after Romeo has fallen in love with Juliet:
Alas, poor Romeo, he is already dead! Stabbed with a white wench's black eye, shot thorough the ear with a love song, the very pin of his heart cleft with the blind bowboy's butt shaft [Cupid's bow]. (II,iv,12-14)
Likewise, his gestures are as exaggerated as his speech. When the Nurse arrives with her servant, Peter, attending her by holding her skirts up, Mercutio runs and shouts "A sail! A sail!" (II,iv,27). But, his exaggerated gestures with Tybalt are misunderstood by Romeo who seeks to stop what he believes is a serious fight, and Mercutio is stabbed. Yet, even then he retains his sense of humor as he puns, "Tomorrow you will find me a grave man." [grave=serious, grave=dead in the grave] Even in death, Mercutio dominates the scene that he is in as his quick wit draws the attention to him. More importantly, his death effects Romeo's killing of Tybalt which sets the wheels of Fate in motion.
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