Romeo and Juliet
Benvolio
Romeo's cousin
Romeo's calm and honest cousin, who tries to keep the peace in the streets and keep his friends out of trouble.
Benvolio is Lord Montague's nephew and Romeo's closest relation of his own age. He is level-headed, observant and kind. In the opening riot he steps between the swordsmen and calls for peace, only to be attacked by Tybalt anyway. He is the one who tells Romeo's worried parents where he has seen their son.
He is a good friend to a lovesick man. Benvolio's advice for Romeo is practical: look at other women and compare. It leads Romeo to the Capulet feast and to Juliet, though not in the way he intended. He also begs Mercutio to go indoors on a hot day because a fight with Capulets is likely, and he is right. Benvolio is the sensible one who cannot stop the people he cares about.
“Part, fools! Put up your swords; you know not what you do.”
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Benvolio watches over Romeo through the early scenes and takes him to the Capulet masquerade, where he hopes Romeo will forget Rosaline. He tries to get Mercutio to leave the square before Tybalt arrives. When Mercutio and then Tybalt are killed, he is the witness who tells the Prince the whole story honestly, which helps persuade the Prince to spare Romeo's life.
After Romeo's banishment Benvolio steps out of the story, and the tomb scenes are played without him. He represents the voice of reason in the play: someone who sees events clearly, tells the truth, and cannot change what happens.
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