Using his imagination Mercutio describes Queen Mab to Romeo as one would describe Santa Claus, where Santa Claus is actually fictitious, but also in a reality of sense. In the case of Queen Mab people have different dreams about the things they desire, but the imaginative part is that Queen Mab sends these dreams to people. The tale of Queen Mab is supposed to demonstrate Mercutio's imagination and that beneath his combativeness lies a poet. In William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, Mercutio plays Romeo's rebellious friend who uses his imagination to cheer Romeo up and describe to him what he thinks of dreams. When he talks about Queen Mab, the fairy of dreams, he talks about what he discovers in people's dreams, and how he can make someone dream something. In Act I, scene iv, page 349 Mercutio says: "Through the brains of lovers, and then they dream of love; On the knees of courtiers, who dream directly of curtsies; On the fingers of lawyers, who dream directly of fees; Or "The lips of your ladies, who immediately dream of kisses", this means that when it crosses the brain of a lover, they dream of love, lawyers dream of money and women dream of kisses Queen Mab can also do dreaming of something and this is demonstrated in Mercutio's speech in Act I, scene iv, page 349, "Sometimes he gallops over the noses of courtiers, and then dreams of smelling a dress;" this says that simply flying over someone can make him dream of his own wildest dreams then, since Mercutio can paint such a picture, he is demonstrating his poetic ability Mercutio uses his imagination to make Romeo understand that life is not a spectator sport. He talks about Queen Mab and paints Romeo a The image that dreams are a waste of time and if you want something you have to get it yourself. In Act I, scene iv, page 348, Romeo says, "I will be a candlestick and watch; the game was never so fair, and I am done. Tonight I dreamed a dream." This means that he had a dream, but now it is over and he is giving up. Now also in Act I, scene iv, page 350, Mercutio says: "I speak of dreams; which are the children of an idle brain, begotten of nothing but vain fancy." This means that if Romeo were to simply sit and dream, he would