Romeo calls him the ‘‘ghostly father” and turns to him in his times of need, such as his banishment. He is respected by Romeo and is genuinely fond of the young man. He examines Romeo’s reasons for abandoning Rosaline in favour of Juliet with some rigour, and is quick to point out the inconsistencies of his behaviour. Nevertheless, he is persuaded that what Romeo had felt for Rosaline was not love but love
“ read by rote that could not spell.”
meaning that Romeo’s love for Rosaline was like mere recitation memorised from a book without true understanding. His good-intentioned nature is proven at this point.
In the event of a crisis, Friar Lawrence acts calmly and is in control of the situation, unlike Romeo, who throws himself on the floor and weeps. He admonishes Romeo for being an
“unseeming woman in a seeming man“
He is able to foresee that ‘‘by doing damned hate upon {himself}, Romeo will
‘‘ slay {his} lady ‘‘ with grief.
This emphasizes his peace-loving nature and level –headedness.
Romeo slays Tybalt, which leads to his banishment from the city of Verona and hence from his love, as the Prince says, ‘‘And for that offence / Immediately we do exile him hence.’‘ Shattered by the news, Romeo is unable to think properly and rushes off to his dear Friar. Friar Lawrence consoles Romeo by telling him that the Prince was kind enough to turn
’‘ that black word’death’ to ‘banishment’.
He Stops Romeo from stabbing himself and offers a solution. He asks Romeo to ‘‘ pass to Mantua’‘ and return with
‘‘ Twenty hundred thousand times more joy ‘‘
when the graveness of the situation changes.
In Act 4 scene 1, when Juliet sees that her marriage with Count Paris is certain, she breaks down and says ‘‘ And with this knife I’ll help it presently’‘, as she threatens to kill herself if she is forced to marry Paris. Friar Lawrence comforts her and comes up with a plan of his to tackle the situation.
‘‘ Take this vial, being then in bed, And this distilling liquor drink thou off’‘
says Friar Lawrence so that Juliet might appear dead to everyone else but rejoice with Romeo at the end. As a man of the Church, he believes in Christian beliefs. Suicide is a great sin in Christianity. So, quite naturally , Friar Lawrence condemns this action in case of both the lovers.
It would be a heartless man indeed who laid all the blame for this tragedy at the cell door of Friar Lawrence. But his short sightedness was one of the chief reasons for the untimely deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Firstly, when the Friar married Romeo and Juliet in secrecy, he did not think of all the complications that would arise but instead went on with the marriage because at that time he thought it was the right thing to do. If the marriage was not secretive, the marriage would surely have been cancelled, which at least would not have caused the deaths of the two young lovers.
Friar Lawrence can also be held responsible for sticking to his own views. He was extremely naive in thinking that the union of Romeo and Juliet by holy marriage was enough to erase the deep-rooted and ‘’ancient grudge’‘ between the two families. Despite his understanding of Romeo’s character, he was not able to perceive the reckless nature of the young lovers. Due to his kindly nature, he believed that the enmity would end so easily, not realising what an idealistic view he had on human nature.
Secondly, he was out of touch with the outside world. Despite a brilliant plan, he , did not anticipate the quarantine of Friar John, which caused the timing of his plan to go awry. This detachment from real humanity was also the cause of his poor understanding of the human nature and the actual extent of the family feud, leading him to underestimate both. Friar Lawrence should have come up with a second plan in case of any catastrophe.
Thirdly, in Act 4, Scene 1, he was somewhat careless and impatient to give Juliet a sleeping potion without thinking of the possible outcomes of an outrageous plan. The reason for this being that the letter to Romeo was very risky because the Friar could not be sure if it had got to Romeo in time or at all. If Friar Lawrence had delivered it himself, then he could have raced back at the same speed as Romeo and stop the two suicides. Friar Lawrence also did not anticipate Romeo finding out the news about Juliet from another source. This is the main reason that the plan failed, Romeo had heard the news from his friend and discarded all other intentions including meeting the Friar first!
Fourthly, since the two lovers had led sheltered lives, they were quick to grab the first independent opportunity and take it immediately. Thus, Friar Lawrence may have been forced to take drastic measures for a love that had not yet blossomed.
When Juliet woke up from her long sleep, the Friar proves to be a coward as he runs away from Juliet’s tomb. If he had stayed back to comfort Juliet or even lead her out, he could have saved the lives of at least one of the “star crossed” lovers..
Lastly, being older than the lovers themselves, Friar Lawrence could not fully understand their temperament and hysterical emotions. As Romeo says, ‘‘thou canst not speak of what thou dost not feel,’‘ meaning that for all his compassion and good intentions, Friar Lawrence is unsuitable as an advisor to the young couple.
Friar Lawrence himself admits that he is at fault for the untimely deaths of Romeo and Juliet when he says, ‘‘ and here I stand both to impeach and purge myself condemned and excused’‘ at the end of the play when the damage has already been done. His short – sightedness is clearly evident and the play itself proves it.
Friar Lawrence was a man with good intentions who was willing to take risks to help his friends. If Shakespeare had created him in any other way, the play would have been totally altered and might not end the way it did.
Bibliography
Romeo and Juliet (Cambridge School Shakespeare – Cambridge university press)
Romeo and Juliet (York Notes)
(Talking to William Shakespeare)
(Romeo and Juliet)
WORD COUNT:1500!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!NEEDS TO BE 1800
