In the prologue, the Chorus opens the play with a mention of Fate, instantly sparking a conflict between Fate and Freewill. In its first address to the audience, the Chorus states that Romeo and Juliet are “star-crossed”— saying that fate controls them and their destiny. This sense of fate continues throughout the play. For instance, on the way to Capulet’s festivity (Act 1, Scene 4), Romeo fears that Fate has chosen bad things for him, telling Benvolio: “my mind misgives Some consequence yet hanging in the stars”. Although we already know that the characters are conscious of Fate, we are reminded when Romeo and Juliet constantly see omens: “Be fickle, Fortune”, Juliet says (Act 3, Scene 5). Juliet already knows that fortune and her Fate is always changing, but this time she begs for her Fate to change. This time, she hopes it changes for the better, saving the love between her and Romeo. In some ways, this mention of Fate creates dramatic irony as the audience have been previously informed that both Romeo and Juliet are going to die, going against what Juliet was hoping for with her changing fortune. When Romeo believes that Juliet is dead, he cries out, “Then I defy you, stars,” completing the idea that the love between Romeo and Juliet is in opposition to the verdict of their destiny (Act 5, Scene 1). Of course, Romeo’s rebellion itself plays into the hands of fate, and his determination to spend eternity with Juliet results in both of their deaths. This mechanism of fate works in all of the events surrounding the lovers: the feud between their families; the unfortunate series of events that ruin Friar Lawrence’s plans at the end of the play; and the tragic timing of Romeo’s suicide and Juliet’s awakening. It could be said that these events are in fact not a coincidence, but an act of fate that helps bring about the unavoidable conclusion of the young lovers’ deaths.
The play contrasts Romeo and Juliet's love against their families' hate as illustrated by the feud. In the Prologue, we're told that their love is stronger than the hatred of the feud, but it's a bitter struggle. Hatred is strong enough to separate the lovers, kill Mercutio, Tybalt, and Paris, banish Romeo, and finally force Romeo and Juliet to commit suicide. But love is even stronger: nothing can kill the love between Romeo and Juliet, and this finally triumphs. An example of love versus hate occurs through the relationship of Romeo and Juliet and the hate between their families. The love that Romeo and Juliet share completely opposes the deep roots of anger and hate between their parents. The quote from the first Chorus is the best to summarise the circumstance, “Two houses, both alike in dignity … From ancient grudge break to new mutiny … A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life: Whose misadventured piteous overthrows, Doth with their death bury their parents’ strife”. The sincere and strong love of Romeo and Juliet contrasts with the extreme, petty grudges held by their parents. The love between Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet—and their love through their deaths—was meant to bring their two families together in the end; however, their love is threatened by a society full of hate. The seriousness of the feud is recognised by Juliet when she fears for Romeo’s safety at the hands of the kinsmen, worrying that if they see him, “they will murder” Romeo. The ambiguity of the similarity between love and hate is reflected throughout Romeo and Juliet, whose language is riddled with oxymoron. "O brawling love, O loving hate," Romeo cries in the play's very first scene, using a figure of speech and setting up a theme that will be played out during the next five acts. Throughout the play, the use of the conflicting imagery and language, demonstrating the opposition between love and hate, create a dynamic tension, which powers the action that continues from start to finish.
Right through the play, Shakespeare uses word devices such as antithesis and oxymoron, Shakespeare uses these devices because the setting of word against word powerfully expresses conflict through its use of opposites, and conflict is the essence of all drama. As well as the antithesis and oxymoron, Shakespeare uses the contrasting figurative language which conjures up emotionally charged mental pictures. His overall use of these techniques, using conflict and opposition, deepens the dramatic impact of events and strengthens the striking concepts that he is eager to convey.
