“My only love sprung form my only hate
Too early seen unknown and known too late”
This is a rhyming couplet which rounds of the scene well. Juliet finds out who Romeo is because she gets the nurse to find out. The nurse is acting as the go between.
In act two scene four the nurse again acts like the go between. She knows that Romeo and Juliet can not be together but she does nothing about it. Although her intentions are not to hurt Juliet she should know better, being the adult, not to go behind her master’s backs and arrange for Romeo and Juliet to meet. “This afternoon sir”, “Well she shall be there” nurse says to Romeo about meeting Juliet. The nurse also gets very involved in arranging for them to get married. She tells them where to met, she takes messages back and forth and she is very encouraging of the marriage. She is being very disloyal to here masters (Juliet’s parents) instead of going to them about Romeo and Juliet she continues to encourage Romeo and Juliet instead of trying to stop them. Again she is not doing any of this in bad intent, but she isn’t thinking things through or thinking of the consequences.
In act two scene five the nurse gets very involved with Romeo and Juliet again and acts as a go between again. Juliet waits for the nurse to return with the news and when she does return she teases Juliet by delaying the news but eventually tells her
“Then hie you hence to Friar Lawrence’s cell
There stays a husband to make you a wife” the nurse is now deeply involved as she has planned Romeo and Juliet’s wedding. The nurse plays such a big part in this because if she wasn’t her then Romeo and Juliet most probably would have never got married. She also arranges for a ladder so that Romeo can consummate the marriage later that night. The nurse is doing all of this behind the Capulets backs, she should be loyal to them and not have encouraged Romeo and Juliet.
In act 3 scene 2 the nurse moves the plot along by giving the news to Juliet that her cousin Tybalt has died and tells her about the banishment of Romeo. Juliet is torn between the grief of Tybalt’s death and her loyalty and love to Romeo. The nurse helps to arrange there first and ironical there last night together.
Then the Friar and Romeo meet and later on the nurse arrives. Romeo is very upset and distraught that he has killed Tybalt and been banished from Verona. Romeo tries to commit suicide but the nurse and Friar stop him. The Friar tells him to get pull him self together. This is quite ironic because they are largely to do with the fact that he is in this situation. The nurse tells him that Juliet still wants to see him; she is still acting as a go between quite far on in the play.
Capulet now wants Juliet to marry Paris but she refuses. At this point the Nurse tries to stand up to Capulet but she fails “And why my Lady Wisdom, hold your tongue” She now realises how angry Capulet is and advises Juliet to marry Paris “ I think it best you married with county” this is the first time that the nurse has not done what Juliet has asked and goes against her. She no longer seems to support Romeo and Juliet. This makes Juliet very angry as she feels the nurse has betrayed her. She and the Friar were the only to people who were helping her and Romeo. She is so angry at the nurse that she curses her “Acient damnation! O most wicked fiend! Is it more sin to wish me thus forsworn, Or to dispraise my lord with that same tongue which she hath praised him with above compare so many thousand times? Go counsellor; thou and my bosom henceforth shall be twain. I’ll to the friar to know his remedy. I f all else fail, myself have power to die.” Ironically these are the last words that Juliet says to the Nurse. It is also quite ironic that they were so close then suddenly Juliet wants nothing to do with her.
Friar Lawrence has a very important role in the community he is a man of God and is meant to lead the community. You learn early on in the play (act two scene three) that he is a wise man and has knowledge of plants and herbs for there medicinal uses, “I must up fill this osier cage of ours with baleful weeds and precious juiced flowers” this lets the audience know this and gives them a hint to the future.
Although the Friar did lead Romeo and Juliet wrongly his intensions were not bad “”For this alliance may so happy prove
To turn your household’s rancour t pure love” he believed Romeo and Juliet’s love would stop the feud between the families. This would explain why he helped them.
In Act two scene six, the Friar marries Romeo and Juliet in secret. He shouldn’t have done this because if the community found out the may be serious consequences. But again it was in good intension, but maybe not carefully thought through.
In Act 3 scene 3 the Friar hides Romeo as he has just fled from having killed Tybalt. He tells Romeo that the death sentence has been changed to banishment. Romeo is very up set but Friar cheers him up and stops him from killing himself (along with the nurse). The Friar encourages Romeo to see Juliet even though this is a big risk because he may get seen. Again this is another way that Friar Lawrence has led Romeo and Juliet wrongly but Friar Lawrence can’t see past this because his intensions are good so he thinks that he is doing is good. He advises Romeo to stay in Mantua away from Verona until he can sort out there differences and get forgiveness from the Prince; “reconcile their friends”, “beg pardon of the Prince”.
The Friar plays a big part in Act 4 scene1. This is when “the plan” takes place. The plan was for Juliet to drink a potion that Friar had given to her “this distilling liquor drink thou off”. She will sleep for “two and forty hours” but will appear dead, “No warmth, no breath, shall testify thou livest; The roses in thy lips and cheeks shall fade”. Friar will send a letter to tell Romeo of the plan and they will watch Juliet awake, “will watch thy waking, and that very night”. The Friar doesn’t take into account what might go wrong and the consequences of his actions. His carelessness all add to the down fall of Romeo and Juliet.
In Act 5 scene 2 Friar Lawrence learns that the letter didn’t reach Romeo due to the out break of Plague in Mantua. This is again fate that has taken place and Friar Lawrence didn’t take this into account when he made “the plan”. Friar immediately prepares to go to the Capulet tomb to rescue Juliet.
When Friar gets to the tomb he finds that Romeo and Paris are both dead. When Juliet starts to wake up he explains what has happened. The Friars plan has failed he is now afraid of what might happen and leaves the tomb “I dare no longer stay”. He has run away and abandoned Juliet to her fate.
I think the Nurse and the Friar play a major part in what happened to Romeo and Juliet, the consciences were both of them committing suicide. If they had not interfered or had guided them better then their fates may have been different.
Throughout the play, the Nurse and the Friar both play very important roles. They add to the plot and move the plot along. They are the two main adult characters in the play and are suppose to lead the younger generation; but in “Romeo and Juliet” they lead the young astray. If the older generation of the families hadn’t have carried on the family feud the younger generations would have forgotten about it.
The Nurse and the Friar plotted and planned and thought that they could control what was happening. It just goes to show that you can plan something but fate is just round the corner, there is truth in the saying “the best laid plans of mice and men cans aft agley”.
