This essay will look at each character involved in the play and their lives to determine who is responsible for these two casualties of a war between families that has been going on for generation after generation. Could they have never had a chance as they were destined two die from the moment that they were born because it was written in the skies? This essay is here to answer that question. So join me Chris Leydon on an epic journey of betrayal, deceit and lies as we dive deep into the lives of Romeo and Juliet!
First of all we shall look at the parents and their responsibilities for their offspring’s deaths. The parents have more responsibility for the deaths than maybe Romeo and Juliet themselves. They are responsible for their children’s deaths in many ways but you have to ask the question “could they do anything to stop it from happening?” There are many places in which they could have tried to do something but inevitably they were doomed to die so was there really a point in trying?
The parents were feuding with each other but no-one seems to know why, this is probably the main reason that took them to take their own lives. This is because they cannot see each other or love each other all because they have been sworn natural enemies for generations upon generations. This means that they have to see and love each other in private which means that they can never be together apart form in death.
“My sword, I say! Old Montague is come and flourishes his blade in spite of me!”
Capulet, Romeo & Juliet
The Capulet parents arrange for her to marry Paris and because she can’t say “no”, because religious beliefs were so tight in those days that you had to obey your parents, and she couldn’t tell them that she was already married, she has to go to Friar Lawrence to pretend that she is dead, so that she can sneak off with Romeo. If it wasn’t for this Romeo wouldn’t think that Juliet is dead and go and kill himself.
“Hang thee, young baggage! Disobedient wretch! I tell thee to church o’ Thursday, or never look me in the face.”
Capulet, Romeo & Juliet
The Prince of Verona, whose name is Prince Esculas, has to claim some fame for the blame as he failed to resolve and stop the feud going on between the two families, in fact all he did about that was say that if anyone is caught fighting in the streets again they would be killed, he didn’t even carry that through because when Romeo is fighting all that happens to him is that he gets banned. The Prince, getting back to the point, didn’t even try to resolve the problem. He could have tried to talk to them about it or even command them to have dinner together, but did he try to stop this on going problem? No! He didn’t and if it wasn’t for the feud Rome and Juliet wouldn’t be dead because the feud was stopping them from seeing and being with each other.
“If you ever disturb our streets again, your lives shall pay the price.”
Prince Esculas, Romeo and Juliet
“And I, for winking at your discords too, have lost a brace of kinsmen. All are punished.”
Prince Esculas, Rome and Juliet
The Prince also banished Romeo for slaying Tybalt instead of talking to him and hearing the full side of the story before banishing him. This is not on, because the Prince being the law around Verona should of heard the story and not banished him but just work out someway of repaying the family for what he has done but then again ask the question, “Shouldn’t he have stopped the feud earlier, and if he did wouldn’t Tybalt still be alive?” well the answer to that question would have been “yes”. Also if Romeo hadn’t been banished he and his wife Juliet would still be alive instead of lying on a cold limestone slab dead because he wouldn’t of needed to go to Mantua when he was banished because he wasn’t. Also if Romeo was in Verona he would have known about the plot to make it look as though Juliet was dead and therefore still wouldn’t have been dead.
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