And made Verona ancient citizens.
Cast by their grave benefiting ornaments,
To wield old partisans, in hands as old,
Canker'd with peace, to part your canker'd hate.
If ever you disturb our street again
Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace.
From the start of the play William Shakespeare shows the audience that the two families had a major effect on the people of Verona. Lord and lady Capulet are partly responsible for the death of Romeo and Juliet. The Capulet family is responsible because they kept the feud going when they could have stopped it if they wanted to. They should have paid more attention to Juliet's wishes and listened to her opinions. Also the Capulet family should not have forced Juliet to get married to Paris a kinsman to the prince. Equally to blame for the star crossed lover deaths are lord and lady Montague. The Montague family is to blame because like the Capulet's they also kept the feud going on when they could have stopped it. If they had been more understanding then Romeo wouldn't have felt he had to keep such an important secret from his family. The Capulet family is responsible because they did not stop the feud with the Montagues. Benvolio said to Tybalt "I do but keep the peace, put up they sword, or manage it to part these men with me." Benvolio was saying his sword was drawn to stop the fighting and he asked Tybalt to help him if Tybalt did help the feud of these two families would no longer be foes but Tybalt's reply was "What drawn and talk of peace? I hate the word, as I hate hell, all Montague and thee." Tybalt was saying there couldn't be any peace when your sword is drawn. So that reply kept the feud going when it could have been stopped. Lord Capulet did not listen to Juliet when she said that she does want to get married to Paris and Lord Capulet then gave an order, which was "I tell thee what, get thee to the church a Thursday, or never after look me in the face." So Juliet was left with two choices to get married to Paris but she couldn't because she's already married to Romeo or not talk to her family again because her father cast her out. Juliet was in a corner and she couldn't get out so she turned to Friar Lawrence. Friar Lawrence was to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet because he should never have agreed to marry Romeo and Juliet in secret. He also gave Juliet the sleeping drug; he was also responsible for not getting the letter explaining their plan to Romeo to him. Friar Lawrence was partly to blame because he should have said no but he agreed to marry Romeo and Juliet as he said "in one respect I'll be thy assistant be for this alliance may so happy prove to turn your household's rancour to pure love." He also gave an illegal substance to Juliet in order to make her fall into a deep sleep for forty-two hours so she will seem dead as Friar Lawrence explains "Take thou this vial being then in bed and this distilling liquor drink thou off when presently through all thy veins shall run a cold and drowsy humour; for no pulse shell keep his native progress, but surcease;" and "In the mean time, against thou shalt awake, shall Romeo by my letters know our drift." But this letter did not get to him in time and Friar Lawrence's perfect plan came to cause a horrible catastrophe and lead up to the death of these to star crossed lovers.
As well as these two families and Friar Lawrence, Tybalt is also to be held responsible because he carried on winding Romeo up plus all Tybalt wanted to do was fight even when Romeo wanted peace. "I do protest I never injur'd thee, but love thee both than thou canst devise. Till thou shalt know the reasons for my love, and so good Capulet, which name I tender as dearly as mine own, be satisfied." Romeo said he can't fight him and he loves him and his name like his own name. Tybalt was still angry and wanted to fight. Romeo is also responsible because all the way through the play Romeo acted in haste. Romeo asked
Juliet to marry him to fast, even though Tybalt carried on pushing him to fight he still acted irrational and killed Tybalt. This caused him to be cast out. His hasty action is caused him to take own life. This scene came to be the tragic end of Romeo and Juliet.
In conclusion, it can be seen that the two families and Friar Lawrence are mostly to blame for the death of Romeo and Juliet. Tybalt is to blame because of the anger and hate he had in his heart, which he couldn't let go of and forgive the Montague family. Romeo is also at fault because of his irrational behaviour and hasty actions. If not for these characters and their actions Romeo and Juliet's lives may not of ended so suddenly and the play might have been very different to how we now know it.
