Who was to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet?

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Adam Thomas 10SHW

Who is to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet?

The play, ‘Romeo and Juliet’, is classed as a, ‘tragedy’, “a form of drama characterized by seriousness and dignity, and involving a great person whose downfall is brought about by either a character flaw or a conflict with some higher power such as the law, the gods, fate or society”. We are told straight away, in the play’s prologue, that Romeo and Juliet are going to be affected by fate, ‘A pair of star-cross’d lovers’. Although their outcome was to be ultimately decided by fate, a number of other characters did not help Romeo and Juliet’s situation by acting conflicting ways.

I feel that the most crucial act in all of Romeo and Juliet’s lives was the marriage itself. This also involved Friar Lawrence and the Nurse. The Nurse is employed by the Capulets to look after the day-to-day running of the household. Gradually through the play, she becomes more and more involved with Juliet and sometimes even influences her decisions in the direction of which Juliet’s mother and father would strongly disagree. She encouraged Juliet to go ahead and marry Romeo, ‘then hie you hence to Friar Lawrence’ cell’.

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Mercutio also played a large role in starting the events that led to Romeo and Juliet’s death. Mercutio was fighting with Tybalt which was a mistake because this was the path to his death. Tybalt drew his sword and killed Mercutio. This triggered the hatred between Romeo and Tybalt. Romeo was eager to take revenge on Tybalt for killing his best friend. This hatred forced the Prince of Verona to banish Romeo from inside the borders as he gained revenge by killing him publicly. These series of events which led to Romeo’s banishment were stimulated by Mercutio’s antics. However, ...

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