Shakespeare started the play off with a prologue and talked about a pair of star-crossed lovers and death-marked love. He is indicating to the audience that Romeo and Juliet are fated to fall in love and die. Towards the end of the book, there are very short scenes. This adds to the tension reaching the climax. In act I scene 1 Sampson and Gregory provoke a fight and their attitude help fuel the feud. They show off their manhood with their swords and their picking fights. Tybalt comes and adds flames to the fire seizing the opportunity to fight. He is a very fiery character. A fight begins between the Montagues and Capulet. Prince Escales threatens death if they fight in public again. This is fate because it leads to Romeo dying because he banished and runs away. “If you ever disturb our streets again, your lives shall pay for the forfeit of the peace.” Love and hate is mixed up in the play and is the main theme. “Here’s much to do with hate but more to do with love.”
In act 1 scene 2 Capulet orders his servant to deliver party invitations but the servant cannot read, so Romeo has to do it. This makes Romeo find out about the party, this is fate. Later on Benvolio urges Romeo to go gatecrash the party so he could look at different women. Romeo is not sure but agrees which is fate. But also because he is immature and unwise.
The relationship between Juliet and the nurse is close and as a result lady Capulet is not close to Juliet. In act1 scene 3 Juliet is given reasons why she should think of marriage and that how Paris is a man of wax. Juliet maybe doesn’t want to marry Paris, and maybe that is why she goes off with Romeo easily, and shuns Paris, which leads to her death.
In act1 scene 4 Romeo reminds the audience of fate and premonition. “I fear too early, for my mind misgives some consequence yet hanging in the stars.” This is ironic because he dies and makes this harsh decision in going to this party.
In act 1 scene 5 Romeo adores Juliet and is entranced by her beauty. He is an immature juvenile who is just infatuated. Tybalt is outraged that a Montague should dare gatecrash Capulet’s party. Tybalt stirs things up; Capulet stops it going any further. Tybalt threatens to get Romeo, which is fate. Romeo gets to talk to Juliet and realises Juliet is a Capulet. They are both in love with each other. Juliet’s says, “my grave is like to be my wedding bed,” which is ironic and is fate.
In act 2 scene 2 Romeo and Juliet are both besotted. They both exchange vows of love and they want to get married. Is this love or just an act of mindless infatuation? Juliet is making a rash decision in marrying him.
In act 2 scene 3 Romeo seeks help from friar Lawrence. The friar gives Romeo stupid advice because he agrees to marry them hoping it will end the feud, but he is wrong this makes things worse. From now on it is pivotal. “ For this alliance may be so happy prove to turn your households’ rancour to pure love.”
In act 2 scene 4 Romeo arranges to marry Juliet at friar Lawrence’s cell. Romeo gives the nurse a rope ladder, so he could climb into Juliet’s bedroom in the Capulet house. The nurse is going against who pays her and she thinks she is doing the right thing like friar Lawrence: this is fate.
In act 3 scene 1 Tybalt is seeking Romeo for revenge, whilst Benvolio points out the dangers on the street. Tybalt finds Mercutio and asks where Romeo is, and then Romeo appears and refuses to fight. This disgusts Mercutio who challenges Tybalt. Mercutio is stabbed and dies, Romeo blames this on himself and is angry: he slays Tybalt and runs away. Romeo wouldn’t have killed Tybalt and ran away, if it wasn’t for Mercutio who was stupidly picking a fight. This is also fate. Lady Capulet seeks revenge and seals Romeo’s fate.
In act 3 scene 4 Capulet instructs his wife to tell Juliet that she has to marry Paris. Juliet refuses; Capulet doesn’t know Juliet is already married which is freewill. This is all friar Lawrence’s doing, and yet he is supposed to be Romeo’s councillor.
Act 4 scene I think is a very important scene in terms of who was most to blame for Romeo and Juliet’s deaths. Juliet desperately doesn’t want to marry Paris. So the friar devises a reckless plan to prevent Juliet’s marriage: he will give her a potion to make her seem dead, then she will be placed in the Capulet vault. The friar would send a letter to Romeo to explain the plan, and he will be there when she wakes up to take her to Mantua. The friar might have been trying to help himself thinking of such a complicated and dangerous plan.
Juliet is scared and confused. Is the friar honest? Will she awake in the tomb before Romeo comes? She drinks the potion, which is a silly mistake. Maybe she wouldn’t have died if she didn’t drink the potion.
In act 5 scene 1 Romeo says “ I dreamt my lady came and found me dead,” which is ironic because it happens. Romeo then receives news that Juliet is dead; this is where the friar’s plans go horribly wrong. Romeo now wants to kill himself because he thinks his lover is dead. After hearing this news Romeo says, “ is e’en so? Then I defy you stars!” later on friar John tells how an unlucky mischance prevented him delivering friar Lawrence’s letter to Romeo. This is fate. Friar Lawrence determines to break into the Capulet’s monument to be with Juliet when she awakes.
In the last scene act 5 scene 3, Romeo arrives at the tomb before friar Lawrence (fate). Romeo sits beside Juliet and imagines that death wants Juliet as a lover, so he drinks the potion. Friar Lawrence eventually arrives and finds Romeo dead. Juliet awakens and prefers to join Romeo in death and stabs herself in front of the friar. The Montague and Capulet quarrel is what caused the death of their children. So Montague and Capulet make up their quarrel. Several people died before they finally made up their ancient grudge. Was this the greatest love story ever?
Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet is full of love, hate, life and death. He creates an excellent atmosphere with his creative writing. Fate also played a big part in this play as I have explained, but was it fate? You can now see why this play was such a success in Shakespeare’s time and all the way through to our time. Maybe Romeo + Juliet will never be forgotten and always be the ultimate love story.
