Friar Lawrence believes firmly in the unity of man with nature and that all things are part of another. This displays his great mental capacity and causes the audience to see from the get go that Friar Lawrence is a man of great wisdom and advice. He sees the good and evil in all and is not afraid to rebuke. It can be seen to be ironic though because before he even speaks to Romeo who is about to enter he has stated a theory that will be the downfall of the two lovers. He speaks of how good may be perverted to evil and evil may be purified by good,
“Nor aught so good but, stained on abuse. Virtue itself turns vice, being misapplied, and vice sometime by action dignified”
This shows us that he believes that even if something is bad, example the feud between the Montagues and Capulets, it can be changed into something good, as we will see, the marriage of Romeo and Juliet. It must be understood though that this theory of the friar has a flip side, good intentions may have bad effects, the ultimate death of both Romeo and Juliet.
With the entrance of Romeo, Friar Lawrence moves into his role as a spiritual father who wishes the best for all the citizens of Verona. The first thing that the good friar sees is that Romeo has not slept and his continence has changed. When Romeo says that the “sweeter rest” was his, Friar Lawrence fears that he has committed a grave sin with Rosaline. Romeo assures him that this is not the case as he has only had been “feasting” with his enemy who has wounded him (he has been shot with Cupid’s bow). Friar Lawrence is tired of Romeo’s riddles and so tells him to get to the point. Romeo express to him his new found love for Juliet, which is returned unlike in the case of Rosaline. In fact, Romeo wishes the friar to marry them that very day and so make them one.
Friar Lawrence is at first appalled at what he has heard from Romeo. He chides him saying that Romeo’s love is only in his eyes and that he has to quickly forgotten his sorrow for Rosaline. He says that Romeo’s groans for Rosaline are still in his ears and that dried tears are still on Romeo’s cheek. Romeo resents this and asks if the friar wishes him to “bury” his love. Friar Lawrence says that he did not advise Romeo to bury one love in order to give birth to another. Romeo assures him that his love for Juliet is genuine and that his love for Rosaline was mere infatuation. Friar Lawrence consents because he sees that evil could be changed to good; the marriage of Romeo and Juliet may turn the two household’s “rancour” to pure love.
At the end of this scene we are stuck with the sense that it has serious dramatic importance. Although many argue that it is a scene which has little importance to the overall performance, which is true in the sense that it deals with very little, Act II, scene ii is a scene that greatly adds to the whole experience of the play. Without which, a gaping hole would be left in the flow of the play. This scene’s importance can be summarized into five main points:
The first is the introduction of a new character. That is, the introduction of Friar Lawrence. He is very essential to the plot of the story, as he is instrumental in Romeo’s escape from Verona after the deaths of Mercutio and Tybalt and also the plan for Juliet to fake her death and then escape to her husband. This scene shows Friar Lawrence for what he is, a wise and intelligent man whom “all of Verona doth owe their lives.” He is seen to be very caring for those who come to him for advice and is more then willing to help those in need.
The second is the advancement of the plot. Through Friar Lawrence Romeo and Juliet will be married. This marriage is carried out in a latter scene but in this one Romeo comes to him to arrange the secret marriage. This scene also allows us a glimpse of Romeo as well as Friar Lawrence’s thoughts. Allowing the audience to see that Romeo’s love for Rosaline was not true love and that his love for Juliet is genuine advances the plot. We also see that Friar Lawrence is willing to marry the two because maybe this marriage will be able to end the strife between the Montagues and Capulets.
The third is that it provides an explanation of some points in later scenes. For example, while in his garden the friar speaks of a plant that will cause the body to go into a death like state. It is from this flower that Friar Lawrence latter makes the sleeping potion, which he gives to Juliet. Also, later on Friar Lawrence is very apt to help Romeo escape Verona. We see that this is because of his close friendship that is displayed in this scene.
Act II, scene ii provides a glimpse of what is to come in the book. Besides the obvious that Romeo and Juliet will be married we see a prediction that this marriage may have two effects. The first is that the marriage may reconcile the two warring families or the marriage may result in some bad consequence, which we all know is the death of the two lovers. It also adds a sense of irony and fate to the story because Friar Lawrence speaks of good being changed to evil and evil to good before he even speaks with Romeo.
The last point is that Romeo’s tragic flaw is highlighted in this scene. He is seen to be very quick in his decision to marry Juliet. Only the day before he had been in the deepest despair because he was not loved by Rosaline and at the very first sight of Juliet he has forgotten Rosaline. Friar Lawrence sees this and chides him for it. At the end of this scene he says something that is a prediction of Romeo’s future, “Wisely and slow. They stumble that run fast.”