Who, or what, is to blame for the deaths of the Romeo and Juliet in the play of the same title?

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Romeo and Juliet coursework

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                        Zabihullah Saeed        

Who, or what, is to blame for the deaths of the Romeo and Juliet in the play of the same title?

There are many people in the play, Romeo and Juliet who could be blamed for the young couple’s deaths fate and destiny   also played their parts in the lives of Romeo and Juliet and circumstances they found themselves in.

At the time Shakespeare wrote his plays, the Elizabethans believed that their destiny. Shakespeare puts elements of fate and destiny into this play.

‘A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life’

Shakespeare be gins the play with a prologue, in the form of a sonnet. These were usually poems written about love or the loss of love. The play is a tragic love story. From the beginning, the audience know that things will end in tragedy but they don’t know how.

‘The fearful passage of their death-marked love’

The young couple come from families who have been arguing and fighting for years. The audience have to watch the story unfold and the actions of the characters, to find out who is involved and what they do to make it a tragic end.

I am going to talk about the part played by different characters. Firstly Friar Lawrence is a character who could be blamed for having helped Romeo and Juliet and, having something to do with their eventual deaths. We first meet him in Act 2. Scene 3 of the play, when Romeo goes to see him. Romeo goes to see Friar Lawrence for advice and to inform him that he has fallen in heart love with the Fair daughter of rich Capulet; Romeo wants the friar to marry him and Juliet. The Friar comments about how soon Romeo has had a change of heart; ‘first he was in love with Rosaline, whom thou didst love so dear, so soon   forsaken?’

The relation ship between the friar and Romeo is like that of a father and son. Romeo trusts Friar Lawrence and he can talk to him. The Friar agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet because he thinks it will bring peace between the two feuding families: ‘For this alliance may so happy prove to turn your household’s rancour to pure love’

Perhaps the Friar should have advised Romeo to give more time for the relationship to develop. Instead, he agrees to the marriage but also comments, ‘these violent delights have violent ends’ He is informing the audience that something tragic will come out of the marriage between Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet. Friar Laurence doesn’t think about what bad things might occur due to his actions. Later in the play, Romeo goes to Friar Lawrence for advice after he is banished from Verona for killing Tybalt. Again, the Friar has to do something as Romeo threatens to take his own life; parting from Juliet is like death sentence. Friar Laurence said to Romeo not to kill himself and that Juliet would spend one night with him after one last night together he would leave Verona because if he returned the Prince would have to sentence him to death. ‘Where thou shalt live till we can find a time’

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To blaze your marriage, to reconcile your friends;

Beg pardon of the prince, and call the back;

He might return to Verona when things have settled.

The friar also gives Juliet advice. She goes to him when she finds out that her father has arranged her marriage to Paris. She tells the friar she’d rather be dead than marry Paris and he is her only hope.

So the friar thinks of another plan:

Hold thee daughter, I do spy a kind of hope’

The Friar’s plan is he would give a potion to Juliet and she would drink ...

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