William Shakespeare describes Romeo and Juliet as “star crossed lovers” who were destined to be together, but their love had an abrupt ending that can easily raise the “who can you blame” question, because while they both aren’t innocent, neither are the other characters in this play. Although Romeo and Juliet are not guilt free with the events of their deaths, the tragedy isn’t completely their fault. Many characters in this story have a small portion of blame to take, but some are more responsible than others, namely Friar Lawrence. Love is a beautiful thing that should never be hidden or kept secret. Friar Lawrence, however, doesn’t realize this. Important information that he knew about was withheld from their parents. The Montagues and …show more content…
“But come, young waverer, come, go with me, in one respect I’ll thy assistant be, for this alliance may so happy prove to turn your households’ rancor to pure love” (Shakespeare 2.3.89-92). In Act 2, Scene 3 of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo goes to the church and begs Friar Lawrence to marry him and Juliet. Rather than notifying both of their parents, or considering the fact that this is not a good idea, Friar Lawrence agrees to help Romeo. Throughout the play, it is stressed out and noted multiple times that Juliet is only 12 years old. Romeo’s age is never stated, but it is clear that he definitely isn’t her age. Juliet is 12 years old and already planning a wedding and wondering what it’ll be like to lose her virginity. Twelve year olds should not have to worry about a marriage commitment. Friar Lawrence doesn’t contemplate what will happen to Romeo and Juliet or how it will affect their futures. As if secretly marrying Juliet to Romeo wasn’t enough, Friar Lawrence additionally decides to help Juliet get closer to the “ ‘til death do us part” portion of their wedding …show more content…
Juliet’s father, Lord Capulet, forces her to marry Prince Paris. He doesn’t ask, or even care, for her opinion on the matter. Lord Capulet says, “I tell thee what: get thee to church o’ Thursday, or never look me in the face. Speak not. Reply not. Do not answer me” (Shakespeare 3.5.161-163). Juliet has only 2 options: live a wealthy life being unhappy and distraught with Prince Paris, or get kicked out onto the streets to be with Romeo, who has also been banned. This ultimatum makes Juliet more rebellious and willing to go against her father, after seeing how cruel he can be. Lord Capulet is definitely another factor involved into why Romeo and Juliet killed themselves. However, how much blame can be displaced from the couple that did
Despite his initial disapproval, Friar Lawrence agrees to secretly marry Romeo and Juliet in hopes that “this alliance may so happy prove/ to turn [their] households’ rancor to pure love” (II.iii.98-99). Although Friar Lawrence has good intentions, as he does not gain anything from the marriage, by supporting Romeo and Juliet’s infatuation, his actions will eventually create more harm than benefits, as it allows their impulsive behavior to persist. By marrying Romeo and Juliet in secret, it is evident that Friar Lawrence knows that the wedding is a bad idea, but due to his indecisive personality and the inability to make a solid choice, Friar Lawrence blindly follows through with the marriage. In addition, he does not analyze the consequences of his actions prior to his agreement to marry them, only to later express regret and warn Romeo about the dangers of their infatuated love and their impulsive behavior. Friar Lawrence’s indecisive personality is evident in his soliloquy through the excessive use oxymorons in between rhyming
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy- but it did not have to be. Romeo and Juliet is the tragic story of two star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, who are the son and daughter of two feuding families, the Montagues and the Capulets. Written by the famed playwright Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet take place in the 14-15 century in the cities of Verona and Mantua, cities in northern Italy. After a series of events that involves Romeo getting banished from Verona and Juliet getting forced to marry a count, Paris, they kill themselves. It has been argued for centuries about who is to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. But, once reading the book thoroughly and consulting several sources, it is obvious who is solely to blame- Friar Lawrence. Because of the actions of Friar Lawrence, the play ended with two grieving families instead of two happy newlyweds. Although many characters contributed to their deaths, only Friar Lawrence was solely responsible for them. Friar Lawrence’s cowardice, secrecy, and miscommunication led directly to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Friar Lawrence does not have very much time on stage, but the time he does have is crucial to the plot line. Through his words, Friar Lawrence demonstrates that he is well intentioned, yet sometimes shortsighted, and is not afraid to take risks to help others. He may do something out of the ordinary, if he thinks the outcome will help someone for whom he cares. For example, when he says "In one respect I'll thy assistant be;/ for this alliance may so happy prove, / to turn your households rancor to pure love" (II.iii.97-99), he is saying that the only reason he will marry Romeo and Juliet is that he hopes that the marriage will end the hostilities between the two houses. When he says "Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift, / and hither shall he come; and he and I/ shall watch thy waking, and that very night/ shall Romeo bear thee to Mantua" (IV.i.116-119), his intention is clearly to comfort and reassure Juliet.
To conclude, Friar Lawrence is to blame for Romeo's and Juliet's deaths. He was the one who married them in the first place. This caused Juliet to go into hysteria and vow to kill she would kill herself before being married to Paris. He did not go to Mantua so that caused communication issues with Romeo which ended up killing Romeo. Friar Lawrence fled the scene when he saw Romeo dead. He was also the only one who took the blame for everything. Friar Lawrence was very irresponsible, illogical and he is the main reason why the play Romeo and Juliet ended so
Romeo & Juliet Romeo and Juliet was a tragedy, but it did not have to be. Many things could have been done to prevent their deaths. Many characters contributed to their deaths. The sole character that was responsible for their deaths is Friar Lawrence. Friar Lawrence is responsible for the deaths of the lovers because he was secretive with their relationship, he was unable communicate effectively, and he had a cowardly persona.
Romeo and Juliet: the story and characters that define “teenage love” and tragedy. But were the tragic misunderstandings and mishaps truly their fault? A question that has risen many a time has now been made the topic of this essay; who is really at fault for the unfortunate death of the 2 most deep lovers? Through pathetic fallacy for effect, foreshadowing, and an insightful prologue, Shakespeare gives us a preview of what was going to become of the two troubled lovers. Many characters can be held guilty for their death in various indirect ways, such as the Nurse, Capulet, Tybalt or even Romeo himself. However, can Friar Lawrence be counted in as well? In Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence plays a very significant role as a priest of the St. Francis Church and who the children trusted completely. Shockingly, in this play of tragedy, Friar Lawrence has the bigger hand in the death of the two star-crossed lovers through means rash and hasty decisions. There are many sources of evidence proving the Friar indirectly responsible for the fate of the children, through the “much appreciated” help he has provided to the children to finally be together. However, without the Friar the children would have nobody to support their love and decisions, due to the deadly family feud between the Montagues and the Capulets. In hopes of solving the decade old dispute with no meaning, the Friar, without giving his decisions much thought, helped the children in their desperate spirit to be married and live a happy life together. Would someone consider him unaware of the intensity of the present family conditions? Or...
Friar Laurence was once looked up to by both Romeo and Juliet, constantly telling them to act with more caution and restraint. Despite this, he doesn't wait long to marry these lovebirds. It has broken many hearts of the citizens of Verona and left many others in shock. At one point, Friar Laurence admitted to agreeing to marry the couple, knowing Romeo only loves Juliet due to her appearance. "
In Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, Friar Laurence has a major role. As a member of the Order of St. Francis, a group of wise and generous priests, Romeo and Juliet trusted Friar Laurence completely, turning to him for advice, and solutions. He was there throughout Romeo’s and Juliet's lives; he married them, came up with a plan to keep them together, and was a friend throughout their tragedies. However, Friar Laurence’s rash action in marrying Romeo and Juliet, his shortsighted plan for rescuing Juliet from an unwanted marriage to Paris, and his fear of committing sin all contributed to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Throughout time, there have been many tragedies caused by romance. For example, the play Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, is known for its romantic tragedy between two star-crossed lovers. With all the deaths, who is truly to blame for Romeo and Juliet's deaths? Friar Laurence is most to blame for many obvious, yet overlooked, reasons. The forbidden wedding of Romeo and Juliet could not have happened without the Friar.
Friar Laurence’s involvement in the marriage of Romeo and Juliet has caused a tragedy. Romeo and Juliet thought that they fell in love, but the Friar should have known that they were just kids and they were really rushing into things. In Romeo and Juliet, Friar Laurence says, “These violent delights have violent ends. Is loathsome in his own deliciousness, and in the taste confounds the appetite: Therefore love moderately: long love doth so, too swift arrives as tardy as too slow.” When he says this, he is giving Romeo a warnin. Also, Friar Lawrence should have known at the time, that Romeo was loving with his eyes and not with his heart. For example, Romeo was in a relationship with Rosaline, before marrying Julliet. Inonclusion , the Friar did not have the expierence to know that they were kids.
The Friar was supposed to be a responsible adult and a man of God. This means that people would have come to him to confess their sins. Romeo and Juliet were young and naive and Friar Lawrence understood that very well. He also understood their personalities and circumstances, but still chose to marry them in hope that it would end the feud between the two families. As an adult he was also supposed to be a lot smarter ands wiser. Neither of those qualities were shown in any of his decision making.
Moreover after knowing Juliet for less than twenty-four hours, Romeo goes to his companion Friar Lawrence and asks him to marry them. True, Juliet is the one who sets up the marriage. However, Romeo is the one who pushed the relationship too far and too soon. In Act 2.3, Friar Lawrence is in shock with the sudden change from Rosaline to Juliet and comments on the ind...
Who is the most to blame for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet? In William Shakespeare's play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence gives Juliet a fake poison and when she takes it, she goes into a deep sleep that makes her appear dead. Juliet is then buried in her family's tomb and when Romeo goes to the tomb, he drinks actual poison and kills himself because he cannot bear to be without Juliet. After he dies, Juliet wakes up and sees that Romeo is dead so she stabs herself to death. Friar Lawrence is the one who caused all of this. Friar Lawrence makes three mistakes in this play. His first is when he marries Romeo and Juliet because they came from two feuding families. His second mistake is when he gives Juliet the fake poison to make her look dead. Finally, the friar gives the letter about "the fake death plan" to Friar John when he should have delivered it himself. Despite any other "at fault" characters in Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence is the most responsible for the tragic events that occur in the play because of his miscommunication, dishonesty and poor decision making.
WHO IS THE BLAME? Good afternoon, my fellow audience. I am here today to persuade you on who I believe to be the character most responsible for the death of the two main characters in the play, Romeo and Juliet, a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is almost an ironic play because of its open and easily known ending, but yet its ending raises the controversial question, WHO IS TO BLAME FOR THE DEATH OF ROMEO AND JULIET? I believe every character in the book contributed to their deaths, even Romeo and Juliet themselves, but Friar Lawrence bears a monumental deal of the blame because he was the principle and most reliable adult that could have steered the ‘inexperienced’ couple, but his incompetency led Romeo and Juliet to a violent death.
He did not give much thought on how Juliet feels about the marriage and agrees to marry the two even though Juliet had not given him consent. For example, when Paris asks Capulet if Juliet would love him; Capulet responds, "Of my child 's love: I think she will be ruled. In all respects by me; nay, more, I doubt it not." (4.3.13-14). Capulet’s relationship with Juliet is superficial; he does not understand or know his daughter well. By creating the wedding, he causes Juliet to become desperate as she would be marrying someone she doesn’t love. To add to the matter, instead of trying to understand his daughter’s perspective, he becomes aggressive and gives her with an ultimatum. Capulet shouts, “Disobedient wretch! I tell thee what: get thee to church o 'Thursday, Or never after look me in the face.” (3.5.160-163). By forcing Juliet into marriage, she becomes desperate and causes her to begin considering death as a way out. "I 'll to the friar, to know his remedy; If all else fail, myself have power to die." (3.5.241-242). Capulet’s controlling and aggressive parenting forces Juliet to marry someone she does not love. Furthermore, this causes Juliet to starts considering suicide as a way out. Capulet’s actions to forcefully marry Juliet to Paris brings her death because it results in the Friar’s potion plan which would cause the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. If Capulet did not