In the play Romeo and Juliet two families fight in the fair city of Verona. Not knowing that fate brought both of the families children together to eventually die in each other's arms. But could a significant event change the outcome of the tragedy at hand. That is the topic being critically analyzed in this essay. I do think significant events have an impact on an individual's ability to determine their own fate.
In this play Romeo leaves his friends and jumps over the walls of the Capulet home, in hopes to reunite with Juliet. He ends up resting beside a tree right underneath of her window. Not knowing Romeo is there she explains her affection for him. ” With love's light wings did I o’erperch these walls; for stony limits cannot hold love out… “ ( Act 2, Scene 2, Lines 66-68). Even though they had just met. This shows how significant events can give an individual ability to determine their own fate because if Romeo had not gone over the tall stone wall and ended up beneath Juliet's window they never would have found each other. This would have altered their relationship possibly ending it. Under these perfect circumstances Romeo and Juliet were able to interact without having many members of the Capulet family interrupting them all the time. Which could very well end up in Romeo's
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If the Capulet servant that was handing out invitations did not come across the Montagues there would be no way they would have met. Their families were arch rivals. “ From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean ” (Prologue, lines 3-4). Not to mention they happened to first see each other looking through a fish tank in the bathroom. If the chain of events leading up to this had not been perfect these too may have never even seen each other at the party. Romeo would still be dwelling over Rosaline, he would be depressed just like he was
Someone once said "An individual can never escape their fate." Fate causes events in a person's life that are only controlled by a higher power. This is evident in the play "Romeo and Juliet" written by William Shakespeare because after reading his play, the reader learns that Romeo and Juliet's fate ultimately leads to their death. In the movie adaptation of "Romeo and Juliet" directed by Franco Zeffirelli, Zeffirelli does not include some of the significant fateful events that occur in the play. However, the events that do appear in the movie makes the viewer understand that the play’s lesson is fate leads to Romeo and Juliet’s deaths.
Fate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, written by the ever-famous William Shakespeare, is an eloquent story of passionate love between two teenage individuals of a time long ago. These individuals, Romeo and Juliet, fall helplessly in love with each other, in spite of the fact that their families, both upper class, have been enemies for generations. The two lovers therefore strive to maintain their ardent bond with each other in secret. They also encounter various obstacles along the way and suffer serious consequences, such as Romeo's banishment to Mantua and the obligatory marriage of Juliet to Paris.
In Act 1 scene 2, a Capulet servant is walking along the streets of Verona trying to hand out invitations to a party. The only problem with this is the servant can't read. He runs into Romeo and Benvolio on the street. They read the list for him and decide to go to the party that the Capulets are throwing. This is fate because if the servant had run into any other person on the streets of Verona, Romeo would never even know about the Capulet party. Benvolio told Romeo to "Go thither and with untainned eye compare her (Rosaline's) face with some that I shall show". He wants Romeo to go look for someone at the party to get over his first love Rosaline. This is a bad thing for them since when Romeo and Juliet meet they don't know they are enemies. The servant running into Romeo and Benvolio is fate. If they hadn't run into each other, Romeo would've never met Juliet.
It is not merely a coincidence that Romeo and Juliet meet in the first place. A serving man comes across Romeo and Benvolio in the first act, unaware that they are Montagues, and informs them about the Capulet party: "My master is the great rich Capulet, and, if you be not / of the house of Montagues, I pray come and crush a / cup of wine" (I ii, 86-88). It is by fate that Romeo and Benvolio run into the Capulet serving man and discover the party. It is not just a simple accident that the serving man tells the two cousins about the party at which Romeo is destined, yet unaware, that he will meet his love. Furthermore, before Romeo attends the Capulet party, he says, "Some consequence yet hanging in the stars / shall bitterly begin this fearful date" (I iv, 114-115). Romeo already predicts what the fates have in store as he says something bad might transpire if he dares to show up at the party, where he will meet Juliet.
The human condition follows the path of fate. Everyone makes choices out of their own free will which affects their life at that time, but will ultimately lead to their pre- determined fate. People inflict their own wounds during their life by the choices that they make. This applies in Romeo and Juliet and plays a major role in Romeo and Juliet’s lives. "A pair of star-crossed lovers" (I, i, 6)
Romeo and Juliet is widely known to be a tragedy, but what caused the atrocity for which it is so renowned? Some may argue fate was to blame for Romeo’s and Juliet’s deaths, that the situations these young lovers faced were depicted as being out of their control. Could Romeo have refused to attend the Capulet masque? Was Romeo destined to duel the raging Tybalt? Did Romeo and Juliet truly have to kill themselves? If one considers the specific circumstances and causes of these situations, the fact that all scenarios are the result of choice rather than chance, and the notion that the characters were never left without options, only one conclusion can be determined. It was unarguably the decisions made by characters, not those made by fate, that were responsible for the tragedy in Romeo and Juliet.
Fate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet Before starting to decide to what extent fate was responsible for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, I should first decide what is fate? According to the dictionary, fate is the 'inevitable destiny or necessity destined term of life; doom.' This basically means, that fate can be described as a pre-planned sequence of events influencing ones life. In Romeo and Juliet, it is obviously true to say that fate was a contributor to the deaths of the young couple, but could it have been the sole contributor?
Once in a while many people make bad decisions. Usually these decisions don’t cause them any harm in their futures, unlike Romeo Montague’s and Juliet Capulet’s decisions. In Verona, a city in Italy, two lovers fall in love. The catch is their families despise each other. Eventually Romeo get’s banished from Verona, and Juliet is forced to marry someone she doesn’t want to marry. Juliet takes a potion that knocks her out for 42 hours, and feigns her death, hoping she does not have to marry Count Paris. Romeo assumes Juliet is dead, and drinks a potion that kills him, and when Juliet wakes up and realizes that Romeo is dead, she stabs herself. In William Shakespeare’s tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, the main protagonists, Romeo and Juliet, make poor choices which eventually lead to their death at the end of the story.
Shakespeare utilizes his characters beliefs and superstitions in fate to add a cautioning and foreboding tone to the story. Throughout the entire play, fate dictates the actions of others and ultimately leads Romeo and Juliet to their tragic downfall.
A timeless topic--fate and free will--still captivates society today. Fortune cookies, physics, and horoscopes all contribute to the obsession people have with this controversial debate over who manipulates life; fate or free will. No one is sure who really pulls the strings, but everyone has an opinion on the matter. Many famous plays center on this topic, and one such play that features characters’ views on fate and free will is Romeo and Juliet. This legendary play, written by William Shakespeare, has been beloved by people for centuries, as they contemplate who is the guiding force in life? The play discusses just this, while depicting the lives of Romeo and Juliet: two desperate teenagers each trapped in their own worlds, seeking love and freedom. The two “star-crossed lovers” are from feuding households, and each has their own distinct problems. Romeo jumps from girl to girl, never finding anyone to reciprocate his feelings until he meets Juliet. She is hidden from the world, and with every decision being made for her, she wants to control her own life, which she does with marrying Romeo. Although fate and free will are both undeniably found in the lives of Juliet and Romeo, it is ultimately fate and the way it manipulates the events, time, and the characters that brings about the untimely death of the two iconic teen lovers.
Romeo and Juliet made many choices out of their own free will, including an irreversible decision that ended in despair for all characters. “All are punished!”(5.3.305). In the play “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare, the actions of Romeo, the actions of Juliet, and the actions of others prove that free will is more paramount than fate in the plot of the play.
It is not merely a coincidence that Romeo and Juliet meet in the first place. A serving man comes across Romeo and Benvolio in the first act, unaware that they are Montague?s, and informs them about the Capulet party: "My master is the great rich Capulet, and, if you be not / of the house of Montague?s, I pray come and crush a / cup of wine." (Romeo and Juliet I ii, 86-88) It is by fate that Romeo and Benvolio run into the Capulet serving man and discover the party. It is not just a simple accident that the serving man tells the two cousins about the party at which Romeo is destined, yet unaware, that he will meet his love. Furthermore, before Romeo attends the Cap...
Juliet to accept Paris' courtship. After the brawl, Benvolio talks with his cousin Romeo, Lord Montague's son, about Romeo's recent depression. Benvolio discovers that it stems from unrequited love for a girl named Rosaline, one of Lord Capulet's nieces. Persuaded by Benvolio and Mercutio, Romeo attends the ball at the Capulet house in hopes of meeting Rosaline. However, Romeo instead meets and falls in love with Juliet. After the ball, in what is now called the "balcony scene", Romeo sneaks into the Capulet courtyard and overhears Juliet on her balcony vowing her love to him in spite of her family's hatred of the Montagues. Romeo makes himself known to her and they agree to be married.
In Romeo and Juliet, a play by Shakespeare, the characters are subject to fate and destiny and hence, have no control, whatsoever, over their lives. Shakespeare repeatedly refers to fate, the idea of a predetermined future or a hidden power beyond anyone’s control through various techniques. There is a sense of inexorable doom throughout the whole play which is made evident through the characters’ repetitive acknowledgement of destiny, as well as the constant foreshadowing and coincidences that take place. Romeo and Juliet have their entire lives played out according to fate and destiny which is obvious through the many references to their predestined future.
The lovers of Shakespeare’s famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet are perhaps the most famous pair of lovers in history. Their story has been told and remade in countless ways, with a variety of endings. The original piece however ends with tragedy in Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. Throughout Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet, fate is the driving force in that the star-cross lovers are destined to have a tragic end. Throughout the play, Shakespeare uses literary elements to reveal that our actions are not what controls our life, but it is fate that determines what will happen to us.