Should people be allowed to break the set laws of society for their own desires? In the famous play “Romeo and Juliet” these laws have affected the main character Juliet in many ways. In this play these laws not only prevent her from having true happiness with Romeo, but they also force Juliet into a marriage that she does not even want. They even force her to have a fake her own death to be with her one true love; however, Juliet breaks these set laws though to have true happiness with the one she loves. Although Juliet goes against society, she does it in order to be happy with Romeo, avoid being wed to Paris, and not having to listen to her family.
The First way that Juliet goes against society is by dating, and falling in love with Romeo. The first example can be seen by how Romeo and Juliet should hate each other are supposed to due to their own families. Acknowledgement for this can be seen when the play starts and the chorus says, “Two households, both alike in dignity. / In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, / From an ancient grudge break to new mutiny. / Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. / From forth the fatal loins of these two foes / a pair of star-crossed lovers take their life; / Whose misadventures piteous overthrows / Doth with their death bury their parent’s strife.” (I.i.1-8). This clearly shows that the parents of the two lovers families have a quarrel over transgressions that each have committed towards one another. This proves the point that by dating Romeo; that Juliet has gone against society by dating her “enemy” to a. The next way that Juliet disobeys society is by meeting with Romeo in secret. This can be seen while Romeo is trespassing and Juliet says, “ Ay me! / she speacks. O, speak again...
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...er I did yet behold! O day, O day, O day! O hateful day! / Never was seen so black as this. / O woeful day! O woeful day!” (iv.v.49-54). In her not choosing to marry Paris and faking death she would be doing something that is socially unacceptable at the time; therefore, she would not be abiding to the social laws of her day. Overall though Juliet has truly stood up to most of society’s rules; this is due to her mostly wanting to be her own person and have happiness.
Overall In the play “Romeo and Juliet” Juliet is forced to break the rules set forth by society; however, she only does this in order to gain true happiness. The ways that she breaks the rules range from disobeying her parents to having to fake her own death, but she does all of this for one cause. That cause is simply to live a life that she wanted, and to be with the one person that she truly loved.
Juliet rejects all previous standards for women. She will not be confined to a relationship with Romeo that adheres to the courtly love tradition.
Although disobedient maybe true from Capulets point of view, it doesn't mean it is a bad thing if it is. he's in the wrong. I think Juliet should be felt sorry for as she has no one to turn to, her mother says. "Talk not to me, for I'll not speak a word" and the nurse just leaves her on her own. As for Lord Capulet he is just being selfish and trying to control Juliet to protect his
When Juliet goes to the friar and threatens to kill herself if he doesn’t help her get out of marrying Paris he agrees to help her. He gives her a potion to temporarily stop her breathing so she appears dead. The friar says, “Take thou this /vial, being then in bed,/And this distilling liquor drink thou off;/When presently through/all thy veins shall run/A cold and drowsy humor; for no pulse/Shall keep his native progress, but surcease.” (Act IV.i 95-99) “In the meantime, against thou shalt awake,/Shall Romeo by my letters know our drift,” (Act IV.i 115-116) He is saying that Juliet doesn’t have to worry about Romeo freaking out about her death because he will tell Romeo about her fake death and they will be there to dig her up once she wakes up from her sleeping potion. Juliet is 100% on board with this plan because she really does not want to marry Paris. She is even willing to make her family think she is dead to be with
One of the standards was that Juliet get married young. At the time, Juliet was in her early to mid teens, which is not really a good time to get married, because you still haven’t experienced life enough to know what qualities are good in a partner. Granted, he dad was going to marry her, but still on qualities he thought was good. Anyway, the marriage probably would not have been good. Also society thought that she should marry someone her dad chose for her, as shown by this quote, said by Lord Capulet, “She shall be married to this noble earl,” (3.5.24) This “noble earl” was Paris. If she had not had to marry Paris, I think that everyone would’ve gotten along a lot easier. Society also considered the Montagues and the Capulets to be enemies. So, they didn’t think that two children of opposing families should express love to each other, rather than
“O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name;” (Shakespeare, 536). In the book, ‘Romeo and Juliet”, by William Shakespeare there is a deeper meaning that Shakespeare is trying to portray other than parents cannot control their children’s hearts. He is trying to portray that a name is only a name and it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things and that even with a different name that person will still be the same person they have always been. Shakespeare is using the characters: Juliet, Romeo, Lord Capulet, Friar Lawrence, and the Nurse to get this message across to the reader or the viewer.
In the play, Romeo and Juliet sneak out a lot to see each other. They do this because they are from rival families and their don’t want them to interact with each other at all. By sneaking around, it created more problems and Juliet drank a potion that would put her to sleep for a while and as a result, they both ended up killing themselves. They were both not listening to their parents and by doing that, it ended badly for both of them and their families.
Juliet refuses to marry Paris, saying, “Now, by Saint Peter's Church and Peter too, / He shall not make me there a joyful bride!” (3.5, 121-122). This quote shows that Juliet is disobedient and unreasonable, It is shown because as soon as talk of marrying Paris come up, Juliet breaks down crying and starts raising her voice. A little while after the last scene, the Nurse tries to give Juliet some advice, Juliet’s response is, “Ancient damnation! O most wicked fiend! / ... I'll to the Friar to know his remedy. / If all else fail, myself have power to die.” (3.5, 248, 254-255). This scene also shows that Juliet is disobedient and unreasonable because, Juliet blatantly goes behind her parents back to make a plan that goes against their wishes. Her actions show that Juliet changes for the worse near the end of the story.
...oked down upon by her parent for not wanting to marry a man twice her age at least. When Juliet’s parents ask her about Paris she is obedient and not allowed to speak her mind. Juliet quietly and obediently says what her mother wants like; Juliet is a slave or burden to her family. Clearly, Romeo and Juliet is an Aristotelian tragedy because it makes the reader feel pity and fear.
Juliet’s arranged marriage with Paris, as well as the ancient feud between Capulets and Montagues, eventually contributed to the deaths of their children. In Act 1 Scene 2, Paris asks Capulet, ‘But now, my lord, what say you to my suit?’ which shows that Capulet and Paris are discussing Juliet’s possible marriage without consulting her, perhaps implying they think she is too nave to decide on her future. They are arranging her marriage for her, which implies that men are very controlling of women’s lives, especially those of their daughters. The scene establishes how Juliet is subject to parental influence, and how she is very constrained since her father can force her to marry whoever he wants. Juliet’s status as a woman leaves her with no power or choice in the decision of whom she should marry.
Most importantly, Romeo’s poor choices and decisions lead to the tragedy of the drama. From the beginning of the story Romeo reveals his immaturity and ill-equipped emotions. His first mistake reveals itself when he claims to be deeply depressed. Romeo claims that he feels like “sinking ‘under love’s heavy burden’,” (Dupler). At this point Romeo has succumbed to his emotions, due to the fact that a girl named Rosaline refuses to reciprocate his love for her. Romeo’s friends Benvolio and Mercutio “urge him to stop philosophizing about his lost love and to seek another young lady as a new object of his affections” (Dupler).Romeo now demonstrates that he seems incapable of listening to his friends’ suggestions and chooses to continue in a juvenile state of depression. Romeo makes another fatal decision when he nurtures an undeniably damned relationship. Romeo admits that he still loves Juliet once her lineage appears as Capulet when he says, “Is she a Capulet? O dear account! My life is my foes debt” (1.5.115). Romeo irresponsibly supports the idea of a relationship between himself and Juliet only because “The young hero is simply shifting his attention to a more receptive subject as he responds to the erotic spurring implicit in his name” (...
Romeo and Juliet choose their own actions through their judgments, which were caused by their belief of everlasting love. Due to their unsound and absurd attitudes, both characters are dazed by love in a puerile manner. The relationship they created was actually built on lust and desperation. Firstly, Romeo is the first character whom shows immature love in the story as a whole. Once Capulet’s party is over, Romeo’s attitude leads him to jump over the wall to Juliet’s house and exclaim to her,” And what love can do, that dares love attempt./Therefore thy kinsmen are no stop to me”(2.2.68-9). The effect of love caused Romeo to not pay attention to the consequences of jumping over the wall and talking to the daughter of his enemy. The flaw is that he is beginning to think that his love is as hard as nails. It is illogical for Romeo to think this...
The decision of pursuing personal desire or choosing to conform is a conflict that every person in life experiences. In his play, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare portrayed that the aforementioned conflict was existent in everyone’s life, and, depending upon what they chose, there would be corresponding repercussions. Shakespeare displays this conflict when the protagonist, Romeo, attends the ball, marries Juliet, and kills Tybalt.
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.
The Role of Authority in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. This play was written by William Shakespeare in the late 16th century. It was intended to be performed to a live audience in the Elizabethan period. Then the sand was sunk.
The significance of Juliet’s change in character is to show her accelerated transformation from a young girl into a mature woman. In the beginning of the play Juliet is unable to make her own decisions. However after her meeting with Romeo, Juliet becomes more assertive and defends her love for Romeo. In conclusion, individuals cannot be forced to love; love is nurtured and nourished but also is always put to test.