The Role Fate Plays in Shakespeare's Romeo and Julite

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“What's meant to be will always find a way,” claimed Trisha Yearwood on the theme of fate. “Romeo and Juliet” was undoubtedly one of the most well-known romantic tragedies written by William Shakespeare. It centred around two lovers from feuding families, who take their own lives. Their deaths ironically created an atmosphere where their love could freely flourish for it reconciled the two families. We were introduced to the play by a prologue that concretely mentions Fate’s influence on the course of the story. Attempting to antagonize destiny had proven to have been pointless throughout the tragedy. The greatest land mine prepared by Fate on Romeo and Juliet was the sudden plague in Mantua which triggered the finishing bombs to relentlessly explode, leaving not a single drop of hope in their lives. The cruise of Romeo and Juliet’s lives had never been theirs to decide from the beginning. They were merely little sailboats blown across the waters by a completely overwhelming force—Fate.

The Shakespearean sonnet established by the Chorus in the prologue precisely implied the extensive role Fate is playing on “Romeo and Juliet”. From the very start, the playwright informed us of Fate’s existence. It made the audience consider the extent Fate is going to meddle with the flow of the story. It caused the audience to wish that the words in the prologue would be twisted to form a much joyous end. However, in the end, the “pair of star-cross’d lovers” slid down their heartless doom. Everything stated in the Chorus, stayed true throughout the play. The deaths of Romeo and Juliet did “bury their parents’ strife”. It had all went thoroughly according to Fate’s desire. In “Romeo and Juliet”, William Shakespeare delivered the audience the id...

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...o and Juliet were nothing but little marionettes and tools controlled by the skilled hands of Fate. He had cunningly pulled their strings in rhythm with the fixed song composed in the stars. Though the marionettes were conscious of the puppeteer’s existence and made multiple attempts to break away from the wires which bind them to such a cruel end, their worthless endeavours were plainly laughed at by Fate. At the final twist and pull at the controls, it was known that Romeo and Juliet have been driven towards the corner of the stage and their inevitable double suicide has been ignited. If Fate had not been involved, no reconciliation between the families would have happened. Sooner or later, someone or something much powerful must intervene to prevent a much greater sacrifice as a result of Free Will.

Works Cited

http://shakespeare.mit.edu/romeo_juliet/full.html

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