The Hastiness of Youth and the Induced Calamity in Romeo and Juliet

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In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, one of the most memorable messages is the hastiness of all the characters, and the adversity they all end up in. Romeo and Juliet’s abrupt meeting leads to their hurried wedding, to other wedding plans from Juliet’s parents, and soon after, contributes to both Romeo and Juliet’s tragic deaths. William Shakespeare’s story is, ultimately, a play about the hastiness of youth as well as the elders and it all starts and ends with the two main characters. Romeo, son of Montague and Lady Montague, is introduced into the story as a depressed, upset young man, moping over a girl who will never love him back. As he says to Benvolio, “She’ll not be hit with Cupid’s arrow. She hath Dian’s wit, and, in strong proof of chastity well-armed, from Love’s weak childish bow she lives uncharmed” (Romeo and Juliet I i 203-206). Romeo states that his true love will not love him as he thinks of her, as she intends to stay chaste and turn into a nun, thus upsetting Romeo and putting him in a depressed state of mind. He is a very extreme person, and in a way, that contributes to the hastiness of the whole play, as Romeo is always at either of his two extremes; his mood either quite happy or relatively dismal. He shows that in his thoughts, as he is at first convinced he should never love another woman, but then he meets Juliet only days afterward and forgets about his previous love. His encounter with Juliet is hasty, but he claims he “never saw true beauty till this night” (Rom I v 52). Romeo reveals his personality, and how quickly he is able to get over someone whom he thought he was in love with. However, after encountering Juliet and falling in love once more, Romeo develops an obsession of sorts w... ... middle of paper ... ...t only added to the abundance of dilemmas and complications that arose from all the characters rushing into situations they did not think through. In the short span of less than a week, Romeo has gone from being lovesick over a girl named Rosaline to falling deeply in love with Juliet, who also loved him back. They got married, and not even a day after, Romeo was banished from Verona and Juliet's parents had made wedding plans for Juliet to marry the county Paris. It would be quite accurate to state that the story of Romeo and Juliet's lives were a warning of the hastiness of youth and adults and where rushed decisions could lead, as the two star-crossed lovers eventually both took their own lives; resulting in grief in both households, and a future warning to all to think decisions through, as one wrong choice could cause harm, bloodshed, and even the end of lives.

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