Love Overpowers Hate in Romeo and Juliet

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Love is a very powerful force which some believe has the capability to overpower hate. Within the play, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare displays various events in which the characters convey the message that love can conquer all. The characters in this play continue to forgive the ones they love, even under harsh circumstances. Additionally, Shakespeare effectively demonstrates how Romeo and Juliet’s love for one another overpowers significant emotional scenes within the play, including the feuding between their two families. Furthermore, by the end of the play the reader sees how love defeats the shock of death and how Romeo and Juliet’s love ends the ancient feud between the Capulets and Montagues. Using these three events, the reader sees Shakespeare’s message of how love can conquer all. In the desperate battle between love and hate, Shakespeare believes love to be the more powerful force in the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare shows throughout the play how the characters continue to forgive the ones they love, even in the harsh circumstances. Angered by the death of his good friend Mercutio, Romeo slays Tybalt. “This gentleman, the Prince’s near ally, /My friend, hath got this mortal hurt In my behalf-my reputation stained /With Tybalt’s slander-Tybalt, that an hour /Hath been my cousin.”(3, 1, 104-108). Juliet could have been very angry with Romeo since Tybalt was her cousin but she was more heartbroken over Romeo’s exile. Shakespeare displays that Juliet’s love for Romeo overpowered the hate she had for him killing Tybalt. In addition, Shakespeare displayed that love conquers hate through the relationship between Juliet and her father, Lord Capulet. Near the end of the play Capulet told Juliet that she had ... ... middle of paper ... ... end the feud between the families and how the love between Romeo and Juliet brought the families closer together. Ultimately`, William Shakespeare shows in many different ways throughout the play, ‘Romeo and Juliet’, that love is the more powerful force than hate. The readers see how the characters continuously forgive one another, even when the conditions are tough. The friendships between specific characters display a loving bond that cannot be broken with hate. Shakespeare demonstrates that Romeo and Juliet’s love can overpower the hate of many events in the play. He shows that their love can even overpower the death of one of their own family members. Romeo and Juliet’s love brings friendship between their feuding families. This story is a true example of how love can conquer all. Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Toronto: ITP Nelson, 1997.

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