The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. Free will or fate? The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is a play about two young lovers who were in two different royal families. Throughout the story, many obstacles come into play which cause them to make rash choices. In the end, all of these complications ultimately lead to the lovers’ deaths. Some people think that this was an act of fate. Others think that their deaths were caused by their actions and choices. Fate might have had a few appearances, but both of Shakespere’s characters in the play made their own decisions. Which not only affected them, but it affected other people in the play, even the ones that they loved. Romeo is considered a romantic character with a different view …show more content…
Some may say that free will has little to do with the play, instead, it is fate that has control over it, including their lives. Romeo clearly states that he believes that fate does exist and that he is a victim of it. He states, “... with this night’s revels and expire the term of a despised life, closed in my breast, by some wile forfeit of untimely death. But he that hath the steerage of my course directs my sail! On, lusty gentlemen, aww! Shakespeare I. IV. 109-112). See also This is a reasonable claim since everything in the play somehow falls into place. It can be compared to the domino effect. However, it becomes evident that free will plays a bigger role in the story than fate. Romeo even stated that fate is unlogical and a hoax. Romeo declares, “Is it e’en so? Then I defy you stars!” (Shakespeare V. I. 24. The aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid aforesaid Their love is not defined by fate, it was Romeo’s choice to go to the Capulet’s party and it was Juliet’s choice to fall in love with a person that was seen as their enemy. Fate is a supernatural belief, but in the end, it all comes down to the person and the decisions they
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.
So it is likely that Shakespeare meant for fate to be the cause of Romeo and Juliet's death. I think that the family feud is the main cause for the death of Romeo and Juliet. If the families were not so hateful towards each other Romeo and Juliet would not have kept there love for each other a secret, and they would have no need for committing suicide. This also backs up the point that fate could be to blame for their deaths.
Choices determine every outcome, A better way to put it is “What we do in life, echoes in eternity”, essentially every single decision one makes, no matter how minuscule, will always have an impact in one’s life. Fate isn’t real; Fate is a term commonly used by those that refuse to accept that they control their own future. Teenagers ever since the beginning of time were and still are expected to make poor choices due to their age. But once they learn to take responsibility for their actions, they become adults. Both Romeo and Juliet make multiple decisions, such as marrying, killing and suicide, without stepping back and thinking about the consequences.
Some people may not believe that destiny is something that truthfully exists in the world. These people doubt that there is anything that is actually meant to be, or supposed to happen, thinking that there is always a way around troubling predicaments, knowing that it is not necessary to turn out just one certain way. They trust that whatever occurs in their lives comes as a result of the decisions that they make with their own free will. Others believe that whatever happens during the course of their lives is inevitable and every event is laid out before them like a road map to life, in other words, fate. William Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet has fate as an exceptionally crucial element which makes fate as important as any character in the production. The events leading up to and during the party were definitely caused by fate. The moment that Romeo and Juliet meet is the exact incident that leads to their death, however unaware these "star-crossed lovers" are to that fact. Thus, fate is undoubtedly the most responsible influence for the couple's tragedy.
When the play begins, Romeo chooses to crash the ball. Even before the Capulet ball, Romeo predicts his “untimely death"(1.4,117). Fate did not make him go to the Capulet ball, he decided to go on his own, even though his “mind misgives some consequences”(1.4, 114). Another example of how free will comes to play is when Romeo finds out later on that Juliet his true love is his enemy. A "fear"(1.5.120), is placed in him. Nonetheless, he still continues to pursue the relationship even though he knows it will only end in trouble.
Romeo and Juliet is a play by William Shakespeare that tells the tale of two young lovers who come from opposing families. At first they don’t even know that the other exists; However, that all changes one night at a party that Juliet’s father, Lord Capulet, throws. Romeo and Juliet fall madly in love and rush to get married. Sadly, these two don’t get a happy ending, and one question remains: who or what is to blame for the lovers’ tragic end? Is it fate or human choice?
Free will ultimately brought about the death of Romeo and Juliet. Obviously Juliet and Romeo’s ending was predetermined for them because it is after all a play. Which in some ways invalidates the debate of whether or not they had free will. However with a willing suspension of reality we can analyze the events that take place had this been a real situation. The events leading up to Romeo and Juliet’s untimely death are at best circumstantial, and each one is individually preventable. Some of the events could be considered fate on the premise of a chain reaction, however for my purposes I will say that had they not made the choice that had started the chain reaction it would not have happened. Therefore, it is still based upon free will.
FLE: Romeo and Juliet: Fate Versus Free Will? “.A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;/.Do with their death bury their parents' strife./ The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,/ And the continuance of their parents' rage,/ Which, but their children's end, naught could remove,/ Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;/ The which if you with patient ears attend,/ What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.” (Prologue, lines 6-14, p.7) Romeo and Julie He describes Romeo and Juliet as “star-cross’d” (Prologue, line 6, p.7) and their love as “death-mark’d”
William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet tells the tragic story of two star-crossed lovers who belong to two opposite families: the Montagues and the Capulets. Romeo and Juliet; the protagonists meet at a party and instantly fall in love, they soon have the Friar perform for them a secret marriage. The play ends with Romeo and Juliet’s death this outcome is do to the protagonists’ free will.
Two lovers lay dead on the ground. One with a wisp of poison on his breath, and the other with a dagger inside her. In the prologue, Shakespeare reveals to us that two star-crossed lovers die because of their families’ ongoing feud. When the two families discover what has happened and how they caused it, the families agree to end the feud and no longer quarrel. Was Romeo’s and Juliet’s death at the hand of the family in the form of fate, or did their choices cause this tragedy? In the play, Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, free will is more dominant than fate in the outcome of the play and is shown by Juliet’s actions, Romeo’s actions, and the actions of others.
Shakespeare, through the dialogue and action of his characters, readily provides the evidence that both choice and fate are integral parts of human life. For example, Shakespeare illustrates fate through the words of Romeo who states, “I fear, too early, for my mind misgives some consequences, yet handing in the stars…” (I, IV, 116-117). Romeo believes that it is the stars that influence his life. It is not he who determines his life. He initially believes that his fate ultimately governs his choices, choices that cannot be controlled by humans. In addition, Shakespeare also reveals that choice plays a crucial role in determining fate. It is choice then that drives the decisions of the characters but these choices are made in the circumstance of their lives. And these circumstances cannot be removed from their consciousness. For instance, when Juliet says in her soliloquy before she drinks the sleeping potion, “Romeo, I come! This do I drink to thee” (IV, IV, 60) she is saying it is my fate and my choice to be with you. She chooses to drink the potion thus putting her into a coma-like sleep, and ultimately resulting in the death of them both. When Romeo declares, “Then I defy you, stars!” he is making the choice to challenge his fate of living without Juliet who he believes has died. Shakespeare has provided the evidence that fate and choice re so intertwined that they cannot be separated. Even the structure of his play alludes to this same perception.
Shakespeare uses the role of fate in Romeo and Juliet to show how love and bad decisions can change the ending of a story. First, fate brings these two “star-crossed lovers” together (R&J Prologue.6). The lovers are star-crossed because they are from two families (the Montagues and Capulets) that have had an “ancient grudge” (R&J Prologue.4). These two families hate each other so much their servants started a fight in the first scene just because they were from the other family. The fact that the lovers are star-crossed, yet they still love each other is a bad decision because it leads to their doom. Second, in the third act Romeo “slew Tybalt” because of fate (R&J 3.1.178). Tybalt hates Romeo for crashing the party where Romeo met Juliet and he also hates Romeo because he is a Montague. Paris hates Romeo even when Romeo did not get a choice in what family he was born into, it was fate. Then, Tybalt challenges Romeo to a duel but Tybalt ends up killing Mercutio. In anger from Mercutio’s death, Romeo kills Tybalt which gets him banished to Mantua. Even though he was angry over his friend’s death, this action was a bad decision by Romeo because the banishment caused problems for the lovers. Then, they have to find a way to still be together. To even more complicate the plot, Mr. Capulet promised Paris that will Juliet “shall be married to” him (R&J 3.4.21). This arrangement happens because Juliet was sad about Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s banishment. The marriage forces the Juliet to fake her death, which is the reason for Romeo’s suicide. Romeo committed suicide because he did not her death was fake. This is a bad decision because Juliet and Friar Lawrence should have found a way to tell Romeo before she fakes her death. Fourth, “Romeo [is] dead and Juliet” is dead too (R&J 5.1.196). The lovers died because they are star-crossed.
Fate is a dominating force which operates the development of events. Most people believe that fate is predestined and nothing can be changed. But even a person 's fate is determined by a complex combination of conditions and factors. It includes the choices people make according to the tendencies of their own mind, each time they encounter a specific circumstance. In the play of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare, the protagonists believe that their lives are controlled by destiny and luck. However, they had ability to choose what they wanted to do and change their fortune over their lives. Although fate seemed to influence what happened to Romeo and Juliet, their choices ultimately contributed to the result of tragedy because they made their
The novel I read—Stargirl—presented ideas about individuality and challenging standard social attitudes, practices, and, in general, social standards that we as everyday people are used to. Set in Mica Area High School, the story follows Stargirl Caraway as her unconventional behavior and free-spirited nature are new to the students of her school. Through the eyes of Stargirl Caraway, the novel prompts readers to ponder the importance of individuality. This analysis will explore Stargirl's character as a focal point for examining her impact on the overall literary effect. Stargirl Caraway plays a remarkable role as an individual throughout the novel.
In regards to Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare chose fate to be a strong underlying theme which constructs the basis of the story line. Fate has the ability to control the characters’ lives and one minor change in the way it had acted would have changed the entire outcome. Through Romeo and Juliet’s spontaneous encounter, fate was largely responsible for love at first sight alongside controlling the misfortunate events that occur as a result of their love. Apart from love and misfortune, Shakespeare suggests that Romeo and Juliet were destined to die the way they did, despite the fact that it was their choice to end their lives. The outcome of the play was a direct result of fate, which to a notable extent was responsible for the many events which were destined to occur.