Fate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Fate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

I believe that the characters in Romeo and Juliet have free will, in

the drama. However, the audience learns from the chorus that whatever

their intentions or decisions are, will turn out badly because of

several flaws in different character’s personalities.

- Romeo says that he will defy fate and will go to Juliet.

- Juliet defies fate, instead of marrying Paris she pretends to be

dead.

- Romeo had a premonition not to go to the masked ball but his

decision was to go any ways after Benvolio’s and Mercutio’s

insistence.

- Romeo’s character flaw is that he would not have killed himself if

he hadn’t rushed into the situation with Juliet. Even the Friar makes

a point of telling Romeo not to stumble.

- Romeo didn’t rush into things like killing Tybalt, he wouldn’t be

exiled. His own weakness in character.

- Getting married. When knowing marriage can’t work.

- Romeo wore a mask so that other Capulets wouldn’t notice that he was

a Montague.

- Juliet’s flaw in personality is that she trusts the nurse too much,

who always talks about nonsense and keeps changing her mind. First

telling Juliet to marry Romeo despite her thinking that Paris was a

man of wax and than betraying her by telling her to marry Paris. If

she was more dependant, she may not have married Romeo so quickly.

Fate

-Agree odd that message can’t be delivered because of plague

‘Fate plays no role in the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. The blame

should rest solely on the two lovers and the friar.’

It is vital that main characters in the play regarded themselves as

having no free will and considered themselves to be controlled by

fate. Several times in the play they deliberately made choices to try

to defy fate, and all bad results of their own actions are blamed on

destiny. An example would be just before Romeo kills himself, saying