Heroes are usually described to be the “good” character that fixes a problem in the story. However, in the story of Romeo and Juliet the “hero” doesn’t help fix the problem, he causes the problem. This is called a tragic hero and is described to be someone who starts off in good standing or position and is led to downfall because of a fault of his/her own. The character that does, in fact, fall into the category of the tragic hero is by far Friar Lawrence. This can be shown throughout the play on multiple occasions as he attempts to help the main characters find true happiness, but the attempts fail because of his own fault. Friar Lawrence can be determined to be the biggest factor in leading the two star-crossed lovers into a very tragic death. …show more content…
Overall, Friar Lawrence is indeed described as the tragic hero, as he created chaos with intentions of a good man. To start off, the character of Friar Lawrence showed a very prominent quality of nativity. This can be shown the most during the marriage of Romeo and Juliet. Friar Lawrence truly believed that marrying the two would bring the two families closer, stating “For this alliance may be so happy prove to turn your households’ rancour to pure love”(2.3, 91-92). The quote states exactly what his motive was when he married the two teenagers, he explicitly said the marriage might stop the fighting of the two households. This was naive of him to believe that marrying the children of two families at war would stop the fighting, as it did nothing of the sort. Also, he gave Romeo the advice to “love moderately” (2.6, 14). This quote was stated by Friar Lawrence close to the marriage scene, as it said that Romeo should not go crazy for loving someone he just met. However, that is exactly what Romeo does and Friar Lawrence was naive to think that a boy that has found his one true love in less than a day would not go crazy without that true love. This is significant to the thesis of Friar Lawrence is the tragic hero because his naivety caused the unwanted marriage of two children that barely know each other in hopes of fixing everything. To reiterate, Friar Lawrence’s naivety clouded his decision making and caused him to marry two children that are basically strangers to one another. Next, the Friar showed that he could be very manipulative, as the play goes on.
This is because he manipulated the whole city of Verona into believing that Juliet was dead. He created his biggest scheme to drug Juliet and provide her with happiness. When Juliet took the drug, the Friar was there and acted surprised in front of the Capulets faces, stating “Confusion’s cure lives not in these confusions. Heaven and yourself had part in this fair maid. Now heaven hath all” (4.5, 65-67). The quote means that heaven has taken Juliet from the Capulets or Juliet has died. Even though he knew that Juliet was alive, he explicitly lied to everyone in Verona and went against his moral code of being a Friar. Also, he manipulated Romeo into believing that he should leave and that everything would be okay. The moment that Romeo killed Tybalt and got banished, Friar Lawrence manipulated him into believing that everything would be alright. He created a scheme for Romeo, stating “Beg pardon of the Prince, and call thee back with twenty hundred thousand times more joy” (3.3, 152). Friar Lawrence made Romeo think that Friar Lawrence would help him, but they never did beg the Prince for pardon. This relates to the theme of a tragic hero because belief is a huge part of the story. Specifically, Capulet’s belief that Paris is good and Romeo and Juliet’s belief that true love exists. Since Friar Lawrence has shown that he is a master of manipulation, he is able to change other character’s beliefs and creates chaos through his
words. Finally, Friar Lawrence was probably one of the most reckless characters within the play of Romeo and Juliet. This may come as a shock to some people because all he did was try to help. However, he made a lot of reckless moves through the play. For example, the plan to fake Juliet’s death and sending a child to prevent Romeo from freaking out. Once again, the plan to fake Juliet’s death shows up again as one of the main moments that Friar Lawrence turned into the tragic hero. He created that plan on the spot to prevent Juliet from killing herself, stating “Hold, daughter. I do spy a kind of hope.” (4.1, 68) and “That copest with death himself to ‘scape from it. An if thou darest, I’ll give thee remedy.” (4.1, 66-67). He recklessly executed preventive measures and momentarily stopped Juliet from killing herself. In addition, Friar Lawrence made a crucial error in sending Friar John to deliver the message to Romeo. This is because, in the movie that was shown, Friar John was depicted as a child younger than Romeo and Juliet. The fact that Friar Lawrence entrusted a child with such an important job is reckless and ultimately becomes the main cause of Romeo’s death. Friar Lawrence being reckless ties in with the theme because his recklessness created the biggest problem that was Juliet and her fake death. Juliet’s fake death created all sorts of problems that lead to the deaths of Romeo, Juliet, and Paris. One of the only men that helped Romeo and Juliet showed multiple characteristics of a tragic hero. Friar Lawrence, being the character with the most traits of a tragic hero; lack of judgment, hastiness, and the ability to influence people. As previously mentioned, Friar Lawrence was doing everything in his power to get Romeo and Juliet their “happy ending”. However, he showed that he had the traits to be a tragic hero and ultimately prevented Romeo and Juliet from having that “happy ending” Friar Lawrence was only trying to help the two star-crossed lovers be together. He successfully achieved that goal because they both went to heaven.
Friar Lawrence is a humble and holy who is respected by the other characters. Figurative language and dramatic conventions give a well-grounded understanding of his motives, traits and values. His main motive is peace between the families he “All I had wanted to achieve was peace.” As a friar he respects the Montague’s and Capulet’s. The quote represents his motive that he wanted the feuding to stop. When he married Romeo and Juliet he wished for more then their happiness. He hoped that the marriage would bring families together. When witnessing the deaths he says in sorrow, “I’m a friar holy and peaceful.” “Oh lord the poor deaths that lie in front of me. Are due to my greed to resolve the feud.” The term friar represents his traits, being
The Friar frequently encourages Romeo and Juliet to lie and sneak around. However, as a religious leader, Friar Lawrence should be teaching Romeo and Juliet about honesty and obedience. When Romeo is banished, the Prince tells him to leave Verona right away, but instead of leaving, he visits the Friar. When Romeo is crying about his punishment, Friar suggests that Romeo stays in Verona until the sun rises when he says, “Go, get thee to thy love, as was decreed. Ascend her chamber. Hence and comfort her”(151). In this instance, Friar Lawrence is not only encouraging but telling Romeo that he should lie and go against the rules. As a religious leader, or even just as a human being, Friar Lawrence shouldn’t be telling Romeo to break the law. After
The first reason Friar Lawrence should be punished is because, Friar kept secrets from everyone but Romeo and Juliet. One of the secrets that he kept from everyone was when he married them. “Come, come with me, and we will make short work;/ For, by your leaves, you shall not stay alone/ Till holy church incorporate two in one.”(I.vi.35-37) In other words, Friar is telling Juliet that she needs to go so then he will come up with another plan for things, for what he desires them to do
Friar Lawrence in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet "We still have known thee for a holy man"
Friar Lawrence is responsible for Romeo and Juliet’s stronger affections for each other because he married them and therefore binding their love. Friar Lawrence also came up with a risky solution to get Romeo and Juliet together for the rest of their lives without anyone knowing. However, it consisted of faking Juliet’s death and Romeo did not know she was not actually dead, but alive. Friar Lawrence’s messenger did not tell Romeo the plan in time because Romeo had already heard of Juliet’s death and had gone to her tomb to die with her. Friar Lawrence is responsible for the star-crossed lovers’ death because of his miscalculated
In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence is the antagonist as seen in his “mistakes” of marrying children from two feuding, noble households, giving the desperate Juliet the sleeping potion, and leaving Juliet at her tomb to kill herself. He schemes and has the characters believe it is out of his love for Romeo and Juliet; as in their eyes, he is a fatherly figure. He is an older man who should be out to help the citizenry of Verona, but being egotistical, he uses Romeo and Juliet for his personal desires to end the feud between the families. Being egocentric has the Friar make rash decisions in situations that he had not planned for. When the Capulets and the Montagues come together after the death of their children, Friar Lawrence says, “Her nurse is privy; and if aught in this/ Miscarried by my fault, let my old life/ Be sacrificed some hour before his time/
Friar Lawrence didn’t think of what was lawfully right, but of the destiny of two people, that were very important to him. He cared for them, and wished Romeo and Juliet well. He valued them as his own children. It goes to show that Friar Lawrence was human, also, and not perfect, since no one can be perfect.
Those actions were associated with the death of Romeo and Juliet. Friar Lawrence is known for being a man of wisdom, but during this period of five days he helped Romeo do everything he wasn’t supposed to do. Even more so to marry a Capulet! Friar Lawrence was an accomplice in the secret romance of Romeo Montague, and Juliet Capulet. After Romeo slaughtered Tybalt and was banished from Verona, he went to Mantua, where only The Nurse and Friar Lawrence knew where he was.
Had Friar Lawrence not been involed with Romeos and Juliets decisions the story may not have had a tragic ending. In William Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence should be blamed for the death of the two main characters. The first mistake Friar Lawrence does, is secretly marrying the two lovers with out the parents consent right after romeo had just loved his "perfect" Rosaline. Then, he agrees, to the Capulet’s, to marry Paris and Juliet. Lastly, the worst mistake was he giving Juliet the sleeping potion. All of his actions combined lead to the main character’s suicidal action.
Throughout the next few lines spoken, is where I believe the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is initiated, for if Romeo had not trusted and spoken of his love with an enemy; saying “I have been feasting with mine enemy “Juliet, Romeo also explains that Juliet feels the same for him. Then Friar Lawrence would not have felt the responsibility to try and reunite and mend the strife between the Montague’s and Capulet’s. In the final scene of this act Romeo, then asks the priest to bless their love and join them in marriage. Friar Lawrence, does question the true feelings of Romeo and doesn’t light -heartedly make a quick conclusion to marry them, asking Romeo” Holy Saint Francis what change is here?... ...
In Romeo and Juliet, a tragedy by William Shakespeare, Friar Lawrence plays a dominate role in the eventual death of Romeo and Juliet even though he is not on stage for most of the play. There are basically three major parts that lead to the tragedy; the marriage, the plan, and the inevitable deaths in all which Friar Lawrence plays a vital role.Friar Lawrence plays an essential role in the marriage of young Romeo and Juliet. At Romeo’s request Friar Lawrence states, "In one respect I’ll thy assistant be; for this alliance may so happy prove, to turn your households to pure love" (Act 2 Scene 3.) Friar Lawrence believes that this holy marriage would bring the Capulet family and Montuague family closer together, for he anticipates that the families will stop hating each other and be peaceful. His attempts to make the marriage of Romeo and Juliet are admirable but poorly planned.
Friar Lawrence’s advice to Juliet, and Juliet’s reaction, enunciate the theme of love as a cause of violence because her love for Romeo, and the fact that the Friar can’t stop her from marrying Paris, will lead her to the violent act of killing herself. Friar Lawrence is a part of the action, character development, and themes of Romeo and Juliet. Without Friar Lawrence, the steps leading up to the tragedy at the end of the story would not have been possible, along with the strong characterization of Romeo. Lastly, through Friar Lawrence, the inevitability of fate and violence being caused by love were able to be emphasized more deeply. Although secondary characters are less important than the main characters, most of them have a strong impact on the story and its meaning.
A hero is described as someone who, in the opinion of others, has "special qualities and is perceived as a role model.” In the play Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, Friar Lawrence fits this definition of a hero. Friar Lawrence is a selfless character who is always trying to help others and make people happy. In the play, the Friar does heroic acts, such as marrying Romeo and Juliet and by doing that hoping to end the feud between the Capulet and Montague families. Also, he comes up with a plan for Juliet not to kill herself and have her escape to be with Romeo, and finally he admits to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. All three of these deeds deem The Friar as the hero in Romeo and Juliet. The author, William Shakespeare uses literary
Romeo is seen as a tragic hero because of the many examples of his good and bad character. This follows Aristotle’s definition because it proves him to be a character that is neither completely good nor completely bad. Romeo loves Juliet with kindness and generosity, but to love her is forbidden. Also, he tries to prevent a second fight between the two families in the streets of Verona, but later kills Tybalt, his love’s cousin. These things make Romeo both good and bad, therefore a tragic hero.
Friar Lawrence had the potential to prevent the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, and instead, because of his choices, he caused them. Yes, the other characters may have contributed to Romeo and Juliet’s death, but Friar Lawrence caused it. The blame rests solely on his soldiers. Works Cited Aubrey, Bryan. A “Critical Essay on ‘Romeo and Juliet’.