Bound by Society: Exploring the Impact of Social Expectations in Romeo and Juliet The play Romeo and Juliet argues that social expectations in general heavily impact someone. Social norms, no matter the size of the population, are always placed upon an individual. Like for instance Juliet, the play shows how women are supposed to marry men and daughters are expected to be obedient to their parents. These social expectations placed on people are like chains holding them down and not allowing them freedom. The play shows us how important it is that we try to learn to put less expectations on people. At the beginning of the play, Act 1. Sc. 2, Capulet, and Paris talk about Paris potentially marrying Juliet. “Let two more summers wither in their …show more content…
She believes that Juliet is only sad because Tybalt was killed and thinks that if Paris marries Juliet, she will be happy. Lady Capulet is expecting that Juliet will feel better about Romeo being banished and Tybalt’s death in the morning. Not even a full day and she already wants to tell Juliet that she is going to be marrying Paris. Lady Capulet and Juliet have a conversation about Romeo and in that conversation Lady Capulet states” As that the villain that lives which slaughtered him” (3.5.80-85) Lady Capulet is mad that Romeo is still alive, and she expresses it to Juliet. Juliet feels bad about her mother’s statement because this is the man she loves, and her parents want him dead. Not only that, but Juliet believes that she might not ever get to see her husband again. Capulet gets angry with Juliet because she does not want to marry Paris and he states, “To go with Paris to Saint Peter’s Church, or I will drag thee on a hurdle thither.” (3.5,155-160) Capulet and Lady Capulet are forcing Juliet into a situation she does not want to be in while she is already in despair that she cannot be with her …show more content…
Juliet goes to Nurse for reassurance because she doesn't know what to do in this situation and Nurse says, “I think it best you married with the county.” (3.5.230) Juliet attempts to get comfort from Nurse, the person that is the closest to her and she even tells Juliet to marry Paris. Juliet is alone at this point, none of her family understands her and they just expect her to be okay with marrying Paris. With Nurse’s statement to Juliet, that really made Juliet feel like she was alone because Nurse is closer to Juliet than anyone else and she is agreeing with her parents. Continuing Nurse and Juliet’s conversation Nurse states “For it excels your first, or if it did not,/Your first is dead, or ‘twere as good he were/As living here and you no use of him.”(3.5.235) Nurse gives Juliet her opinion on Paris marrying Juliet. She believes that Paris is an upgrade from Romeo and that Romeo is basically dead and even if he was still in Verona he is useless. Juliet is also expected to marry Paris by Nurse now and Nurse is like her mother figure Juliet feels alone
Lady Capulet is very materialistic and she wants Juliet to gain wealth and status by marrying Paris ‘’Share all that he doth possess’’. In addition, because she got married at a young age, therefore she thinks it’s right for Juliet to be married at a young age ‘’I was likely your mother at just about your age’’. Moreover, she constantly urges Juliet to marry Paris without any sense of consideration for Juliet’s opinions or feelings, about the alliance of the marriage. Furthermore, this illustrates her cold attitude towards love and marriage as she only talks about Paris Social position and wealth.
Lord Capulet is a loving father who deeply cares for Juliet. When he arranges the marriage between her and Paris, he is just trying to do what he feels is best for her. He knows Paris, being handsome and rich, will make a good husband to Juliet. When she refuses to marry Paris he goes into a violent rage, saying things he doesn’t mean. “Hang thee, young baggage, disobedient wretch! / I tell thee what: get thee to church o’Thursday, / Or never after look me in the face.”(3.5.166-168). He feels that the marriage of the two will be beneficial for Juliet and he loves her so much that he doesn’t mean to hurt her feelings. When Juliet “dies” he laments. “Despised, distressed, hated, martyred, killed! / Uncomfortable time, why cam’st thou now/ To murder, murder our solemnity? / O child! O child! My soul and not my child! / Dead art thou! Alack, my child is dead, / And with my child my joys are buried.” (4.5.65-70). He cries out in a pain and anguish for his lost daughter Juliet. By showing emotion on account of her death and for her disobedience, Capulet shows that he really does care for Juliet and that he is a good father, wanting the best for her.
Juliet’s character is a collection of innocence, youth and naïveness. Her portrayal, however, did not fit well with the stereotypical view of how an Elizabethan women should have been. Women back then had to obey their fathers and husbands. They weren’t granted free will and so Juliet initial portrayal is girl who is an obeying daughter but when she discovers love she becomes a disobedient daughter to be faithful to her husband (Romeo).
The Nurse disregards Juliet’s feelings for Romeo and takes the easy option, telling her to marry Paris, “I think you are happy in this second match, for it excels your first”. Juliet despises the Nurse for saying this.
Romeo and Juliet is a riveting tale of two star-crossed lovers who uncover the dangers of passion and greed, and tragically end up dying, when the stars of fate refuse to line up in their favor. While fate may be guilty in the tragic outcome of the play, Lord Capulet’s greedy outlook upon his daughter Juliet, is the relationship that is most responsible for the untimely demise of the two lovers. When overwhelmed by greed and selfishness, Lord Capulet’s decisions drive Juliet to make risky, irrational choices out of desperation to avoid marriage to Paris, which ultimately lead to her, and Romeo’s, tragic end.
Instead of making sure Juliet is out of harm's way she pushes her onto the path. Lady Capulet shows no caring towards Juliet such as being uncertain of Juliet's precise age (Chang 1). Lady Capulet also insisted on Juliet marrying Paris because he is wealthy even though Juliet does not have any interest in him (Fabry 66). Throughout the play Lady Capulet was presented by only wanting money and not caring what she does to reach her goal. It is obvious that she married Lord Capulet for his wealth because clues are shown in the play about her being scornful of his age. Such as when her husband wants to fight Lord Montague and asks for his sword, but she suggests a crutch instead (Fabry 10). Lady Capulet is distant from Juliet and always sides with her husband. Even when Lord Capulet is threatening Juliet that he is going to hit her and throw her out of the house if she does not obey him, Lady Capulet still supports her husband's decision. Lady Capulet shows no emotion to her daughter, but when Juliet is dead, she is filled with sorrow (Fabry 10). The Prince isn't all innocent either. Yes, he does threaten the two families if there was any sort of fighting with each other the punishment will be death, but he never follows through with his orders, which continues the quarrel of the Capulets and Montagues. When Romeo kills Tybalt he is only exiled from the city, but when a crime such as murder has occurred the punishment is to be
The decision of pursuing personal desire or choosing to conform is a conflict that every person in life experiences. In his play, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare portrayed that the aforementioned conflict was existent in everyone’s life, and, depending upon what they chose, there would be corresponding repercussions. Shakespeare displays this conflict when the protagonist, Romeo, attends the ball, marries Juliet, and kills Tybalt.
The Nurse makes mistakes which not only confuse Juliet, but also make her lose trust. In the beginning of the play, she supports Juliet through her actions and behaviour; she helps deliver messages to Romeo in secrecy and even encourages them both to get married. However, when Juliet needs the Nurse’s support the most, she quickly abandons Juliet. She immediately switches from favouring Romeo to taking Paris’ side when asked her opinion. As Juliet is making decisions about Romeo, Nurse states, “Romeo is banish’d; and all the world to nothing, / that he dares ne’er come back to challenge you.” (3.5.214-215). She obviously does not truly understand the feelings of true love that Juliet is experiencing, and these harsh words spark Juliet’s decision to exclude Nurse from her plans. As Juliet starts to question the Nurse’s decisions, she asks, “Speakest thou from thy heart?” (3.5.226). This demonstrates that Juliet can no longer trust her Nurse with any of her secrets. Juliet feels betrayed by her Nurse, which is part of the reason she decides not to include the Nurse in her plan with Romeo and Friar Laurence. If Nurse had known what was going to unfold, she might have been able to intervene at some point, and the lives of Romeo and Juliet might have been saved. The Nurse is one of the key factors towards their death, however, the biggest factor is Juliet’s
He did not give much thought on how Juliet feels about the marriage and agrees to marry the two even though Juliet had not given him consent. For example, when Paris asks Capulet if Juliet would love him; Capulet responds, "Of my child 's love: I think she will be ruled. In all respects by me; nay, more, I doubt it not." (4.3.13-14). Capulet’s relationship with Juliet is superficial; he does not understand or know his daughter well. By creating the wedding, he causes Juliet to become desperate as she would be marrying someone she doesn’t love. To add to the matter, instead of trying to understand his daughter’s perspective, he becomes aggressive and gives her with an ultimatum. Capulet shouts, “Disobedient wretch! I tell thee what: get thee to church o 'Thursday, Or never after look me in the face.” (3.5.160-163). By forcing Juliet into marriage, she becomes desperate and causes her to begin considering death as a way out. "I 'll to the friar, to know his remedy; If all else fail, myself have power to die." (3.5.241-242). Capulet’s controlling and aggressive parenting forces Juliet to marry someone she does not love. Furthermore, this causes Juliet to starts considering suicide as a way out. Capulet’s actions to forcefully marry Juliet to Paris brings her death because it results in the Friar’s potion plan which would cause the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. If Capulet did not
Although Capulet wanted the best for Juliet, he didn't give a thought on how she felt and had forced her to marry Paris which had caused problems that led to her tragic end. She didn't want to marry someone who she did not love and wanted to escape this marriage. Her method of escape was death. Capulet's controlling actions appeared as early as Act I Scene 2, when he was arranging Juliet's marriage to Paris without her consent. Paris wondered if Juliet would like him and Capulet responded with, "Of my child's love: I think she will be ruled. In all respects by me; nay, more, I doubt it not." (IV, 3, ln. 13-14). stating that he doesn't just think Juliet will like him but that he knows she will like him. When Juliet refuses to marry Paris, he shouted, "To go with Paris to Saint Peter's Church, Or I will drag thee on a hurdle thither." (V, 3, ln. 154-155). making her agree to go to the church. Although she did agree to go, her thought of, "I'll to the friar, to know his remedy; If all else fail, myself have power to die." (V, 3, ln. 241-242). showed that she did not plan on marrying Paris and that she would die first. Juliet's arrangement to Paris had brought her death because it had resulted in the potion plan which had caused Romeo and Juliet to die. If Capulet had never forced Juliet to marry Paris, she would have been living happily with Romeo.
To become part of society or not to become part of society, that is the question. In the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet must answer the question of being an individual or letting society overcome them. Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet are star-crossed lovers that fight a patriarchal society that causes them to make the ultimate sacrifice to be in a world where their love is pertinent. Embracing individuality is favored in Romeo and Juliet causing secret meetings, a fear of morning, and lurking around tombs which reinforces the notions that isolation is necessary to be free and night provides safety.
The societal roles and expectations forced upon Juliet regarding her identity impact her actions and decisions. Juliet’s expected contributions to society were based on her gender,her social class and family name, and her age.
Capulet was far more direct a part of Juliet’s death than Tybalt was. Also a Capulet, he had fought with the Montagues on numerous occasions. He did not force Romeo to leave his party, but whether he was prepared to be friendly with the Montagues was another matter. Juliet believed that her father would never approve of her marriage to Rome, so she kept it a secret. As a result of being unaware that his daughter had already married, Capulet arranged Juliet’s marriage to Paris, Capulet assumed that she was crying in grief over Tybalt and would be heartened by getting married. When Juliet insisted she didn’t wish to marry Paris, he would hear none of it. He thought her ungrateful and disobedient, and he refused to change his plans. Juliet could see no way out except to fake her own death. Had Capulet been more understanding and flexible, Juliet’s fake death – and, later, her real one – could have been avoided.
This shows that the nurse is really more like a maternal figure in Juliet’s life. Juliet trusts the Nurse and turns to her for support in times of need, especially after the dispute with her father about marriage. Juliet was upset about the arranged marriage, and she was already married to Romeo, so after her parents left she turned to the nurse for guidance. “O God!-O Nurse, how shall this be prevented?/ My husband is on earth, my faith in heaven…”(Ⅲ,ⅴ,205-206). Juliet asked the Nurse how she can prevent the arranged marriage from happening. She stated that her husband, Romeo, is on earth, but she loves her parents and doesn't want to disappoint them. Juliet had the opportunity to talk to her mother at this part, because her father left giving her the opportunity, however she waited for her mother to leave so
Juliet’s arranged marriage with Paris, as well as the ancient feud between Capulets and Montagues, eventually contributed to the deaths of their children. In Act 1 Scene 2, Paris asks Capulet, ‘But now, my lord, what say you to my suit?’ which shows that Capulet and Paris are discussing Juliet’s possible marriage without consulting her, perhaps implying they think she is too nave to decide on her future. They are arranging her marriage for her, which implies that men are very controlling of women’s lives, especially those of their daughters. The scene establishes how Juliet is subject to parental influence, and how she is very constrained since her father can force her to marry whoever he wants. Juliet’s status as a woman leaves her with no power or choice in the decision of whom she should marry.