Romeo And Juliet Hasty Decisions Essay

Hasty decisions are something people struggle with, whether it be in Shakespeare’s time or present day. They can affect lives in different ways, many of which are negative. For teens today, a hasty decision might be having fun with their friends instead of doing their homework. For Romeo and Juliet, it was getting married within a day of meeting each other. In Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, hasty decisions create big mistakes and issues and are made many times in the play. This includes the suicides of Romeo and Juliet, the marriage, and Romeo and Tybalt fighting.

One of the first hasty decisions made in Romeo and Juliet was the secret, and sudden, marriage of Romeo and Juliet. This was a hasty decision because they had only just met, and already proclaimed that it was meant to be. Without having second thoughts, they arranged a time to get married. This caused many issues to come, including conflict between Juliet and her parents, the nurse abandoning Juliet, and Romeo getting in the middle of Mercutio and Tybalt’s fight. Juliet’s parents demanded that Juliet marry Paris, which she would not do because of

her bond with Romeo. Capulet says to Juliet, “And you be mine, I’ll give you to my friend; /And you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets” (Shakespeare 3.4.193-194). This demonstrates how rough the relationship between the pair got. The nurse abandoning Juliet because the marriage with Romeo was getting to complicated, and thought that she should just forget it. In addition, Romeo got in the middle of the fight between Tybalt and Mercutio. He tried to protect both parties, since he now had a family relationship with Tybalt, but it resulted in more conflict. This examples all show how the hasty decision of getting married did not end well for the couple, and multiple issues could have prevented had they not done such a thing.
Furthermore, Romeo’s decision to fight Tybalt was a hasty one that impacted his life negatively. Some of the direct results where Tybalt’s death, Romeo’s banishment, and Romeo and Juliet’s situation getting harder than before. Tybalt’s death lead to more tension between the families, and the idea of marrying Juliet and Paris to lighten the mood. The prince pronounces the banishment of Romeo, “And for that offense /Immediately we do exile him hence” (Shakespeare 3.1.188-189). This brought Romeo into depression and a difficult position, having to live in Mantua. The fight also made it hard on the newly wed couple, because they could not live close, and Romeo killed a relative of Juliet. All in all, Romeo made a choice at the spur of the moment, and it cost him, and people that he loved. Had he given himself time to think and realized what he was jeopardizing, he could have had an easier life.
Finally, the suicides of Romeo and Juliet was a abrupt decision that caused additional conflict and problems.

If not for that choice, Romeo and Juliet could still be alive. Romeo would have realized Juliet isn’t dead if he had waiting but a moment. In the time before he dies, he says “Thou art not conquered. Beauty’s ensign yet /Is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks/ And death’s pale flag is not advances there” (Shakespeare 5.3.94-96). He sees that Juliet doesn’t look quite dead, but continues with the suicide anyways. Also, Paris could be alive if Romeo never showed up. He would have mourned for Juliet, but then could have gone home safely if he hadn’t been disturbed by Romeo, coming to Juliet’s grave for different reasons. Likewise, Friar got in trouble because of the suicides. He was a witness, and is proven guilty once the truth is

revealed.
Overall, in Romeo and Juliet, hasty decisions come up many times and create big mistakes and issues in the play. Including the suicides of Romeo and Juliet, the marriage, and Romeo and Tybalt fighting, hasty decisions negatively affected many lives.