Romeo And Juliet Selfish Decisions Essay

Romeo and Juliet, by Shakespeare was a tragic story of two young lovers whose deaths brought an end to their families' feuding.  Romeo and Juliet, liked by some, known by many; this is a different take on how these adventurous lovers… specifically who is responsible for their deaths?  Selfish decisions create more problems than solutions as the two scramble to fulfill their desires.  Haste leaves no room for the two to plan their decisions and successfully execute their plan. Ultimately, their deceit results in the end of both of their lives.

At first glance, both of the families seem responsible. It is clear, however, Romeo is responsible.  He was in control of much of what happened.  He having one love, sought another.  He committed murder

and flew from prosecution.  He did what was best for himself and did not think of Juliet when he made her his accomplice in his scheme to escape.  
Even considering how Juliet, displayed herself as quiet, obedient, and passive-- in reality she defied her parents for someone that she just met.

His hold on her was stronger than her own morals.  Onto the people that Juliet interacted with, Nurse was just not a good influence. She treated Juliet’s feelings as a joke because everything regarding love was comical to her. This trait allowed Nurse to underestimate Juliet and get blindsided. Paris shouldn’t have tried to marry Juliet without asking how she felt about the marriage, he forced his self on her. Little did he know, it he’d end up dead for doing so. I couldn’t say that Paris played a major part in the death of Romeo and Juliet. He simply wanted to marry the wrong person which put him in the wrong place at the wrong time. Both Lord Capulet and Lady Capulet share equal blame. They tried to force her into marriage with someone that she didn’t like at all. Tybalt really initiated the situation with Romeo getting banned from Verona. If Tybalt wasn’t so short tempered he wouldn’t have battled and killed Mercutio. Tybalt wouldn’t have been killed by Romeo, which means Romeo wouldn’t have committed the crime of killing Tybalt. Yet, he did and everyone was willing to play a role in his cover

up. 
Why is this?

He was obviously impulsive, he was grieving for Rosaline and instantly gained feelings for Juliet after seeing her. Because of his pursuit for another, he tarnished the reputations and well being of others.  For example, another character, Mercutio was a lot like Nurse. They both view romance as a joke.  In Act 1, Page 4, Scene 2 Mercutio said “If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.” Other than that Tybalt was a good friend because he defended Romeo by fighting Mercutio. Prince banished Romeo for killing Mercutio, but in my eyes that was fair. Benvolio didn’t do anything bad, he tried to retain peace between everyone.  

Some characters seem to have their own agendas.  Friar Laurence used Romeo and Juliet to try to fix the feud. He had good intentions, but he should not have used children to fix something that started before their time. Friar John on the other hand had a message to deliver. Why did so many participate in a plan to deceive?Did each have reasons of their own?  When the message not being delivered caused Romeo to think that Juliet was dead. This made him go see Apothecary which set the tone for the

tragedy.  
There is no real debate.  The person most responsible for the death of Romeo and Juliet is Romeo. Romeo was overwhelmingly selfish. He was very impulsive.  He began his demise by going to a party that he was wrongfully invited and he knew that. If he didn’t go to the party he wouldn’t have met Juliet. Also, others would not have made bad choices and there would be no tragic story to tell.  He chose to do what he desired and created a web of dishonesty  We can all learn from this tragedy that honesty is always best.