Romeo And Juliet's Fault

Romeo and Juliet is one of the most well-known plays written by William Shakespeare. The play most famously details the tragic deaths of two star-crossed lovers, the namesakes of the play, Romeo and Juliet. People have consistently argued over the true cause of these young lovers’ deaths. There are a variety of factors leading to Romeo and Juliet’s deaths, including their parents’ negligence of their children’s actions, which factors in Romeo and Juliet committing suicide. However, they themselves are ultimately the ones at fault. A prime example that illustrates Romeo and Juliet’s influences on their own deaths is their tendency to rush into their marriage. Another notable example is Romeo’s flawed perception of love, as shown by his infatuation

with Rosaline.
The actions of one’s parents greatly affect their children, and this is exceptionally true in the case of Romeo and Juliet. Their parents are so immersed in their own lives that they are neglectful of their children’s desires and oblivious to their actions. One example of this is when Lady Montague asks Benvolio about the whereabouts of Romeo after the fight between the Montague and Capulet servants, saying, “O, where is Romeo? Saw you him ‘today?/ Right glad I am he was not at this fray” (1.1.114-115). This quote shows that Lady Montague is unaware of the whereabouts of her own son, even though she still seems to care about Romeo’s wellbeing. She expresses her joy at Romeo not participating in the brawl between the Montague and Capulet servants, but at the same time has not done anything in her ability to watch out for her son. The Montagues’ inattention to their son results in Romeo taking matters into his own hands - such as poisoning himself - even though he is too impulsive and rash to make his own decisions. The Capulets are just as guilty, if not more, of neglecting Juliet. After Romeo slays Tybalt, Capulet says to Paris, “Sir Paris, I will make a desperate tender/ Of my child’s love. I think she will be ruled/ In all respects by me; nay, more, I doubt it not” (3.4.12-14). Capulet tells Paris that he does not doubt that Juliet will agree to marry Paris, not knowing she was already married to Romeo. He does not take in consideration what Juliet may feel about his decision, but instead assumes that she will do as he says. This causes Juliet to take desperate measures to prevent the marriage, resulting in her death. Given the Montagues’ lack of attention towards Romeo, and the Capulets’ forceful nature towards Juliet, it is shown that Romeo and Juliet’s deaths are caused in part by their parents’ actions.
While the actions of Romeo and Juliet’s parents certainly do have an impact on the cause of their children’s deaths, one must also credit Romeo and Juliet themselves, since they rush too quickly into their relationship.

Juliet asks for Romeo’s hand in marriage merely hours after they first meet, when Romeo stalks Juliet at Capulet’s orchard, as shown in these lines: “If that thy bent of love be honourable,/ Thy purpose marriage, send me word to-morrow” (2.2.143-144). Romeo and Juliet rushing into marriage contributes to their untimely deaths because it strengthens their commitment to one another. This may not necessarily be a “bad” thing in every situation, but it is their commitment to each other that causes them to make rash decisions in order to be together. Their marriage bonds them together in both life as well as in death. Romeo is known to be impulsive and melodramatic, and Juliet is only thirteen years old, having never given a thought about love until she meets Romeo. Their entire relationship is driven by impulsive decisions and desperate actions at a time when they are both quite immature. Juliet is also subject to irrational thinking after her father forces her to marry Paris, threatening to Friar Lawrence that she will kill herself if she is forced to marry Paris. This is shown in the lines, “If, in thy wisdom, thou canst give no help,/ Do thou but call my resolution wise,/ And with this knife I’ll help it presently” (4.1.52-54). Juliet is not willing to think

rationally about the situation and immediately jumps to the conclusion that she must kill herself to be with Romeo. This causes Friar Lawrence to conduct a desperate plan in order to save her life, which is what ends up killing them in the end. Romeo and Juliet rushing into their relationship is a key factor in their deaths, since they decide to get married when neither of them are mature enough to handle love, and Juliet jumps to the conclusion of committing suicide when facing difficulties that involve their relationship.
Romeo and Juliet rushing into their relationship is in itself one of the main causes of their deaths, but Romeo’s fallacious view on love is what truly drives their lives to an end.

Romeo, at the beginning of the play, is infatuated with Rosaline because he finds her to be beautiful. When Benvolio confronts Romeo about what is troubling him, Romeo cries out, “[Rosaline] will not stay the siege of loving terms,/ Nor bide the encounter of assailing eyes,/ Nor ope her lap to saint-seducing gold./ O, she is rich in beauty, only poor/ That, when she dies, with beauty dies her store” (1.1.209-213). In this passage, Romeo is complaining about Rosaline refusing to be seduced for her beauty, which gives an idea of what his perception of love is. Romeo believes that love comes from the admiration of one’s physical features, which is also why he falls in love with Juliet. If not for Romeo’s admiration of Juliet’s physical beauty, he would not have pursued her at Capulet’s party and they would have never been in a relationship, so they would not have been able to kill themselves for each other. After Romeo hears the news that Juliet is dead, he immediately decides to poison himself, and after buying the poison, he says, “Come, cordial and not poison, go with me/ To Juliet’s grave; for there must I use thee” (5.1.85-86). In these lines Romeo describes the poison as medicine, believing that drinking it will be the “cure” for Juliet’s supposed “death”. This gives an idea of what Romeo

believes about love – that if his love dies, it is for the better that he dies as well. Romeo is shown to have a very flawed understanding of love, as his love derives from the admiration of physical beauty, and he believes as well that he must die to be with the one he loves. Romeo’s distorted perception of love is what causes both his and Juliet’s lives to end.
The tragic deaths of Romeo and Juliet are caused in part by the faults of their parents, but they themselves are ultimately the ones at blame. Their parents neglect their children, causing them to make rash decisions, but it is more so Romeo and Juliet’s tendency to rush into things when it comes to their relationship, as well as Romeo’s flawed understanding of how love works that causes their deaths. It is to be understood that one must always think before they act, or they might just end up dead.