The definition of love is “an intense feeling of deep affection”, as seen in the chemistry between Romeo and Juliet. In the play, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare writes the two characters as meant to be, but as fate takes its course, the two star crossed lovers, who are stuck in a family feud, are left dead. Some deemed Romeo guilty for their deaths because of his rash decisions, but Romeo never wanted harm to come to Juliet and was misguided by the adults in his world. Romeo was a lover, not a fighter; therefore, his rash decisions should not make him guilty for their deaths, but pardoned because of his desire not to fight and the love he bared for the Capulet name.
Although Romeo never intended harm to come to either him or Juliet, the prosecution
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may argue that his rash choices led to their deaths. When Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt, kills Romeo's best friend, Mercutio, Romeo’s impulsive decision was to get revenge for Mercutio and kill Tybalt himself. The Nurse informs Juliet that, “Tybalt is gone and Romeo banished. Romeo that killed him- he is banished” (3.2.75). Had Romeo never killed Tybalt, he would not have been banished and would have been able to stay with Juliet. Romeo’s banishment was the motive for Juliet’s sorrow that her father mistook for grief over Tybalt. Romeo also proved to make hasty decisions when he decided to marry Juliet after only knowing her for a few hours. Their hurried relationship ultimately drove them to their tomb. Although Romeo made rash choices, his decision to marry Juliet was out of love and never intended to hurt them. Although Romeo killing Tybalt was a tragedy, Romeo should be pardoned because Tybalt initiated the duel and Romeo tried to diffuse it.
When Romeo makes an uninvited appearance at the Capulet ball, Tybalt claims that to kill Romeo he, “hold it not a sin” (1.5.67). Romeo always abstained from fighting in his family feud, so Tybalt’s only reason to kill was for his love of fighting. After Romeo is married to Juliet in secret, Tybalt seeks Romeo out to get his revenge for his unwanted presence at the ball. Romeo pleads to Tybalt that he, “love thee better than thou canst devise Till thou shalt know the reason of my love. And so good Capulet, which name I tender as dearly as my own, be satisfied” (3.1.70). Romeo has just married into the Capulet family and does not want to fight his newlyweds’ cousin. To Romeo, the family feud means nothing to him and, because he is in love with a Capulet, he cares for them as much as he cares for his own name. Romeo never wanted to fight Tybalt, and if it weren’t for Tybalt’s love of fighting, Romeo never would have had to get revenge for Mercutio, who stepped in to fight when Romeo refused. Romeo is not guilty for his and Juliet’s deaths, because he protested the fight and held the Capulet’s name as highly as his
own. A second reason why Romeo is not guilty is because he was ill-advised by the Friar, who was supposed to give Romeo responsible advice. Romeo was love struck and went to go speak to Friar Lawrence, a fatherly figure in his life. Instead of giving Romeo true advice, the Friar misguided the young lover and put him at risk, therefore makes Romeo not guilty. Young Romeo had always consulted with the Friar for honest advice with girls he was interested in, previously telling him about his crush, Rosaline. After thinking over Romeo's new proposal of Marriage to Juliet, the Friar agrees to marry them, but later tells Romeo to be, “[wise] and slow. They stumble that run fast”(2.4.101). The Friar’s statement shows that he predicts something bad will happen to Romeo and Juliet, as they are moving too fast in their new relationship. Because Friar Lawrence is supposed to be a responsible influencing adult, it was his duty to tell Romeo of his concerns. Instead of being honest with Romeo, the Friar hoped this marriage would end their family feud, therefore ignoring his gut feeling of uncertainty. Romeo was a young teenager who was too passionate in love to have made the decision to get married on his own, and when he went to the Friar, he deserved the honest truth. By agreeing to marry the young lovers, the Friar immediately puts both Romeo and Juliet in danger. Romeo should be pardoned for the tragedy, because it was the Friar who put the young couple at risk and failed his responsibilities of supplying the youth with proper advice. Romeo and Juliet were young lovers who wanted nothing else than to be united together forever. Romeo had no desire to fight Tybalt and tried everything he could to put to a stop to the fight before it cost them their lives. Romeo was ill-advised by the Friar, who should have provided responsible advice. Romeo is not at fault for the tragedy, as the wrongs of Tybalt and the Friar caused the lovers’ untimely death.
Romeo senses tensions are high with Tybalt, so he states, “I do protest I never injured thee but love thee better than thou canst devise.” (Lines 65-66 Act Three, Scene One). Romeo is trying to diffuse the situation because he realizes that Tybalt is his love's cousin. Mercutio is surprised by Romeo’s behavior, so he decides to fight Tybalt himself. Mercutio’s decision to fight Tybalt leads to his own death. Romeo is angered by the death of Mercutio and states, “Now, Tybalt, take the “villain" back again/ That late thou gavest me; for Mercutio’s soul.” (Lines 123-124 of Act Three, Scene One). Romeo is indicating that Tybalt is the villain now, because he slayed Mercutio. Romeo forgets about his attempt to befriend the Capulets and slays Tybalt. Romeo, murderer of Tybalt, solely focuses on Juliet and states “Ha, banishment? Be merciful, say “death"/For exile hath more terror in his look.” (Lines 12-13 of Act Three, Scene Three). Romeo does not care about Tybalt’s life, but only cares for the way it affects his relationship with Juliet. Romeo’s mother dies out of grief because of his banishment. Romeo’s recklessness in loving Juliet has led to the death of three
Love, what a small word for being one of the most powerful and complicated emotion someone can receive. Love grants people an experience of other emotions such as, sadness, happiness, jealousy, hatred and many more. It is because of those characteristics that love creates that make it so difficult to define the emotion in a few words. In the play, “Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare, two star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, defy their parents in hopes of being able to be together and live a happy life. The characters in “Romeo and Juliet” show the characteristics of love through their words and actions throughout the play. The attributes the characters illustrate throughout the play are rage, loyalty, and sorrow.
He is prepared to duel, as he believes it is in “honor of my kin, / to strike him dead I hold not a sin” (I.v.58-59). His vicious behavior towards the Montague’s is due to the prolonged feud and not because of a dishonorable act directed towards him. Evidently, Tybalt respects Lord Capulet and the family name. When he goes to inform the Montague’s intrusion, Lord Capulet dismisses the enemy’s presence, ordering Tybalt to “be patient, take no note of him” (I.v.71). Despite Lord Capulet’s calm approach towards the appearance of Romeo, Tybalt`s mind is clouded with hatred and only views Romeo as a threat. Tybalt’s angered reaction at the sight of Romeo, as well as his impulsive decision to warn Lord Capulet in hopes of getting rid of the enemy, is due to the ongoing feud between the Montague’s and Capulet’s and not because of any harm directly caused by
When asked by Benvolio to make peace in the streets, Tybalt bluntly responds,” talk of peace, I hate the word. As I hate hell all Montagues.” This is the attitude of Tybalt throughout the play. He believes he is doing all for the best and uses violence as his tool. He gets angry at the ball with Romeo being there, “villain as a guest,” and believes it best to defend his family’s honor by later taking revenge. When Tybalt finds Romeo, he thinks it best to fight him and when he ends up killing Mercutio he believes he has done his duty by causing Romeo the same hurt he has brought Tybalt, “the injuries that thou hast done me.”
Of all the things that occur in Romeo and Juliet, the death of Tybalt is one of the most climatic parts of the story. Yet, this all started from another killing of a different person, Mercutio. Mercutio, a relative of the Prince and friend of Romeo, and Tybalt, nephew to Lady Capulet and Mercutio’s arch enemy, were in a heated conversion when Romeo walked in after getting married to Juliet and saw what was going on. Tybalt and Mercutio began to fight and Romeo tried to come in between them to stop the whole thing. Unfortunately, as Tybalt was under Romeo’s arms, he stabbed Mercutio and he died soon after. In all the rage, Romeo was furious that his friend was dead and starts to fight with Tybalt. Eventually, Romeo slays Tybalt and he falls to the floor and dies. Romeo runs away in agony before the Prince soon arrives at the scene of the fight with all the other citizens that were awakened by this fray to see what happened. Although Romeo is guilty of homicide, he is charged for manslaughter as he unlawfully killed a person in the heat of passion while defending Mercutio’s honor.
Tybalt’s loyalty towards the family dispute intoxicates him with a quarrelsome nature. After recognizing Romeo at the Capulet Ball, Tybalt persistently rejects his uncle’s remonstrance to stay serene. Even after being restrained by his Uncle Capulet, he vows vengeance on Romeo in the future as he says, “Patience perforce with willful choler meeting Makes my flesh tremble in their different greeting. I will withdraw; but this intrusion shall Now seeming sweet, convert to bitt’rest gall” (1.5.88-90). Tybalt tends to take each and every “insult” towards his family and himself to heart, without even contemplating their true meaning. Furthermore, Tybalt’s aggravating behavior develops into a clear factor leading to his downfall. When Mercutio is found dead as a result of Tybalt, Romeo confronts him directly with a duel to the death. Rather than trying to discuss and come to a harmonious solution, Tybalt further inflamed the already belligerent environment. He does this by saying, “Thou, wretched boy, that didst consort him here, Shalt with him hence” (3.1.128-129). Tybalt’s relentless threatening behavior never fails to make an already hostile environment even worse. His cruel character is perpetual no matter what the
Also in the beginning of the play a fight breaks out between the Montague and Capulet families and the Prince intervenes and after telling them to drop their weapons he says “If ever you disturb our streets again, your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace.” Although this rule was given Tybalt challenged Romeo to a duel. Romeo kept refusing to fight Tybalt which caused Mercutio to be outraged and draw his own sword. During the duel between Tybalt and Mercutio, Romeo intervenes and tries to stop them both but Tybalt puts his sword under Romeo’s arm and kills Mercutio. Romeo then fights with Tybalt and murders him and is banished from Verona. If Tybalt hadn’t been so aggressive with the whole situation Romeo wouldn’t have been banished, and Juliet wouldn’t have needed to come up with a plan that resulted in both of their deaths.
Tybalt is a Capulet and very passionate about hating the Montagues. In Act 1 Scene 5 when Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio sneak into Capulet’s party, Tybalt recognizes Romeo and begs Lord Capulet to kick him out. “Uncle, this is a Montague, our foe, / A villain that is hither come in spite / To scorn at our solemnity this night” (1. v. 69-71). Later, Tybalt sees Romeo on the street and tries to fight him, convinced that Romeo has done something to him. Romeo doesn’t want to fight, and Mercutio steps in. Benvolio and Romeo try to stop them, but Mercutio gets fatally wounded. Tybalt’s devotion to his family ended up killing Mercutio, and Tybalt himself later ends up dead because of
Love is a wonderful curse that forces us to do unexplainable things. Romeo and Juliet is a famous play written by William Shakespeare, who does an exceptional job in showing the readers what hate, mercy, death, courage, and most importantly, what love looks like. This play is about two star-crossed lovers who are both willing to sacrifice their lives just to be with one another. Unfortunately tragedy falls upon the unconditional love Romeo and Juliet have for each other, but along the way they experience immeasurable forgiveness and extraordinary bravery just to be with one another. Sadly enough, love is a cause of violence in the end.
If Romeo had not been banished, Romeo and Juliet would continue living a happy life together. Benvolio witnessed the entire fight, the authorities came, Lady Capulet wants Romeo dead which is completely blowing things out of proportion, and in the end, poor Romeo is banished even though he was defending himself and trying to get justice for his best friend’s heinous death. Lady Capulet states, “Benvolio is part of the Montague family. His loyalties to the Montagues make him tell lies. He’s not telling the truth. There were twenty Montagues fighting in this awful riot, and together those twenty could only kill one man. I demand justice. You, Prince, are the man who can give me justice. Romeo killed Tybalt. Romeo must die” (3.1.153). This proves that because of Tybalt’s actions, Romeo was punished, and unfairly banished from Verona. Only one can imagine what it must feel like to be banished from their love, from their family, from everyone. This fact led to their death. This was not the end of Tybalt’s wrong doings however. He had one more trick up his sleeve, even for being
True love is one of the most genuine, not to mention precious feelings in the world. In Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, a pair of lovers denotes the strength of true love and it's ability to overcome nearly all obstacles. However, this kind of love is a rarity due to it's pureness but somehow many cheap imitations are still mistaken for real love. Romeo and Juliet's love is authentic and by no means an infatuation seeing as first of all, they both risk their lives to see each other and would rather die than be separated. Juliet also has an unusual level of loyalty towards her partner for her age which supports the idea of true love. In addition, throughout the play, Romeo's demeanour started to change and he began to mature in a considerably short period of time. Young love is a petty sentiment nonetheless when it develops into a fully-fledged unconditional love, both partners will begin to evolve and will do nearly anything for the other.
Romeo denies the fate of Mercutio who fought against Tybalt and lost, so he challenges Tybalt to fight in defense of his honor. His sense of honor would not allow himself to ignore the death of Mercutio. It mandated his absurd behavior to take Tybalt’s life which even further separated the Montague and Capulet family. Moreover, Romeo still decides to marry Juliet after he takes Tybalt’s life. His sense of honor leads him to find Father Lawrence who will marry both Juliet
Shakespeare shows throughout the play how the characters continue to forgive the ones they love, even in the harsh circumstances. Angered by the death of his good friend Mercutio, Romeo slays Tybalt. “This gentleman, the Prince’s near ally, /My friend, hath got this mortal hurt In my behalf-my reputation stained /With Tybalt’s slander-Tybalt, that an hour /Hath been my cousin.”(3, 1, 104-108). Juliet could have been very angry with Romeo since Tybalt was her cousin but she was more heartbroken over Romeo’s exile. Shakespeare displays that Juliet’s love for Romeo overpowered the hate she had for him killing Tybalt. In addition, Shakespeare displayed that love conquers hate through the relationship between Juliet and her father, Lord Capulet. Near the end of the play Capulet told Juliet that she had ...
Tybalt did not take a direct role in Juliet’s ‘death’, but he set the course for incidents that lead to it. As a Capulet, he had long participated in the feud between his family and the Montagues. The day after he spotted Romeo at a party hosted by his family, he went out looking for him – and a fight. He accidentally murdered Mercutio, Romeo later killed him in revenge. Juliet, rather than being upset by Tybalt’s death, sobbed for Romeo, who was banished for the murder. The misunderstandings regarding Juliet’s grief led to a marriage she felt she could only escape by faking her own death. While Tybalt was not immediately involved in Juliet’s ‘death’, he played such a major role in starting the events that would ultimately lead to it that he must be deemed partly responsible.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was a Renaissance poet and playwright who wrote and published the original versions of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, and often called England’s national poet. Several of his works became extremely well known, thoroughly studied, and enjoyed all over the world. One of Shakespeare’s most prominent plays is titled The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. In this tragedy, the concept that is discussed and portrayed through the characters is love, as they are recognized as being “in love”. The general umbrella of love encompasses various kinds of love such as romantic love, the love of a parent for a child, love of one’s country, and several others. What is common to all love is this: Your own well-being is tied up with that of someone (or something) you love… When love is not present, changes in other people’s well being do not, in general, change your own… Being ‘in love’ infatuation is an intense state that displays similar features: … and finding everyone charming and nice, and thinking they all must sense one’s happiness. At first glance it seems as though Shakespeare advocates the hasty, hormone-driven passion portrayed by the protagonists, Romeo and Juliet; however, when viewed from a more modern, North-American perspective, it seems as though Shakespeare was not in fact endorsing it, but mocking the public’s superficial perception of love. Shakespeare’s criticism of the teens’ young and hasty love is portrayed in various instances of the play, including Romeo’s shallow, flip-flop love for Rosaline then Juliet, and his fights with Juliet’s family. Also, the conseque...