Romeo And Juliet Summary Essay, Research Paper

Romeo and Juliet, is a story of two young lovers, whose love

was destined for destruction. They did not imagine that their love

would lead to the tragedies that it did. These two young people did

nothing wrong except fall in love. Three aspects of their destruction

included the feud between the two families, the nurse and her betrayal

of Juliet and the most important aspect of all is fate. The feud between the two families was one factor that

contributed to the love of Romeo and Juliet being destined for

destruction. “From ancient grudge break to new mutiny”. (Romeo &

Juliet, Prologue, pg.2 l.3) The two families, Montagues and Capulets,

had many problems. There was hate between the two families so much so

that even the servants hated each other. This feud would have caused

many problems for Romeo and Juliet: These two young lovers knew this

and this is why they kept their marriage a secret. If their parents

discovered their secret, they would have made their children’s lives

miserable. Romeo and Juliet would not have been able to see each

other. Both of these families were very stubborn and there was hardly

any thing that would have made them become friends. In the prologue

we learn that the only way the “strife” could be ended was by the

deaths of Romeo and Juliet. “Doth with their death bury their

parent’s strife”. (Romeo & Juliet, Prologue, l.8) Neither the

Montagues or the Capulets would have accepted the marriage. Keeping

the marriage a secret caused Romeo and Juliet to turn to other people

for help. Sometimes these people gave them the wrong advice or just

betrayed them. The Nurse was one of these characters who betrayed the young

couple. The Nurse who was also Juliet’s friend turned against her at

a very crucial time. The Nurse told Juliet that it would be best if

she married Paris. “I think it best you married with the county”.

(Romeo & Juliet, pg.101, III, v, l.219) This betrayal by the Nurse

left Juliet alone. She was a wise young woman but it still would have

been beneficial for her to have the help of the Nurse. Juliet was

left on her own to make some very important decisions. I believe that

if the Nurse had been around to help Juliet things may have turned out

differently. Juliet had no one to turn to and ask for help. She

could not have gone to her parents because they would not have

understood. The Nurse was supposed to be one of Juliet’s best

friends. Now when it was important for Juliet to have someone there,

for her she was betrayed. When considering the destruction of Romeo and Juliet the most

sifnificant fact you must think about is fate. Fate, above all,

destroyed Romeo and Juliet. Many instances in the play reveals that

the love of Romeo and Juliet would end in death. “A pair of

star-crossed lovers take their life”. (Romeo & Juliet,pg.2, Prologue,

l.6) From the very beginning it is evident that they were destined by

the stars to bad fortune. Some people may think that there is no way

to control fate or change what is in the stars. It could be that the

love of Romeo and Juliet was destined for death so that their parent’s

feud would be over. Also, in the prologue it states that the dreadful

course of their love was destined for death. “The fearful passage of

their death marked love”. (Romeo & Juliet, pg.2, Prologue, l.9) Both

of these quotes show us that the love of these two was destined to end

tragically. The masquerade party was above all the most important

aspect of fate. The fact that Romeo was wearing a mask and his face

was hidden allowed juliet to fall in love with him before she saw who

it was. If Juliet had known who Romeo was she would probably have not

fallen in love with him. Fate could not have been changed whatever

was meant to be would happen and no one could change that. In conclusion, from the very beginning, the love of Romeo and

Juliet was destined to be destroyed. It is tragic that both these

people had to die. There were circumstances throughout the course of

their lives that led up to their deaths. If their parent’s had not

been feuding and if the Nurse had not betrayed Juliet, the outcome of

this story would have been different, although fate could not be

changed. This was the most important factor in the lives of Romeo and

Juliet. In my opinion the quote that accurately summarizes this play

is, “For never was there a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and

her Romeo.” (Romeo & Juliet, V, iii, p. 138, ll.309-310)

336