Hastiness in Romeo and Juliet

Hastiness in Romeo and Juliet Consider the quote: They stumble that run fast. Illustrate the way in which characters in Romeo and Juliet act in haste and show how this behavior contributes to tragedy. Introduction: In Romeo and Juliet, a play written by William Shakespeare set in the ancient Verona, the main characters, in the development of the story, act in hasty ways which contribute to the tragedy of the two lovers. Body: A. The party: In fact, already during Act I, Romeo not only agrees with the decision of breaking into a party, but also falls in love with Juliet in a very short time, and this directly contributes to their downfall. . “But He that hath the steerage of my course, / Direct my sail! On, lusty gentlemen. ” 2. “Did my heart love till now? forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night. ” 3. “Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is purged. ” B. The balcony scene: Furthermore, during the balcony scene, Juliet becomes also responsible for the tragedy which is about to happen; in fact, after declaring her love’s vow to Romeo, she takes the decision to marry him, and this marriage will become the main cause of their death. 1. Romeo, doff thy name, / And for that name which is no part of thee / Take all myself. ” 2. “If that thy bent of love be honorable, / Thy purpose marriage, send me word to-morrow, / By one that I’ll procure to come to thee, / Where and what time thou wilt perform the rite... ” C. Mercutio’s death: Indeed, also Mercutio becomes one of the motives for the tragedy which befalls onto the two lovers; his decision to fight against Tybalt, in fact, sets on a chain of events that brings Romeo to kill Tybalt, and be banished from Verona, which will determine their unfortunate fate. 1. (Benvolio:) By my head, here come the Capulets. / (Mercutio:) By my heel, I care not. ” 2. “Now, Tybalt, take the villain back again, / That late thou gavest me; for Mercutio’s soul / Is but a little way above our heads, / Staying for thine to keep him company: / Either thou, or I, or both, must go with him. ” D. Juliet’s death: Finally, Juliet’s counterfeited death becomes the cause of the final breakdown of Romeo and Juliet’s love; in fact, after hearing from Blathasar that his love is dead, Romeo decides to commit suicide, and this unfortunate timing will influence the tragedy. 1. “Is it even so?

Then I defy you, stars! ” 2. “Arms, take your last embrace! and, lips, O you / The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss / A dateless bargain to engrossing death! / Here’s to my love! ” 3. “O happy dagger! this is thy sheath; / there rust, and let me die. ” Conclusion: In final analysis, it’s clear that characters in the play Romeo and Juliet are responsible for its tragedy. They in fact, make hasty decisions, such as breaking into a party, marrying, and fighting against their enemy for no reason, which directly affect and determine the downfall of the pair of star-cross’d lovers.

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In Romeo and Juliet, a play written by William Shakespeare set in the ancient Verona, the main characters, in the development of the story, act in hasty ways which contribute to the tragedy of the two lovers. This is particularly evident in four scenes: the scene at the Capulets’ party, the balcony scene, Mercutio’s death, and Juliet’s death. Here the characters, through the power of love, hate, and sorrow, make hasty decisions that directly influence the tragedy which is about to happen.

In fact, already during Act I, Romeo not only agrees with the decision of breaking into a party, but also falls in love with Juliet in a very short time, and this directly contributes to their downfall. While in the street during the night, for example, Romeo’s friends take the decision of breaking into the Capulets’ party, and while Romeo at the beginning is not sure it’s a good idea, he then agrees with his friends and says: “But He that hath the steerage of my course, / Direct my sail! On, lusty gentlemen. Indeed, he starts to feel a strange feeling, as if something bad is going to happen if they go to the party; however, by deciding to leave everything to fate and divine providence, going to the party, Romeo sets in motion a chain of events which will lead to the tragedy of the play; hadn’t Romeo gone to the party, he would have never met Juliet, and fallen in love with her. However, at the party he meets Juliet for the first time, and immediately falls in love with her: “Did my heart love till now? forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night. Romeo, who was in love with Rosaline until a moment ago, completely forgets about her and is now all focused on Juliet. But what is very surprising is not the fact that he is in love with his enemy’s daughter, the astonishing thing is the speed at which he falls in love with her. Soon, in fact, he and Juliet kiss each other: “Thus from my lips, by yours, my sin is purged. ” However, Romeo’s characteristics to love so deeply Juliet is just a symbol of his lacking the capacity of moderation for intense feelings of all kind.

Had Romeo stopped himself from being so deeply caught up by Juliet’s beauty, the tragedy would have never happened. Furthermore, during the balcony scene, Juliet becomes also responsible for the tragedy which is about to happen; in fact, after declaring her love’s vow to Romeo, she takes the decision of marrying him, and this marriage will become the main cause of their death. Love makes Romeo and Juliet act irresponsibly, because of love Romeo sneaks into the garden of his enemy’s daughter, risking his own life simply to catch a glimpse of his love.

But at the same time, also Juliet seems to be too quickly won by love, and after only a few hours that she has met Romeo, she is ready to give him all herself: “Romeo, doff thy name, / And for that name which is no part of thee / Take all myself. ” Additionally, during the same night, she even affirms that she is ready to marry Romeo: “If that thy bent of love be honorable, / Thy purpose marriage, send me word to-morrow, / By one that I’ll procure to come to thee, / Where and what time thou wilt perform the rite... Love in Romeo and Juliet is a brutal, powerful emotion that captures individuals and catapults them against their world, and against themselves. Hadn’t Juliet been so hasty in her decision of marrying Romeo, the fight with Tybalt might have never happened; in fact, the only reason for which they fight is that while Romeo is trying to have a good relationship with him after his marriage, Tybalt doesn’t know that he’s his cousin, and thinks he is just making fun of him; therefore he insults Romeo and fights against Mercutio who dies and makes Romeo seek for revenge.

Indeed, also Mercutio becomes one of the motives for the tragedy which befalls onto the two lovers; it’s also his decision to fight against Tybalt, in fact, to set on a chain of events that brings Romeo to kill Tybalt, and be banished from Verona, which will determine the unfortunate fate. One day, while he is walking around with Benvolio, he meets the Capulets, and instead of running away, he decides to stay and act as if he doesn’t care about their presence: “(Benvolio:) By my head, here come the Capulets. / (Mercutio:) By my heel, I care not. After meeting with Tybalt, however, he starts to act in a very hasty way and challenges him to fight even though he knows that the prince doesn’t want to see anymore fights between the two families. The consequences of the fight, in fact, are terrible. Mercutio dies, and Romeo seeks revenge: “Now, Tybalt, take the villain back again, / That late thou gavest me; for Mercutio’s soul / Is but a little way above our heads, / Staying for thine to keep him company: / Either thou, or I, or both, must go with him. Anger compels him to kill his wife’s cousin in a reckless duel to avenge the death of his friend. Hadn’t he rushed in this fight, or had he immediately explained to Tybalt he was married to Juliet, nothing like this would have ever happened. Finally, Juliet’s counterfeited death becomes the cause of the final breakdown of Romeo and Juliet’s love; in fact, after hearing from Blathasar that his love is dead, Romeo decides to commit suicide, and this unfortunate timing will influence the tragedy.

Romeo, in fact, believes that Juliet is dead and cries out: “Is it even so? Then I defy you, stars! ” Here he shows that the love between him and Juliet is opposed to destiny. The feud between their families, the series of accidents that ruin Friar Lawrence’s plans, and the tragic timing of Romeo’s suicide right before Juliet’s awakening are events which do not merely manifest fate, but rather represent the characters’ hasty behavior that leads to the unavoidable outcome of the young lovers’ deaths: “Arms, take your last embrace! nd, lips, O you / The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss / A dateless bargain to engrossing death! / Here’s to my love! ” Therefore, when Juliet wakes in the tomb and finds Romeo dead, she kills herself: “O happy dagger! this is thy sheath; / there rust, and let me die. ” Juliet’s suicide actually requires more nerve than Romeo’s: while he swallows poison, she stabs herself with a dagger. However, hadn’t she killed herself, she could have still been happy with Parris.

Love, in Romeo and Juliet, is a grand passion, and as such it is blinding; it overwhelms the characters of the play as powerfully and completely as hate can. In final analysis, it’s clear that characters in the play Romeo and Juliet are responsible for its tragedy. They in fact, make hasty decisions, such as breaking into a party, marrying, and fighting against their enemy for no reason, which directly affect and determine the downfall of the pair of star-cross’d lovers.



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