Romantic Irony

Everyone experiences heartbreaking moments throughout their lives. One of the most devastating experiences is to lose a loved one. Romeo and Juliet felt these same losses, and caused others to feel the pain of their losses as a result. The two young lovers went to great lengths to keep their relationship a secret. They couldn't bear the thought of living without each other. In the end, they took their own lives to ensure they stayed together for eternity. While the two lovers were ultimately to blame for their own deaths, other people and problems in their lives were also to blame. Friar Laurence, Capulet, and fate were ultimately to blame for this tragedy. Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, is about two families battling in an ongoing war in Verona. The children of these two families, Romeo and Juliet, met at a party and immediately fell in love with each other. And this is the story of how far these two lovers went because of love. When the Prince said that all are to be punished, it's not exactly true. Friar Laurence, Capulet, and fate were mostly the ones that were to be blamed for Romeo and Juliet's' deaths.

Friar Laurence is the one to be blamed for the deaths. He didn't mean to do anything that would lead to Romeo and Juliet's death. He was trying to be helpful until he acted illegally. Friar Laurence shows Juliet the vial of potion and suggests she takes it in order to avoid her marriage with Paris: "Take thou this vial, being then in bed/ And this distilling liquor drink thou off" (IV.I.93-94). When Friar Laurence gives the vial to Juliet and then sends the letter to Romeo; the letter doesn't arrive in time. If Friar Laurence had thought through the plan longer, it might have worked, but he acted too fast and didn't think about what might go wrong. Friar Laurence marries Romeo and Juliet, saying that nothing bad will happen later on: "So smile the heavens upon this holy act/ That after-hours with sorrow chide us not!" (II.VI.1-2) Friar Laurence knows that something bad is going to happen, but still marries them. He did this not because he knows that they are in love but because he thinks that the marriage is going to end the feud between both families. This whole plan by Friar Laurence lead to them dying for each other's love. Friar Laurence is the only character that knows what is going on throughout the play. But still, he kept secrets from people, made poor decisions, and agreed to marry Romeo and Juliet to end the feud.

Some of Capulet's actions and stubbornness are what led to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. When Tybalt spots Romeo at the Capulet party and decides to kill him, Capulet immediately tells Tybalt to put his sword down and leave Romeo alone: "Content thee, gentle coz, let him alone" (I.V.66). All because Capulet stopped Tybalt, Romeo didn't die and he and Juliet met and fell in love. Capulet demands Juliet to marry