Most people know the tragic tale or Romeo and Juliet. Two people from opposite feuding
family fall in love. Constantly being pulled apart, they eventually take their own lives. Some
might wonder, “Who’s to blame?” In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet many things,
but no one individual, can be blamed for the deaths or Romeo And Juliet.
Many people can be blamed for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. First, Paris was the
reason Juliet took the extreme chance, by drinking the sleeping potion. If she didn’t drink the
potion, Romeo wouldn’t have found her dead, killed himself, and so on. Tybalts murder of
Mercucio also played a big pert. If he hadn’t killed Mercucio, Romeo wouldn’t have gotten
mad, killed Tybalt, gotten banished, etc. After Montague explain to the prince why Romeo
killed Tybalt, the prince says, “And for that offence- Immediately we do by exile him.”(Page
852) As you see, it is not just one persons fault, but also many people’s actions, in a chain
reaction.
Fate played an important part in the deaths of these lovers. As you hear in the chorus
before Act I, Romeo and Juliet are “a pair of star crossed lovers (that) take their lives:” (Page
787) This informs us that it was karma for Romeo and Juliet to fall in love. Also, it was fate for
them to take their lives. Clearly, fate was one main cause of the deaths of the together forever,
Star-crossed lovers.
Some contributions to the couple’s death were not even living. One of these things is the
back plague. After returning the letter to Friar Lawrence, John says “I could not send it I here it
is again- Nor a messenger to bring it to the, So fearful were they of infection.”(Page 898) Also,
Hate was a large portion of the heaping pile of tragedy Romeo and Juliet had to carry. If only
the Montague’s and the Capulet’s were friends, or not wanting to kill each other at the least,
Romeo and Juliet would not have had to hide their love and marriage. Obviously, It was not
ONLY the actions of us pitiful humans, but uncontrollable, non-living things, that ruined the
love of the sweet Romeo, and his Juliet.
In Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare himself, there are uncountable
possibilities to put the blame of our married couple’s death upon. Some could wonder why
Shakespeare wrote such a tragedy. Was this a sneaky way to tell his life? Or did he just have a
deep admiration for the pieces original poem form? Not many seem to know…but nonetheless,
we all do love the lovers that are Romeo and Juliet.