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Romeo and Juliet Practice Essay
"Fate, accident or responsibility?" Who or what in your view is responsible for the tragic deaths of the lovers in Romeo and Juliet.
There has been fierce debate for sometime, concerning the causes of the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Fate is the supposed force, principle, or power that predetermines events. An accident is where something happens unintentionally and results in something negative. To be responsible is to be held accountable for something you have done. Some say that Fate played a hand in ending the lives of the tragic lovers. Some say that it was all an accident. Some say that specific characters in the play were involved in their untimely deaths. In my personal opinion, I believe that it was a fatal combination of all three factors that lead to their tragic endings.
In Act 1, Scene 1 of the play, Benvolio witnessed Romeo's infatuation with Rosaline, and saw how miserable it had made him. He told Romeo to compare her to the other more beautiful women that Verona had to offer, to prove that Rosaline was not that extraordinary compared to them. In a way, Benvolio played a minor role in leading Romeo to Juliet, for if Benvolio had not told Romeo to "examine other beauties", Romeo may not have given Juliet a second glance, being still preoccupied with his infatuation with Rosaline. Romeo paying attention and falling in love with Juliet was significant in this chain of events, as it was the beginning of this tragic love story.
While Act 1 Scene 1 holds Benvolio's minor role in the partaking of Romeo and Juliet's meeting, Act 1 Scene 2, contains Lord Capulet's fateful blunder, whereby he instructed an illiterate servant to go about Verona with an invitation to a feast that he held. In his alacrity to fulfill his master's request, the servant did not tell Capulet of his inability to read. That may have been due to his fear of Capulet's wrath, or fear of...
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