Love is considered a very important aspect in everyone’s life but when asked about it, what would people really be able to say? You can always answer with a dictionary definition but what would that really tell you? The play “Romeo and Juliet” revolves around the topic of love and tells us that love can influence people’s decisions, love cannot be rushed, and love is the most powerful thing in the world.
Firstly, love can influence people’s decisions. Throughout the play, the progress of the plot was due to love motivating people’s decisions. For example, Juliet’s love for Romeo is what causes her to go through with the plan that ultimately leads to their deaths. After Friar Laurence gives her the vial that will help her fake her death, she begins to have doubts. Her doubts are quickly disregarded once she thinks about being with Romeo again. ”Romeo, I come! This do I drink to thee”(4.3, 246). Due to her love for Romeo, she is willing to fake her death and lie in a tomb with her decaying relatives until he saves her, regardless of the fact that the potion may not work or that Romeo may not even come for her. She is even willing to abandon her family and friends for him. Another example is when Romeo kills Tybalt. He evades execution when Prince Escalus is deciding his punishment and he is soon exiled instead because Romeo had killed Mercutio’s murderer. Mercutio is a relative of Prince Escalus so because of this, his final decision is swayed. There are many events in the play where love influences someone's decision.
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Secondly, love cannot be rushed. Love at first sight occurs at the beginning of the play and is already foreshadowing the speed in which Romeo and Juliet’s relationship will take. Romeo is lovesick for Rosaline and is convinced there is no maiden as fair as her. His feelings quickly change once he meets Juliet. He falls head over heels for her and forgets about Rosaline.”I have forgot that name, and that name’s woe”(2.3, 116). This scene shows how people should not rush and profess a love that may not be true. If Romeo and Rosaline were really together, he would have ended up leaving her for Juliet at first sight. Another example of how love cannot be rushed is when Romeo and Juliet immediately decide to get married within 24 hours of meeting each other. When marrying the two, Friar Lawrence says “These violent delights have violent ends”(2.4, 148). If they had taken their time instead of rushing into such major decisions, their story would not have ended in disaster. They could have waited to get to know each other before deciding if they really wanted to get married or they could have even approached their families to find a better outcome. They both wanted to be with each other but did not stop to think more rationally. They did not stop to think about building a strong bond with their significant other. Often when people rush into relationships, they crash and burn, as can be seen with Romeo and Juliet.
Lastly, love is thought to be one of the most powerful things in the world if not the most powerful thing in the world. To some, being in love is the most important thing in their life. When discussing the topic of love, people automatically think of it in a romantic sense. While romance is the focal point of Shakespeare’s play, other forms of love make an appearance as well. Love for family, friends, and oneself are factors that helped the play progress. Hate itself can be sprung from love as well. Love may not be physically powerful like weapons but it holds a more mental power. It can control a person's actions, feelings, and choices. The conclusion to Shakespeare’s play was due to Lord Capulet and Lord Montague’s love for their children. After realising that their feud was the cause of their children’s deaths, they put an end to it. Their love for their children causes them to end a feud that has been going on for generations. A death that is less pronounced in the play is Lady Montague’s. Once Romeo is banished, Lady Montague falls into grief for her only child has been exiled. When Lord Montague comes to the tomb upon Prince Escalus’ call, he says “My wife is dead to-night; Grief of my son’s exile hath stopp’d her breath”(5.3, 296). Her love for Romeo causes her to pass away. Throughout the play, love has had the power to kill and mend at the same time.
Looking back on the events that have occurred throughout the play, people can learn a lot about the topic of love. Romeo and Juliet’s story can tell us that love can influence people’s decisions, love cannot be rushed, and love is the most powerful thing in the world. Shakespeares’s play can teach people many lessons, not just about love, which is one of the reasons why this play is so well known hundreds of years later.
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