Are Romeo And Juliet True Tragic Heroes Or Fate?
Essay Topic: Are Romeo and Juliet true tragic heroes or victims of fate?
According to the Webster’s New Millennium Dictionary of English, a tragic hero is a literary character who has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy. Romeo and Juliet obviously do not fit the criteria as their flaws of youth and impetuousness can hardly be considered fatal. Instead, their deaths are brought about by a series of circumstances over which they have no control. Both characters frequently describe strong feelings of foreboding, and the characters’ births into opposing families cause much angst. Many events conspire against them which seem too coincidental, rather than the result of choices made by Romeo and Juliet. Therefore, although the downfall of …show more content…
the two lovers is made out of both characters’ free will, the events leading up to their downfall renders them victims of fate.
From the beginning, Romeo and Juliet’s births into feuding families cause many events over which they have no control.
The feud, the cause of tension between the Montagues and Capulets, puts the characters into situations that occur because fate steps in. Romeo is put into one such situation when his closest friend Mercutio is killed by Tybalt. In a fit of blind rage, Romeo is “forced” to kill Tybalt out of loyalty to Mercutio, not something he originally planned to do: ‘I do protest I never injured thee,/ But love thee better than thou canst devise’ (III, i, 65-66). This leads to his banishment. In desperation, the lovers turn to Friar Lawrence for help. But things do not go as planned and Romeo and Juliet kill themselves. Romeo believes that ‘there is no world without Verona’s walls’ (III, iii, 17), and no world without his Juliet. Thus, although they took their lives out of their own free will, the love brought upon by fate overpowered rational thinking. Preferring death to life apart, Juliet declares: ‘Prodigious birth of love it is to me,/That I must love a loathed enemy’ (I, v, 139-40), an example of how fate has dealt them opposing families which would never allow them to be
together.
Fate also played a part in initiating a chain of events which worked against the young lovers. From the very beginning, many circumstances occur that lie in the hands of fate. Romeo and Juliet meet at the Capulet Ball and fall in love before discovering the other’s identity. They are brought together by fate, because Juliet would have kept away from Romeo had she known who he truly was: ‘My only love sprung from my only hate!/Too early seen unknown, and known too late!’ (I, v, 137-38) At the same time, the valiant County Paris is persuading Lord Capulet for his daughter’s hand in marriage: ‘Younger than she are happy mothers made.’ (I, ii, 12) This possibility of marriage for Juliet stimulates hasty actions which lead to Romeo’s banishment and Juliet’s false death. A note from Friar Lawrence sent to Romeo concerning Juliet’s apparent death does not reach him, the messenger stopped by a sudden outbreak of the plague. As Friar Lawrence says: ‘Unhappy fortune!’ (V, iii, 17) What else but fate could be the cause of such poor timing! Had the note reached Romeo, the death of the lovers would have been prevented. Instead, the fateful events that conspired against Romeo and Juliet brought their downfall.
According to the Webster’s New Millennium Dictionary of English, a tragic hero is a literary character who has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy. Romeo and Juliet obviously do not fit the criteria as their flaws of youth and impetuousness can hardly be considered fatal. Instead, their deaths are brought about by a series of circumstances over which they have no control. Both characters frequently describe strong feelings of foreboding, and the characters’ births into opposing families cause much angst. Many events conspire against them which seem too coincidental, rather than the result of choices made by Romeo and Juliet. Therefore, although the downfall of …show more content…
the two lovers is made out of both characters’ free will, the events leading up to their downfall renders them victims of fate.
From the beginning, Romeo and Juliet’s births into feuding families cause many events over which they have no control.
The feud, the cause of tension between the Montagues and Capulets, puts the characters into situations that occur because fate steps in. Romeo is put into one such situation when his closest friend Mercutio is killed by Tybalt. In a fit of blind rage, Romeo is “forced” to kill Tybalt out of loyalty to Mercutio, not something he originally planned to do: ‘I do protest I never injured thee,/ But love thee better than thou canst devise’ (III, i, 65-66). This leads to his banishment. In desperation, the lovers turn to Friar Lawrence for help. But things do not go as planned and Romeo and Juliet kill themselves. Romeo believes that ‘there is no world without Verona’s walls’ (III, iii, 17), and no world without his Juliet. Thus, although they took their lives out of their own free will, the love brought upon by fate overpowered rational thinking. Preferring death to life apart, Juliet declares: ‘Prodigious birth of love it is to me,/That I must love a loathed enemy’ (I, v, 139-40), an example of how fate has dealt them opposing families which would never allow them to be
together.
Fate also played a part in initiating a chain of events which worked against the young lovers. From the very beginning, many circumstances occur that lie in the hands of fate. Romeo and Juliet meet at the Capulet Ball and fall in love before discovering the other’s identity. They are brought together by fate, because Juliet would have kept away from Romeo had she known who he truly was: ‘My only love sprung from my only hate!/Too early seen unknown, and known too late!’ (I, v, 137-38) At the same time, the valiant County Paris is persuading Lord Capulet for his daughter’s hand in marriage: ‘Younger than she are happy mothers made.’ (I, ii, 12) This possibility of marriage for Juliet stimulates hasty actions which lead to Romeo’s banishment and Juliet’s false death. A note from Friar Lawrence sent to Romeo concerning Juliet’s apparent death does not reach him, the messenger stopped by a sudden outbreak of the plague. As Friar Lawrence says: ‘Unhappy fortune!’ (V, iii, 17) What else but fate could be the cause of such poor timing! Had the note reached Romeo, the death of the lovers would have been prevented. Instead, the fateful events that conspired against Romeo and Juliet brought their downfall.