Fate In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

Some people believe in fate and destiny. Their belief is that what happens in their lives is already predetermined, and one cannot change it. Others believe that the events that occur in life are caused by one’s own decisions, and by making a different decision would consequently change the course of one’s life. The idea of fate is explored deeply in Shakespeare’s play Romeo & Juliet, and it influenced heavily the outcome of the story. In this essay, we will discuss the roles that fate, accidents, and miscalculations play in the play.

One major event in the play that revolves around fate is how Romeo and Juliet met with each other. It started when Peter, a Capulet servant, informed Romeo and Benvolio about the party at the Capulet’s place. Benvolio thought that it is a good idea for Romeo to attend to the party because Romeo was in love with Rosaline at that time. This resulted in Romeo meeting Juliet, falling in love, getting married, being banished from Verona, and eventually killing
Friar John, his messenger, got quarantined in a house infected with a plague, resulting in the message from Friar Lawrence not getting delivered to Romeo in time. The issue worsened when Balthasar informed Romeo that Juliet is dead, and Romeo hurried back to Verona. In the Capulets’ tomb, Romeo, oblivious that Juliet is still alive, drank poison and killed himself, and the Friar arriving just a bit too late. All these “accidents” caused the death of the two lovers and the tragic ending to the play. If Friar John did not get quarantined and got the message delivered, if Balthasar did not witness Juliet’s funeral, or if Friar Lawrence stopped Romeo from killing himself in time, the outcome of the story would be a lot happier. However, fate has determined that the events will happen the way that it did, and it ultimately leads to the couple