How Is Romeo And Juliet Born Into An Opposing Family

Romeo and Juliet Essay Final
In every society, a person’s status is determined what family, wealth, or resources they were born or raised into. There was no choice for Romeo and Juliet for being born into an opposing family. The love affair created between the “star-crossed lovers” (Prologue, Line 6), Romeo and Juliet, was formed at first sight. Their affairs and societal pressures, formed by how society was shaped at that time, caused them to take “the fearful passage of their death-marked love,” (Prologue, Line 9).
Society is shaped by the trends of the people and what people would call today popular sovereignty. This helps a person decides what purpose in life they should so life will turn to their favor. Shakespeare starts his story
The Capulet servant was given the task to invite a list of people to a party formed by Paris and Juliet’s dad. Since this character plays the poor servant man, he didn’t receive much education and was unable to read, resulting in him having to ask for help from someone else. Coincidentally, Romeo and his cousin, Benvolio, came across this servant and helped the servant read the lists of people. Out of kindness, since he doesn’t know the face of his enemies, he tells them “if you be not the house of Montagues, I pray and crush a cup of wine. Rest you merry,” (Act I, Scene II: Lines 81-83). This leads Romeo and Juliet falling in love with each other at first sight at the party. If the servant learned to read, the story wouldn't be able to move on to them eventually meeting each other. The society where ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is set does not encourage and dictate everyone to read and write, these skills are only for the privilege. This is where "the feud serves as a complicating device that keeps the lover apart for the first time. After all, Juliet says, 'My only love sprung from my only hate!'"
The society’s double standard/sexism is shown when Juliet realizes being a woman she is unable to have a say in the dates for the wedding and/or to marry the son of the Montague. “Juliet’s mother also refuses to make a stand for her daughter’s freedom, knowing her place, pressured to accept her husband’s demands,” (Dupler). To add on, parental control comes into play because “her parents, rather than respecting her free will and her true feelings, work against her and force her into what she believes is a hopeless situation,” (Brooke). Juliet starts to think about her options and comes up with a plan to fake her death for a few days till Romeo comes to take her and run away from Verona. Due to banishment for killing Tybalt, he wasn’t able to receive the message about Juliet’s plan on time prior to the news of her death. With their undying love for each other, Romeo, thinking of life without Juliet, decides to end his life with a poison. And as the story continues, Juliet waking up and finding out of Romeo’s death followed the same action with Romeo’s knife. “The sense that their cruel world was too terrible for a love as tender as that of Romeo and Juliet” (Kerschen) is seen through their suicidal act, knowing how society holds them