Romeo and Juliet is a story that is most renowned for the tragic end of its main characters; Romeo and Juliet. After believing his love, Juliet, to be dead, Romeo takes a potion that will end his life, as he cannot bear to live without her. The part that makes this story so tragic is the fact that Juliet is actually alive and only wakes up moments after Romeo has killed himself. Stricken with grief, Juliet ends her life by stabbing herself with a dagger, as she too cannot bear to live without her true love. However there is more to this story than meets the eye; many people had a hand in the demise of Romeo and Juliet, and there were other factors that played their part. All of which were well out of the control of our hero and heroine, and all of which led to the demise of the ill-fated lovers.
“From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean,” This excerpt from the prologue of Romeo and Juliet refers to the long lasting feud that exists between the families of Montague and Capulet, and how the devastation caused by this feud has shattered the community of Verona. It is unclear from the text what event occurred to cause such hatred to exist between the two families, and this is more than likely because the feud has become more of a way of life and an excuse for fighting, rather than the settling of a grudge that nobody can even remember the reason behind why the feud started in the first place. The play does not directly focus on the animosity between the elder members of the two families, and they appear to be relatively civil to each other. However the feud between the two families is a major factor in the demise of the ill-fated lovers, as had there been no grudge and the families had been on good or at least courteous terms with the other, there would have been no opposition against their love, and furthermore, there would have