Romeo’s final words in Romeo and Juliet, 5.3.101-120 are a soliloquy, as it is words he speaks aloud without an audience to hear him within the play. Shakespeare wrote the passage in his standard blank verse, lines of unrhymed iambic pentameter mirroring natural human speech. This particular soliloquy dispels fate, which is a unifying theme throughout the rest of the text. Fate exists as the foundation upon which Romeo has decided to construct his death. By taking fate into his own hands, Romeo defies preconceived notions regarding the meaning of star-crossed. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy, and this selection emphasizes the results of tragic circumstances. These lines follow Romeo describing his plot of self-demise and the subsequent procuring
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Each was destined to love the other, poor circumstances established before the two are introduced in the play, let alone to each other. Romeo is a three-dimensional character whose choices lead him to this moment in in 5.3. Previous actions contribute to his dimensionality as he is portrayed as irrational and impulsive. Love and hate are both emotions that arise in a single moment. A single glance in Juliet’s direction, and he was instantly infatuated. Tybalt, his cousin by marriage, creates instantaneous rage when he defeats Mercutio. This particular self-address begins with Romeo exclaiming, “Forgive me, cousin!” (101). Romeo seeks forgiveness from Tybalt, as it was Romeo that killed Tybalt. By deliberately murdering Tybalt, Romeo adds another example of fate working against the lovers. He, who was Romeo’s relative unbeknownst to Tybalt, succumbs to Romeo’s sword and results in Romeo being banished from Verona. The newlyweds were separated, and the timeline of events leading to this moment ultimately stems from Tybalt’s unexpected death. Fate acted upon him during these instances, and in retaliation he has decided on an act of defiance against fate, taking necessary steps to commit
Each was destined to love the other, poor circumstances established before the two are introduced in the play, let alone to each other. Romeo is a three-dimensional character whose choices lead him to this moment in in 5.3. Previous actions contribute to his dimensionality as he is portrayed as irrational and impulsive. Love and hate are both emotions that arise in a single moment. A single glance in Juliet’s direction, and he was instantly infatuated. Tybalt, his cousin by marriage, creates instantaneous rage when he defeats Mercutio. This particular self-address begins with Romeo exclaiming, “Forgive me, cousin!” (101). Romeo seeks forgiveness from Tybalt, as it was Romeo that killed Tybalt. By deliberately murdering Tybalt, Romeo adds another example of fate working against the lovers. He, who was Romeo’s relative unbeknownst to Tybalt, succumbs to Romeo’s sword and results in Romeo being banished from Verona. The newlyweds were separated, and the timeline of events leading to this moment ultimately stems from Tybalt’s unexpected death. Fate acted upon him during these instances, and in retaliation he has decided on an act of defiance against fate, taking necessary steps to commit