Introduction Paragraph
From before the moment Juliet and Romeo meet, their love is entwined with death. Romeo senses a fatal end approaching as he considers going to the party at Capulet’s house where he will meet Juliet for the first time. Likewise, as she sends her nurse to discover Romeo’s identity, Juliet thinks of her death. The feud between Montagues and Capulets creates a world where the lives of the members of the houses revolve around fights and deaths that make it impossible for Juliet and Romeo’s love for each other to lead anywhere good. Instead, their love brings chaos, violence, and the deaths of their friends and of themselves. But love, leading eventually to reconciliation between Capulets and Montagues, is what awakens them, …show more content…
The feud, like their love, is dually destructive and creative: it routinely causes the deaths of family members, but it is the way of life for the warring families. Seeing the aftermath of the fight between the servants of the two houses, Romeo perceives the multifaceted nature of the bond and exclaims, “Here’s much to do with hate, but more with love” (1.1.180). He understands that feud is not only about hating the other family but also about creating a stronger bond with one’s own family. Because both life and death are central in it, actions of solely affection or violence cannot end the feud. Prince Escalus attempts to end it with threats of violence early in the play, telling the fighting Capulets and Montagues, “If ever you disturb our streets again, / Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace” (1.1.98-99). However, the consequence of future violence is not enough to stop the feud, something that revolves around violence. The people participating in the feud already risk their lives, so “pay[ing] the forfeit of the peace” and any other violence promised in retaliation has little influence. Prince Escalus’ tactic fails, for the feud continues in the fight amongst Mercutio, Tybalt, and Romeo. Friar Lawrence, on the other hand, hopes that Juliet and Romeo’s marriage “may so happy prove / To turn [their] households’ rancor to pure love” (2.3.98-99). Yet their marriage cannot stand in the way of the feud any more than Prince Escalus’ threats of retribution can. The “rancor” between families is more powerful than the act of creation that is Juliet and Romeo’s love. Neither the attempt to create “pure love” between the families nor danger the of the “forfeit” of their lives can stop their fighting. Only a simultaneous action conveying creation and destruction, the two extremes of Romeo and Juliet’s love, can end the feud. Before drinking poison, Romeo when says, “Thus
From before the moment Juliet and Romeo meet, their love is entwined with death. Romeo senses a fatal end approaching as he considers going to the party at Capulet’s house where he will meet Juliet for the first time. Likewise, as she sends her nurse to discover Romeo’s identity, Juliet thinks of her death. The feud between Montagues and Capulets creates a world where the lives of the members of the houses revolve around fights and deaths that make it impossible for Juliet and Romeo’s love for each other to lead anywhere good. Instead, their love brings chaos, violence, and the deaths of their friends and of themselves. But love, leading eventually to reconciliation between Capulets and Montagues, is what awakens them, …show more content…
The feud, like their love, is dually destructive and creative: it routinely causes the deaths of family members, but it is the way of life for the warring families. Seeing the aftermath of the fight between the servants of the two houses, Romeo perceives the multifaceted nature of the bond and exclaims, “Here’s much to do with hate, but more with love” (1.1.180). He understands that feud is not only about hating the other family but also about creating a stronger bond with one’s own family. Because both life and death are central in it, actions of solely affection or violence cannot end the feud. Prince Escalus attempts to end it with threats of violence early in the play, telling the fighting Capulets and Montagues, “If ever you disturb our streets again, / Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace” (1.1.98-99). However, the consequence of future violence is not enough to stop the feud, something that revolves around violence. The people participating in the feud already risk their lives, so “pay[ing] the forfeit of the peace” and any other violence promised in retaliation has little influence. Prince Escalus’ tactic fails, for the feud continues in the fight amongst Mercutio, Tybalt, and Romeo. Friar Lawrence, on the other hand, hopes that Juliet and Romeo’s marriage “may so happy prove / To turn [their] households’ rancor to pure love” (2.3.98-99). Yet their marriage cannot stand in the way of the feud any more than Prince Escalus’ threats of retribution can. The “rancor” between families is more powerful than the act of creation that is Juliet and Romeo’s love. Neither the attempt to create “pure love” between the families nor danger the of the “forfeit” of their lives can stop their fighting. Only a simultaneous action conveying creation and destruction, the two extremes of Romeo and Juliet’s love, can end the feud. Before drinking poison, Romeo when says, “Thus