What Caused The Tragedy Of Romeo And Juliet

William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, is widely known as a tragedy, to people of all age groups, but why did the tragedy occur? In the story Romeo and Juliet, many of the characters lose control of themselves, and act without thinking about the consequences. This irrational behaviour is caused when people cannot control their emotions. The tragedy which occurred in the play was ultimately bred from the malice between the two families. Many of the decisions made during the play were done so without forethought, and were made during the “heat of the moment”. The characters also lacked self-control, which caused many problems for Romeo and Juliet. Tragedy often occurs when people cannot control their emotions.
In the beginning of the play, the two families are depicted as enemies with an ancient grudge. This grudge becomes a problem for Romeo and Juliet, as their parents would not support one of them marrying the other. The altercation between the two families in the …show more content…
The most influential decision which caused the tragedy was Romeo choosing to kill Tybalt after the death of Mercutio. This “turning point” of the play, makes the relationship between Romeo and Juliet even more difficult than it was before. When Romeo sees Tybalt after Mercutio falls, Romeo angrily exclaims “Alive in triumph -- and Mercutio slain! / Away to heaven, respective lenity, / And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now” (3.1.84-86). After losing control of his rage, Romeo kills Tybalt, even though Tybalt would have been executed by the Prince for the death of Mercutio. Romeo’s hand in the death of Tybalt leads to his banishment, and in the end, the tragedy. If the characters in Romeo and Juliet kept their emotions in control, the tragedy could have been avoided