Romeo And Juliet

Romeo and Juliet, is a story of two young lovers, whose love was destined for destruction. They did not imagine that their love
would lead to the tragedies that it did. These two young people did
nothing wrong except fall in love. Three aspects of their destruction
included the feud between the two families, the nurse and her betrayal
of Juliet and the most important aspect of all is fate.

The feud between the two families was one factor that
contributed to the love of Romeo and Juliet being destined for
destruction. “From ancient grudge break to new mutiny”. (Romeo &
Juliet, Prologue, pg.2 l.3) The two families, Montagues and Capulets,
had many problems. There was hate between the two families so much so
that even the servants hated each other. This feud would have caused
many problems for Romeo and Juliet: These two young lovers knew this
and this is why they kept their marriage a secret. If their parents
discovered their secret, they would have made their children’s lives
miserable. Romeo and Juliet would not have been able to see each
other. Both of these families were very stubborn and there was hardly
any thing that would have made them become friends. In the prologue
we learn that the only way the “strife” could be ended was by the
deaths of Romeo and Juliet. “Doth with their death bury their
parent’s strife”. (Romeo ; Juliet, Prologue, l.8) Neither the
Montagues or the Capulets would have accepted the marriage. Keeping
the marriage a secret caused Romeo and Juliet to turn to other people
for help. Sometimes these people gave them the wrong advice or just
betrayed them.
The Nurse was one of these characters who betrayed the young
couple. The Nurse who was also Juliet’s friend turned against her at
a very crucial time. The Nurse told Juliet that it would be best if
she married Paris. “I think it best you married with the county”.
(Romeo & Juliet, pg.101, III, v, l.219) This betrayal by the Nurse
left Juliet alone. She was a wise young woman but it still would have
been beneficial for her to have the help of the Nurse. Juliet was
left on her own to make some very important decisions. I believe that
if the Nurse had been around to help Juliet things may have turned out
differently. Juliet had no one to turn to and ask for help. She
could not have gone to her parents because they would not have
understood. The Nurse was supposed to be one of Juliet’s best
friends. Now when it was important for Juliet to have someone there,
for her she was betrayed.
When considering the destruction of Romeo and Juliet the most
sifnificant fact you must think about is fate. Fate, above all,
destroyed Romeo and Juliet. Many instances in the play reveals that
the love of Romeo and Juliet would end in death. “A pair of
star-crossed lovers take their life”. (Romeo ; Juliet,pg.2, Prologue,
l.6) From the very beginning it is evident that they were destined by
the stars to bad fortune. Some people may think that there is no way
to control fate or change what is in the stars. It could be that the
love of Romeo and Juliet was destined for death so that their parent’s
feud would be over. Also, in the prologue it states that the dreadful
course of their love was destined for death. “The fearful passage of
their death marked love”. (Romeo & Juliet, pg.2, Prologue, l.9) Both
of these quotes show us that the love of these two was destined to end
tragically. The masquerade party was above all the most important
aspect of fate. The fact that Romeo was wearing a mask and his face
was hidden allowed juliet to fall in love with him before she saw who
it was. If Juliet had known who Romeo was she would probably have not
fallen in love with him. Fate could not have been changed whatever
was meant to be would happen and no one could change that.
In conclusion, from the very beginning, the love of Romeo and
Juliet was destined to be destroyed. It is tragic that both these
people had to die. There were circumstances throughout the course of
their lives that led up to their deaths. If their parent’s had not
been feuding and if the Nurse had not betrayed Juliet, the outcome of
this story would have been different, although fate could not be
changed. This was the most important factor in the lives of Romeo and
Juliet. In my opinion the quote that accurately summarizes this play
is, “For never was there a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and
her Romeo.” (Romeo ; Juliet, V, iii, p. 138, ll.309-310)