Romeo and Juliet: An Analogy
Mark Perkins

This is an English essay I had to do for my freshman English class. If you don't have time, than just read the last paragraph. The first couple are rather bla and have nothing to do with God. However, in my last paragraph I drew a little analogy. Just thought I'd share. Hope you enjoy.

Though the tragic decisions made by Romeo and Juliet to commit suicide in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare are not made by anyone else, many people do influence this decision and are indirectly responsible for their tragic deaths. The blame for theit sucides is not simply to be placed on the heads of the two “star-crossed” lovers, but also upon those who are blinded by their bitter hatred and animosity. Those who can not see past the hatred fueled by years upon years of terrible feuding are also guilty for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.

Chief among those who have rejected peace for violence are Tybalt and Mercutio, two who cause complications leading to the sad, pitiful climax. These two bloodthirsty villains seem to have no other purpose in life than to create conflict in the town of Verona. Tybalt seems always to make it his mission to cheat the peacemakers out of their peace. Benvolio struggles to keep members of the households of Montague and Capulet from killing each other when Tybalt enters, causing quite a stir.

"Tybalt. What, art thou drawn among these heartless hinds?
Turn thee, Benvolio, and look up on thy death.
Benvolio. I do but keep the peace. Put up thy sword,
Or manage it to part these men with me.
Tybalt. What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word
As I hate Hell, all Montagues, and thee.
Have at thee, coward! (Rom. 1.1.52-58)

Obviously, Tybalt has some sort of animosity towards any sort of sensibility. He seems determined not to live to a ripe old age and to take half the population of Verona with him when he departs. Mercutio, on the other hand, claims to be a peace lover, a calm fellow, but, in reality, is nothing more than a somewhat friendlier Tybalt. When the two meet, it begins to become obvious that they will not both depart unscathed. Tybalt and Mercutio are on the verge of fighting when Tybalt’s true source of hatred, Romeo, enters the scene. When Romeo refuses to enter a fight, Mercutio graciously offers to take his place, getting himself killed in the process. Then, in retaliation and rage, Romeo kills Tybalt. The actions of Mercutio and Tybalt lead to their deaths, and later to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.

Another who inadvertently causes his own daughter’s death is Lord Capulet, whose caustic decision to force Juliet to marry about a week after her cousin’s death is one of the main elements in Juliet’s death. Juliet protests this marriage because she alone knows that she and Romeo have been secretly married. However, her father, Lord Capulet, refuses to listen to anything she has to say.

Juliet. Good Father, I beseech you on my knees,
Hear me with patience but to speak a word.
Capulet. Hang thee, young baggage! Disobedient wretch!
I tell thee what. Get thee to the church o’ Thursday
Or never after look me in the face.
Speak not, reply not, do not answer me.
My fingers itch. Wife, we scarce thought us blest
That God had lent us but this only child,
But now I see this one is too much,
And that we have a curse in having her.
Out on her, hilding! (Rom. 3.5.159-168)

One who sends Juliet to her death with only good intentions is Friar Laurence. The friar is the one who marries Romeo and Juliet, which, in and of itself, is an extremely foolish action. How can he justify a marriage between two who have spoken only two times? His next foolish action is to give Juliet a potion that will put her into a death-like sleep, showing that he, too, is thinking with his heart, not his head. He does send a message to Romeo, but one that never reaches its destination. When Romeo and Juliet are found truly slain, and the friar is confronted, he seems to say, “Woops! I made a mistake, but it’s really your fault, not mine!” Though his words are wise, he seems to have no right to say them if one takes into account his previous foolish actions.

No one wantes both Romeo and Juliet slain. Many in the Capulet family may want to kill Romeo, but no one wants Juliet to die, and certainly the Montagues mourns the death of Romeo. However, many people unintentionally help to send Juliet and her secret husband Romeo to their deaths, and the fact that the parts they play are unintentional does not excuse them. In life, one must look beyond the present day to understand what consequences his actions will have. The American culture tends to live in the present, ignoring the simple sequence of cause and effect. Often, humans never look beyond this life, never consider what will happen after death. Jesus Christ is the only way to get into heaven, but many either refuse to consider this or refuse to care. Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet offers a valuable lesson – life is not just to be lived in the present. One must always consider the eternal consequences of his actions. Life offers many Romeos and many Juliets; one can see what a reckless, carefree lifestyle leads to in any one of a million examples. Jesus is Friar Laurence (minus the mistakes), and the rest of humanity is Lord Capulet and Lord Montague. Will they listen to the Friar?