When Lady Capulet first confronts young Juliet with the proposition of marrying Paris, we get the first real glimpse of the character behind Juliet. While it is true that she is only fourteen years old, she loyally gives up her say behind the matter and hands control over to her parents. In Juliet's mind, she has not even really given any thought to the idea of marriage. However, this attitude quickly changes as she soon meets Romeo. On the very night they meet, she accepts his hand in marriage.

It is during this period that (passive voice) the true courageousness of Juliet is exposed. The most obvious display of her courageousness is the simple act of marrying Romeo. Here we have two families with a long history of hate, and the lone daughter of one of them decides to marry the son of the other. And on top of this, her parents, as is evident through the party they put on for her, want to play a crucial role in deciding who her husband shall be. Juliet ignores both of these things and goes ahead with the marriage on her own. In the unfortunate event following this of Romeo killing Tybalt, Juliet again reaffirms her courage by immediately standing by Romeo's side on the matter. Even though her very own cousin has been killed, she stands loyally next to Romeo's side. (a bit repetitive here)  The Nurse even asks her if she will ever speak well of Romeo again, and Juliet answers, "Shall I speak ill of him that is my husband?" (Act 3.2, Line 98). By taking this side, she in turn loses her position with the three people that have meant the most in her life to this point. Her father and mother, unaware of Juliet's secret marriage, press on with the idea of marrying Paris in the coming days. Unlike last time, she flat out refuses the idea. Her heart and soul has been given to Romeo and that is the way she is going to keep it. Due to this, her mother refuses to speak to her and her father is enraged. And then, in a most disturbing fashion for Juliet, the Nurse promotes the marriage of her and Paris. The Nurse, who has been the one Juliet has always confidently disclosed information to and who could be considered her best friend, turns on her. Juliet realizes that she is in this game by herself at this point because no one will stand up for her and her everlasting love for Romeo. In Juliet's last show of courage, she, under the Friar's plan, drinks a potion that she believes could possibly kill her or make her go mad. Yet, she does it anyway. She knows that the only way she will be able to live the rest of her life with Romeo is by drinking it. And then, after she awakens and finds Romeo dead, she stabs herself to death. This gruesome way of dying reiterates her intense love and courage on behalf of Romeo. In these final scenes, Juliet takes a very active role in determining her future. Unlike Romeo, she goes out on her own and takes control of her life. On the other hand, Romeo sits back and lets fate have its way. It is in this way that Juliet is the most courageous character in this play.

Through all these events, she does understand the barrier that exists between the two families, yet it is her innocence and youth that lets her believe that the love she has for Romeo is far stronger than it. Up until her very last breathe, she believes that Romeo and her were meant to be. Nothing could stop them from being together.

In the end, she falls victim to the family battles. By this, Romeo and her have to come up with deceptive plans to go behind their families' backs. If it was not for this, Mercutio and Tybalt would not of died and Juliet would have never drank the potion. Secondly, Juliet fell victim by putting her life in someone else's hands. By trusting the Friar to tell Romeo of the plan with the potion, Romeo and her both end up losing their lives.

By the time of her death, Juliet has asserted herself as an "appealing child-woman." She has completed a rapid transformation from a girl dependent on others to a girl of independence.
A good response, but too much summary of the plot, especially in the long central paragraph.  More focus on a single idea, such as J's innocence, or her status as victim, would lead to a more penetrating analysis.  The writing is, on the whole, pretty solid. 8.0