Love as Tragedy: Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
Romeo
and Juliet are star-crossed lovers who come of age in two very different
ways and in a world full of hate.Juliet
rises above the other characters as a courageous and strong willed woman.She
is Shakespeare’s first great tragic figure.
The
audience first sees Juliet as a child.She
is very hesitant to grow up and mature.This
is illustrated with her first response to marriage.“It
is an honor that I dream not of” (1.3.66).She
doesn’t consider the possibility of marriage and is keeping it at somewhat
of a distance.Her immaturity is also
shown by the fact that she always wants to please her parents.“I’ll
look to like, if looking liking move; / But no more deep will I endart
mine eye/ Than your consent gives strength
to make it fly” (1.3.97-99).Juliet
is not yet the strong independent woman that she becomes later on in the
play.She has not found the love
that will transform her childhood fantasies to adult passion.
Once
Juliet meets Romeo, however, her entire life changes its course.These
lovers struggle for a mature love, but the social world around them is
always against this.Juliet comes
of age in an active way.She transforms
very quickly for such a young age.Her
passionate characteristic comes through in her speech in Act three, scene
two.Her love is not only religious
or spiritual, but also very passionate.She
does not make excuses as Romeo does when he faults fate and not himself.She
surrenders herself to love and fights the world to keep it safe.Juliet
becomes a figure of will and independence unlike any other heroine.Romeo
on the other hand becomes more passive as he comes of age.Their
love for each other, no matter how strong, is destroyed by the social world
around them.
Both
Romeo and Juliet are clueless to the larger world at the time of
their marriage.Juliet especially falls
victim to the world.In Act three,
scene five, she challenges her parents and everything that kept her innocent.She
is independent and has an independent will.After
her refusal to marry
Although it loses some focus near the end,
this is on the whole an excellent response to the question of J's maturation.
The two middle paragraphs do a fine job of detailing the ways in which
she comes of age, her active nature, her ability to rebel against her family,
and the passion of her love. Overall a very good job. 9.5