Free Will In Romeo And Juliet

Fate and destiny are widely used in literature, even if it is subtle. They are often used as plot devices to further the development of a character or as an excuse/justification for the character’s decisions. In Shakespeare’s famous play Romeo and Juliet, the main protagonist’s decisions are often justified by their belief in fate. After Romeo duels Tybalt, and ultimately kills him, Romeo defensively proclaims that he is “fortune’s fool” (Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet PG #). By claiming that he is just a fool under fortune’s intentions, Romeo is basically telling the audience that he is not responsible for the death of Tybalt even though Romeo’s decisions ended Tybalt’s life. Throughout the play, Romeo uses fate as an excuse for consequences of his actions, but it always seems that Romeo truly believes that fate is the reason behind the events in his life. By portraying

Though Romeo plays into his destiny in the earlier acts, in act 5 when he finds out Juliet has died, he takes matters into his own hands when he says “is it e'en so?—Then I defy you, stars!” (Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet PG#). Romeo’s statement explains to the audience that Romeo, who always believed in fate, is now making a plan and any following consequences are entirely of his own free will. This quote is an example of Shakespeare letting his character’s free will cementing their own fate. This line also coincides with the play’s prologue where it says the most famous line: “a pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life” (Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1). Shakespeare’s use of this quote in the prologue adds a layer of foreshadowing and dramatic irony to the previous quote because the audience knows from the very beginning that the main characters are to end their