Morgan Vane Mrs. Hallowell English 1A 22 May 2018 Romeo and Juliet Hierarchy Power is a dividing force affecting all aspects of life, from government to family relationships to socioeconomic status in society. In the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, two young lovers struggle to assert their power and become involved in a series of unfortunate events stemmed from a family feud. They rebel against their strict upbringing and pay for their fatal mistakes. The Elizabethan belief in the hierarchy of power causes the pressure of an arranged marriage, the punishment doled out by the prince, and the betrayal of the nurse ultimately leads to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. The belief in a social hierarchy in Elizabethan times is the …show more content…
This ultimately leads to the death of Romeo and Juliet. In this hierarchy of power, the lowest rank of people was serving class such as the nurse. It was constituted of servants, laborers, and peasants. These people had little respect and almost no rights. The nurse knew Juliet better than anyone. She was her best friend and a motherly figure. The nurse is treated poorly over the course of the play and when Lord Capulet is angry at Juliet the nurse attempts to defend her and is met with Lord Capulet saying, “Peace, you mumbling fool! Utter your gravity o’er a gossip’s bowl for here we need it not.” (3.5.183-185). The nurse is shut down because she is of the lowest class while Lord Capulet is nobility and has no respect for the nurse or her opinions. Since she is shut down, she cannot shield Juliet from his threats. After having no power for so long the Nurse starts to give in to Lord Capulet. She thinks the easy way out, marrying Paris, is the right choice when she knows better than anyone that the only way Juliet will be happy is being with Romeo. Juliet responds to the nurse’s suggestion of marrying Paris agreeingly when she is really heartbroken and feels the nurse was disloyal. Once the nurse leaves, Juliet forcefully