Romeo And Juliet's Flaws Essay

One of the many reasons that Shakespeare’s tragedies have stood the test of time is because they do not have a set antagonist, but rather a complex web of conflicting characters. This can be seen in The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, where the flaws in Juliet’s character ultimately set the stage for her own death. Juliet’s manipulative disposition contributes to her death in a round-a-bout way. She is Lord and Lady Capulet’s only child, so she is accustomed to getting what she wants. Just like her mother, Lady Capulet, she uses her charm as a means to control others. Juliet can be seen exploiting Friar Laurence when she cries, “God joined my heart and Romeo’s, thou our hands. And ere this hand, by thee to Romeo sealed. Shall be the label of another deed, Or my true heart with

In receiving the potion, she then attempts to turn the situation around into one she believes will result in her dream of living a life with Romeo (which obviously does not go as planned). Another of Juliet’s flaws is her misguided loyalty to Romeo. In most cases, loyalty takes years upon years to grow. But for Juliet, the ability to sacrifice her life for another person develops in less than a day. After Juliet learns of Tybalt’s fate, she has a brief moment of clarity. This is where she describes Romeo as, “Despised substance of divinest show/ Just opposite to what thou justly seemest, A damned saint, an honorable villain.” (Shakespeare, 3.2.77-79). At this moment, she had an opportunity to back out of her pledge to Romeo and forget that her short-lived marriage had even occurred. But Juliet took her recent vow of “till death do us part” quite literally. Instead of taking the simple way out, which resolves with Paris and an unbelievable story for a masquerade party, she kept her word to a boy whose name was her only enemy: