Who Is The Friar Responsible For The Deaths Of Romeo And Juliet

The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy that never had to happen. It was not fate as Romeo and Juliet think throughout the story. Destiny did not have to end in death. A person rather than the stars is responsible. Friar Lawrence is ultimately responsible for the whole situation. For one, Friar agrees to marry the two falsely believing that this would end the families feud rather than fuel it. The Friar did not deliver the message to Romeo himself, practically asking something to go wrong. Lastly, when Juliet awoke to Romeo dead, he left her alone. Clearly the Friar could have prevented everything. First, the Friar agrees to marry the children of two long-time feuding family. He does this under the belief that it would reunite the families. The Friar is a smart man, as he is a well respected holy man, so he should know that this is an unreasonable belief. By marrying the two he gives them false hope of a happily ever after. Marriage fuels their supposed love to the point that they will die for one another, which they eventually do. Marriage from a religious standpoint is thought of as a close union, “This union is so close, so binding, so powerful, so comprehensive and far-reaching that, as long as one

He trusted another man with the letter. The man, also a Friar, could not deliver the letter;something Friar Lawrence didn’t find out until a later. Lawrence failed to explain to the man how important the letter was until Friar John came to tell him it wasn’t delivered(Shakespeare Act 5, Scene 2). Had the Friar explained to the John how important it was he may have tried harder to deliver it. Lawrence could have delivered the letter himself. Even if he couldn’t deliver it either, he would have been able to tell Juliet not to go through with the plan, or could have been in the graveyard waiting to stop anything foolish from happening. Evidently, the Friar did not think this part of the plan