Essay Two

INTRODUCTION

William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet elucidates one of the most important themes of the time and of today: choice. Do the characters have the ability to choose what they want to do, or are they simply destined to participate in death and destruction? Through the use of a variety of literary techniques, there is ample evidence of both fate and free will in the play. It is the presence of both these contrasts that affect greatly the audience’s interpretation of both the plot and the characters.¹

PARAGRAPH 1

Fate is a dominating force, and is evident from the very beginning of the play. The Chorus, through the use of the sonnet structure and the dramatic technique of foreshadowing,² introduces to the audience the power of fortune in the opening prologue when we are told that Romeo and Juliet are “star-crossed” and “deathmarked,” and that their death will end their parents’ feud.³ Fate and fortune are closely related in the play, as they both concern events that are out of human control. By explaining to the audience that Romeo and Juliet are destined to die because of their poor choices and fallibility, Shakespeare, foreshadows the tragic climax of the play, and suggests to his audience that there is an undercurrent of predetermination in the events that are about to unfold. This effectively allows the introduction of the power of fate and fortune over people’s lives and also creates tension throughout the play. As such it can be seen that fate is introduced in the opening moments of the play to be superior to one’s free will.⁴

2. Here, we’re referencing both dramatic techniques and structural features to demonstrate evidence. Many students forget that structural devices are just as important as literary ones.

3. Note the highly fluent integration of quotes here. We haven’t quoted the entire prologue, or chunks of lines – instead, we’ve been very precise and only cited the two most important words, thereby demonstrating a detailed understanding of the text and its language.

4. This summarises the sub-argument for our first paragraph, though we’ll later add more complexity to this as we discuss more and more evidence.

PARAGRAPH 2

Furthermore, the idea of fate plays an important role in the lives of the characters, as all the characters themselves believe that their lives are controlled by destiny and luck. For instance, when Romeo and his friends journey to the Capulet’s ball in Act 1 Scene 4, Romeo hesitates to go because he has had a bad dream, and believes his “mind misgives some consequence, yet hanging in the stars,” and remarks that this night will “bitterly begin” something portentous, ultimately leading to a “vile forfeit of untimely death.”⁵ It is through the use of effective foreshadowing that the audience is able to come to the understanding that fate plays such an important role in the lives of the characters. Romeo not only acknowledges the power of the stars, which symbolise fate and fortunetelling, but he also believes that his destiny is to die. Romeo’s belief in fate also affects his interpretation of events.⁶ When Romeo kills Tybalt in Act 3 Scene 1, he claims that he is “fortune’s fool” by having contributed to his own downfall. Romeo finally tries to escape from his destiny at the end of the play by committing suicide to “shake the yoke of inauspicious stars.” Here the audience feels the full effects of the dramatic irony that has been used throughout the play, as Romeo’s actions to “free” himself from the confines of fate fulfils the destiny declared by the Chorus in the opening prologue.⁷ However, this belief in the power of fate is not only attributed to Romeo in the play, but is shared amongst other characters, including Juliet and Friar Lawrence. For an Elizabethan audience such a belief in fate would not have seemed unusual. Shakespearean audiences would not have questioned the dominance of these concepts in the lives of the characters.⁸ Indeed, it would have seemed odd if the characters did not believe in the power of fate or in the ability of the stars to dictate their lives. As such, Shakespeare’s play foregrounds⁹ the role of fate, and encourages both Elizabethan and contemporary audiences to empathise with his characters as they grapple with their fates.

5. It is very important to have quotations memorised and memorised correctly! A good way to achieve this is to use flash cards, and (independently or with friends) test yourself. Another technique is to record yourself saying the quotes aloud. Listen to them in the car, before you go to bed, or while you exercise. It is surprising how much your subconscious picks up. It’s just like listening to your favourite songs, only Shakespearean!

6. Notice how these different examples all flow together nicely? This is an underrated aspect of essay writing that can contribute to your mark in a small but important way, as if your piece is easier for your assessor to read, it will be easier for them to give you marks for all of the ideas and evidence you have included. On the flip side, if your writing is rambly or the ideas don’t connect to one another, they will have a harder time working out what you’re trying to say, and will therefore have fewer opportunities to give you marks.

7. This ties together all of the evidence used in this paragraph, making for a highly cohesive argument.

8. Side references to the historical or cultural time the play is set are very valuable, especially when dealing with a Shakespearean text where the context and setting is vastly different to what we, as modern readers and viewers, understand and know today.

9. This is a great word to use when describing what an author focuses on, or what is made obvious throughout the text.

PARAGRAPH 3

The power of fate to control one’s life seems insurmountable in light of what the characters say in Romeo and Juliet, but when one considers what they actually do, the issue becomes much more problematic. Although Romeo professes a great belief in the power of the stars over his life, he constantly acts against what he believes his destiny to be. He dreams that he will die if he attends the Capulet ball, yet this does not dissuade him from going. This tendency to profess a belief in fate but act according to one’s own wishes is typical of more characters in this play than just Romeo. The Capulets and the Montagues,¹⁰ who bemoan their misfortune when their children commit suicide at the end of the play, are willing participants in the feud that causes the situation to escalate in the first place. Tybalt and Mercutio, who are only affiliated with houses rather than members of them, nevertheless willingly fight each other because of their bad tempers. Juliet also acts according to her own mind, despite her belief in fate. Her love for Romeo notwithstanding, Juliet knows that a relationship with him is not the wisest choice, this is represented through the use of monologue and pathetic fallacy in Act 2 Scene 2. She acknowledges her newfound “joy” is “too rash, too unadvised, too sudden; too like the lightning.” And yet, Juliet chooses to pursue this relationship despite these problems, knowing that it may result in both of their deaths, and she willingly consumes the poison as part of her plan to elope with Romeo. Subsequently, she also chooses to kill herself rather than confront her parents once Romeo has committed suicide. All of the characters in the play have options, and it is their actions, which contradict their belief in fate, that lead to the deaths that occur. Therefore, it can be seen that while fate plays an important role in the lives of the characters, it is ultimately actions taken in accordance with their free will, that lead to their fates being fulfilled.¹¹

10. As always, don’t forget to link your discussion of Romeo and Juliet to the other characters as well, as this makes your analysis more sophisticated.

11. This is quite a nuanced interpretation that goes beyond the basic dichotomy of ‘fate vs. freewill,’ but is still clearly explained to the assessor at the end of this paragraph.

CONCLUSION

Romeo and Juliet effectively explores the problem of fate and free will. Whilst there are obvious examples of fate, such as the first meeting between Romeo and Juliet and the fulfilling of the prophecy of the prologue, there are, however, circumstances where the characters choose their actions of their own free will. As such it can be seen that interconnectivity between fate and fortune in the play is exceptionally important in allowing it to transcend cultures and continents as a revered literary work.¹²