The story of Romeo and Juliet was not a story about bad luck, but by bad choices that Romeo and Juliet made. If either of them at any moment had stopped and considered the consequences of the actions that they were about to perform, the problem that comes upon them could have been prevented.
The care that Lord Capulet shows toward his daughter is noticeable throughout the play, even though the actions are not noticeable at first glance. Because Juliet is his only child, she is all that he still has to live for. All Lord Capulet wants is for his daughter to be married to a fine and wealthy man. One of Juliet’s bad choices is when she chooses not to tell her father about her current marriage to Romeo, and pretends to do what her father has told her. Romeo and Juliet made more than one bad choice that lead to the final outcome.
When Lord Capulet tells Juliet that she will be marrying Paris, she chose not to tell him that she was already married to Romeo. Because he did not know Juliet was already married, he believed that her actions were ungrateful, and was punished for it. Instead of telling the truth she chose to pretend to go to the church to ask for forgiveness, and instead went to ask the Friar for help.
During Juliet’s conversation with Lord Capulet he tells Juliet that he only has one child, and apparently that is one to many,”….That God had lent us but this only child,
But now I see this one is one to much,
And that we have a curse in having her.” (3.5.172-174).
Another bad decision is one made by Romeo that could have prevented the entire tragedy. When Romeo, Mercutio, and Benvolio were on their way to crash the party, at any time Romeo could have realized that it was a bad idea and turned around. That would have prevented Romeo and Juliet meeting in the first place. Romeo does in fact, take the time to think about it, but shrugs off the idea of turning around and tells himself and the other boys to continue onward toward the Capulets home.
Romeo and his friends find an easy way to sneak in by wearing masks. Masks were often worn by young bachelors while at parties. It gives the less handsome boys a chance to have a good time and get to know some of the girls their same age. Because Romeo chooses to ignore his instinct and continue on to the party and, he soon meets Juliet.
At the time neither of them knew that they were related to the one family that their family hated. By the time they knew the identity of their lover, there was nothing they could do. At this point Romeo and Juliet could have made the smart decision and just gone on with their lives, instead they decide to continue their relationship even though they know that it would be against their parent’s wishes.
When Romeo is on the way to the party he ignores his instinct and continues toward the party,”…. But he that hath the steerage of my course
Direct my sail. On lusty gentlemen.” (1.4.119-120).
The story of Romeo and Juliet can be looked at in many different ways, it can be looked on as a story of love or a story of hate, it can be a story of bad luck, or it can be a story about bad choices. Romeo and Juliet made their own decisions and lived the lives they wanted to, therefore leading to their death. They decided that their love was stronger than their parent’s wishes, and paid the consequences for their actions in the end.
