To install StudyMoose App tap and then “Add to Home Screen”
Save to my list
Remove from my list
Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous plays of all time, known to be a story of true love; yet, it might not be as romantic as everyone thinks. In fact, there’s a possibility that Romeo never loved Juliet at all. Many details of Shakespeare’s writing and Romeo’s life influence this idea. Overall, Romeo only liked the idea of Juliet because of many factors of the play itself, thus wreaking havoc on everyone around him.
To begin, women in that time were only seen as objects to please the men.
Many times during the play, Lord Capulet refers to Lady Capulet as “wife” . This implies that all a woman is good for is being a wife. Even Juliet said that she needed to submit to her husband and implied that she was his object . Also, Romeo automatically wanted to forget about Rosaline when he discovered that she vowed to remain a virgin . If he gave up on her that easily, that means he only cared about sex and not the love they might’ve shared.
Overall, the play has a lot about men only marrying for money and sex. This proves that Romeo might not have loved Juliet.
Next, there’s a huge stereotype that men have no feelings. In the play, a character named Benvolio laughs at the fact that a man is showing emotion . This is because guys typically never showed any true feelings. Also, it’s said that having tears makes you look like a woman .
This portrays the idea of girls being weak and emotional, males being the opposite. Later in the play, Friar Lawrence says that if you show any of your feelings, you’ll die miserable. All in all, if guys supposedly have no emotions, how could Romeo have really loved Juliet?
Moving on, Romeo could have only wanted someone to give him attention due to the fact that his parents never gave him any. They were always focused on work, and never had any time to give to him. In fact, Lord Montague and Romeo never had any one-on-one conversation throughout the entirety of the play. Therefore, he most likely wanted to make up for the neglect he received from his parents by finding someone else to give him that attention.
To continue, Romeo had never been in love before. So, what if what he felt wasn’t love? He claimed to have loved Juliet in a matter of seconds. Yet, relationship therapist Aimee Hartstein says that it isn’t possible for someone to fall in love that quickly. “…when people say they are in love after four weeks or even after eight weeks, they are talking about lust” . Even in that quote, she says it isn’t possible in as little as eight weeks; so, how would it be possible after a few seconds? Also, a licensed phycologist and therapist by the name of Rachel Needle says that men typically don’t question their emotions as much and therefore think that something is stronger than what it is. This could mean that Romeo was simply attracted to Juliet and believed that what he felt was love when it wasn’t.
Finally, many probably say that Romeo was really in love with Juliet. They might think this because of the fact that he had been in love before with Rosaline. Yet, as stated in the first body paragraph, evidence points to Romeo never really loving her. In fact, every single paragraph from before can prove how he didn’t love Rosaline OR Juliet. Considering how quickly he moved on from Rosaline and went to Juliet, it’s very hard to believe that he loved either of them at all.
In conclusion, Romeo never really loved Juliet, which is proved by many of his actions and factors of his life. Evidence points to him only caring about sex and the simple idea of someone wanting him. All in all, nobody will ever know the truth about Romeo and Juliet and his true intentions of being with her; except for Shakespeare himself.
Romeo and Juliet: The Story Of True Love. (2024, Feb 22). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/romeo-and-juliet-the-story-of-true-love-essay
👋 Hi! I’m your smart assistant Amy!
Don’t know where to start? Type your requirements and I’ll connect you to an academic expert within 3 minutes.
get help with your assignment