What is the Significance of Fate and Destiny in Romeo and Juliet?

Some strongly believe that fate plays a role in their lives. They think their life story is written in the stars by fate. In the famous play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, two young characters with rival families fell in love. One person from each family died before Romeo got banished to Mantua. Friar Lawrence, an old friend of Romeo and Juliet, gave Juliet a potion to help her reunite with her love, but his good intentions ended up getting ruined by problems.

These problems led to the double suicide of Romeo and Juliet.

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There were many forces of fate that caused Romeo and Juliet to die. Accidents contributed heavily to the death of Romeo and Juliet. Coincidences also were instrumental to the demise of Romeo and Juliet. In addition to those two forces, good intentions lead Romeo and Juliet to their death. As a result of the conspiracy of forces being in play during Romeo and Juliet, fate is ultimately the cause of the death of Romeo and Juliet.

Accidents occur continuously in Romeo and Juliet and it is one of the forces of fate that lead them to their death. An example of an accident that happened in the play that caused their death was when Friar Lawrence told Romeo that Balthasar was going to give him a letter with the news while he was in Mantua. He forgot that he told Romeo that the messenger was his servant, so told Juliet that it was going to be a different person; Friar John.

Balthasar ended up getting to Romeo in Mantua, but he didn’t know the potion plan that Friar Lawrence and Juliet made, so he told Romeo that Juliet was dead. Before Romeo left Mantua Friar Lawrence said to him, “I will find your man and he shall signify from time to time Every good hap to you that chances here,” (3, 4, 180-182) but to Juliet, he says, “I’ll send to a friar with speed to Mantua with my letters to thy lord,” (4,1, 125-126).

Along with accidents being a force that killed Juliet and Romeo, coincidences also played a role in it. An example of coincidences coming into play was when the Capulet’s serving man asked Romeo to read the Capulet’s party guestlist for him. While reading the guestlist Romeo noticed something that made him want to go to the party. He read, “My fair niece Rosaline...”

(1, 2, 75). He saw that his love at the time, Rosaline was invited so he decided to go. After reading the list he asked the serving man whose list it was and he told him that it was Capulet’s. Even knowing that it was Capulet’s party and he obviously wasn’t allowed to go he still went because he really wanted to see Rosaline. If the serving-man didn’t ask Romeo to read the list he wouldn’t have known about it and wouldn’t have meant Juliet. Not meeting Juliet would save him and Juliet from their untimely death. An equally important is coincident that lead Romeo and Juliet to their death were when Balthasar was on his way to get to Romeo in Mantua with news from Friar Lawr.

Once but then he saw Juliet’s body being carried. When he got to Romeo he said to him, “Her body sleeps in Capels’ monument.../ I saw her laid low in her kindred’s vault.” (5, 1, 19- 21). If Balthasar didn’t see Juliet’s body he wouldn’t have known that she was “dead” and Romeo wouldn’t have gone back to Verona to see Juliet’s “dead” body. He wouldn’t have killed himself if he didn’t see Juliet’s body in the tomb. Juliet wouldn’t have killed herself either because she only did that because Romeo was dead.

In addition to accidents and coincidences being an influence that caused Romeo and Juliet’s death, good intentions were too. Friar Lawrence marrying Juliet and Romeo to end the feud that was going on between the Capulets and Montagues. He said to Romeo after agreeing to marry him and Juliet, “For this alliance may so happy prove To turn your households’ rancor to pure love.” (2, 3, 98-99) When Friar Lawrence agreed to marry them it was in hope that the marriage would make rival families like each other but he didn’t think of how they would tell the two families about the marriage. His good intention actually ended up leading Romeo and Juliet closer to their death. If he had waited to really think things through and realized that Romeo was in love with Rosaline just a day earlier then he would have known that marrying them was a bad idea. Marrying them brought them closer to their death because they started to think more irrationally and the marriage made them fall into a deeper love.