Friar Lawrence in Romeo And Juliet Essay

Good or Evil You Tell Me

In many ways, Friar Laurence and the nurse have been both good and bad for Romeo and Juliet. Throughout the story, both Friar Laurence and the nurse made choices that changed the course of Romeo and Juliets lives. Some of these were positive changes and others would later be greatly regretted.

In the story, Friar Laurence, was at some moments good for Juliet and at others very bad. For example, the fact that he didnt fulfill the plan he told Juliet of how she could escape from her second marriage, could very well be blamed for her death. He planned for her to appear to be dead, but she was only in a deep state of unconsciousness. When she awoke, she would have Romeo by her side in the tomb and they could run away to Mantua together. When he came up with the plan he was doing it as a kind-hearted man that sincerely cared about her. He was good to her and wanted the best for her. The problem was that if everything didnt work out as planned, it could be an enormous disaster. In the end, the letter explaining the plan to Romeo never reached its intended destination. Instead Romeo believed her to be dead and took his own life in grief. When Juliet finally regained consciousness she realized what had occurred and then took her life also.

In some ways, Friar Laurences kind heart and civic-minded personality caused him to make some decisions for Romeo that could be considered questionable as far as morality goes. One such decision was to secretly marry Romeo and Juliet. When Romeo came to him begging, Friar Laurence was reluctant to comply but the more he thought about it, his civic-minded personality made him say yes. He thought that it would end the feud between the Capulet and Montague households. The problem with this was that although this worked in the end, it only came to pass due to the disaster of Romeo and Juliet dying. Had he chosen not to marry them secretly, it may have made Romeo very upset with him but it would have prevented the catastrophe that would be caused by it.

In Romeo and Juliet the character of the nurse was very complex and hard to interpret. She always seemed to want the best for Juliet and do good things for her but she also seemed confused throughout the story. One thing she did in the story that shows this was when she conspired with Friar Laurence about a plan to give the new made bridegroom their honeymoon night. She wanted Juliet to still have her honeymoon although Romeo had been banished. She saw this as a way for her to show how much she cared and it truly worked. On the other hand, when Juliet was in desperate need for help, the Nurse didnt do her very much good. Juliets parents were both disappointed in her and threatening to disown her because she refused to marry Count Paris. When she confronted the Nurse for help and advice, the Nurse told her that she should break the law and marry a second man. More than that, she wasnt concerned with Juliets true feelings but rather with the fact that she may lose her job if Juliet continues to refuse. If she had done what was in Juliets best interest, she would have looked into the situation more and realized that forcing her into a marriage could have dire effects.

Throughout Romeo and Juliet both the nurse and Friar Laurence made some very big decisions. As you can see, these had both good and bad effects for Romeo and Juliet in the end. There were many times when a different decision could have made the outcome of the story completely different. They were good and bad for Romeo and Juliet yet without them the story couldnt have been the same at all.