Love's Power: Romeo and Juliet Essay

Romeo and Juliet is one of the most celebrated English literary play written by William Shakespeare. Ideally, love is the primary theme of the tragedy and without a doubt the most important premise. The play focused on romance, particularly on the intense passion that builds up at first sight between the main characters, Romeo and Juliet. The author has displayed love as violent, blissful and overpowered the force that replaces other values related to loyalty, emotion, and values. Through the development of the play, the lovers are forced to disobey the entire social beliefs and cultural world values. The affection for the two has made them defy their families, their friends who were against their love and the ruler. Romeo, for instance, has abandoned Mercutio and Benvolio for the sake of Juliet. At the same time, he returns to Verona after being expelled by the Prince, only for the sake of Juliet. The overriding theme in the play is love's power which is displayed by the author as brutal and emotional, capturing the main actors and catapults them against the world and in some instances against themselves.

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Love's power is displayed in the way that it is described and more precisely, the manner in which descriptions of it continuously fail to portray its entirety. In some instances in the play, love is illustrated in terms of religion as evident in the fourteen lines where Juliet and Romeo first met. In other instances, it has described as some fairy-tale: "Alike bewitched by the charm of looks." Juliet described her affection for Romeo by denying to describe how she felt: "My love is grown to too much excess, I cannot add up some of half my wealth (33-34). This shows that the concept of love used in the play cannot be resonated with any metaphor since its power is so immense to be easily understood. The main characters failed to make specific moral statements regarding relationships that exists between religion, family, and society. It has rather displayed the turmoil and passion of experiencing love, linking the images of affection, death, faith, and family in a sketchy rush leading to a disastrous conclusion of the play.

The love between Juliet and Romeo overpowered all that they believed in as demonstrated in the play. When they had realized that they had loved wrong people, they shunned anything or anybody that came between them in any way possible. At some point they thought of rejecting the parents and declining their names if that is what required them to be together. Juliet was worried by the unfolding but she loved Romeo so much to the extent that she was yearning to die rather than be rejected. They were energized by the haste of their love, cannot think of something else besides being together; as if blinded by love. Moreover, Juliet's affection is intense for Romeo to the extent that it manipulated her judgement. While flattering in Capulet's Orchard Juliet is told that:

With love's light wings did I o'erperch these walls;

For stony limits cannot hold love out,

And what love can do, that dares love attempt;

Therefore thy kinsmen are no let to me (2.2.66-69)

This indicated the genuine and deep love they he had and does not care if the securities caught them so long as Juliet was with him. There is so much dedication between to the point that there were suicidal thoughts are contemplated in case they are apart. In actual sense, death becomes an option for Romeo when he is informed about the "death" of his love, Juliet. The love that the two had is so profound that they are willing to defend it by ending their individual life. The concept of love dictates that dying for each other is the highest act that Juliet and Romeo could do. Normally, nobody today can take their life to manage the loss of those they love. The contemporary society has been conditioned to allow grieving the loss then move on.

The romance between Juliet and Romeo took place within a short period of time. In the course of the play, intense emotions emerge when the two (Juliet and Romeo) first met. When they met at the Capulet ball, both Juliet and Romeo looks into each other's eyes and in the process progressively get attached to each other. Immediate chemistry is felt, and Romeo muttered to himself,

"Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight!

For I ne'er saw true beauty till this night"(pg., 51-52).

According to this, Romeo believed that Juliet was indeed the true love and slowly disregarded Rosaline, even though his family disputed the moment they met with Juliet. He was unable to belittle he had in his heart and decided to approach the young Juliet and goes ahead to seal their first date with a kiss. Before long, they became victims of Cupid's arrow and ultimately, the bond they had was bigger and stronger than any of them had for their friends and families. In the instance when Romeo was expelled for killing Juliet's cousin, Juliet was not remorseful for Tybalt but is instead cried for Romeos. For her, the death of the cousin is a test for their love. Juliet's love is more profound than the love she had for Tybalt, and this allowed her to forgive him for the action easily, to choose her as the husband over her family. In the contemporary time, in case a member of the family was to die, the grief would be greater than if a newly made friend died. Similarly, love, at first sight, is rare as bonds are not typically established that fast. Unlike in the play where the actors felt an immediate connection, it often takes a significant time for the love to grow in the current world.

The affection for friends is fundamental for the actors in Romeo and Juliet as evident in the modern world. When Romeo loved a woman who did not share similar feelings as him, he allowed depression to get the better part of him; and thinks no one could be as fare as Rosaline. In the course of these events, Benvolio identifies the distress in Romeo and wants to cheer him up. He motivates Romeo to go to the Capulet's feast and makes a prediction that Romeo will see more attractive and beautiful girls than Rosaline. This is underlined when Benvolio said

Compare her face with the one I show,

And I will make thee think thy swan a crow" (pg., 88-89).

When fighting became extensive, Benvolio engaged with his friends and relatives and inspired peace. He condemned fighting and even defended Romeo after the death of Tybalt. Together with Benvolio, Mercutio is a close friend and they each enjoyed friendship; there are numerous instances of giddy jokes and laughter. In this context, it was evident that Romeo had friends who would go to the extent of helping him out in case a need arises. This type of friendship is compared to the contemporary world. Even if someone falls, the power of love between friends will bring togetherness among friends and help regardless of the type of trouble. They provide that unconditional comfort that is required to help during the difficult times.

Conclusion

In conclusion, William Shakespeare has used the love as the primary theme throughout the play to showcase the story between Romeo and Juliet. The power of love has been highlighted throughout the play in varied aspects for each and every actor; there are ways that have changed over time. Love can be overwhelming as hate can be and the love between the two is related from the moment of its beginning with death. The concept of love has progressively changed but the meaning remained distinct. The tragedy shows a short but complicated link between friendship and passion, which resonates with the present day love. The story is famous across the globe as the "authentic" love fairytale.

Reference

William, S. (2017). Romeo and Juliet. Strelbytskyy Multimedia.