Was Juliet Forced To Marry Paris?

Was Juliet truly in love with Romeo or was she forced into marrying Paris? Some say that Juliet was forced into marrying Paris by her parents.

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The story of Romeo and Juliet

The story of Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous love stories of all time. The two young lovers are from rival families, the Montagues and the Capulets, and their relationship is opposed by their parents and society. Despite the odds, Romeo and Juliet fall in love and marry in secret. However, their happiness is short-lived, as Romeo is forced to exile himself after killing Juliet’s cousin Tybalt in a duel. Juliet is also forced to marry Paris, a man she does not love. Tragically, the lovers commit suicide rather than be forced apart. Their deaths ultimately reunite the warring families and bring peace to Verona.

The balcony scene

The balcony scene takes place in Act III, scene v, when Romeo sneaks into Juliet’s garden at night. Juliet is on her balcony, thinking about Romeo and wondering if he will ever come back to her. She says “Oh, Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?” which means “Why are you Romeo?” She is sad because she knows that her family would never approve of their relationship.

Romeo hides in the bushes and calls out to Juliet. She is surprised to see him and asks him why he is there. He says “I am here to be with you”. They declare their love for each other and then Romeo leaves.

The Nurse comes out and tells Juliet that Paris is coming to visit her. Juliet is not interested in Paris but she agrees to marry him because her parents think it would be a good match.

Juliet’s forced marriage to Paris

There is much debate over whether or not Juliet was forced to marry Paris. Some believe that her father, Lord Capulet, was simply trying to do what he thought was best for his daughter by arranging the marriage. Others believe that Juliet was coerced into going along with the plan and that she never would have agreed to marry Paris if she had been given a choice.

It is clear that Juliet did not want to marry Paris and that she was only going along with her father’s wishes because she felt she had no other choice. In Act III, Scene V, Juliet even says, “My grave is like to be my wedding bed.” This shows that she is not looking forward to her marriage at all and sees it as nothing more than a way to end her life.

Whether or not Juliet was truly forced into marrying Paris is up for interpretation. What is clear, however, is that she did not want to go through with the marriage and saw it as nothing more than a way to escape her current situation.

Romeo’s banishment

Many people believe that Juliet was forced into marrying Paris because of Romeo’s banishment, but this is not entirely accurate. While it is true that her father, Lord Capulet, initially arranged the marriage without consulting Juliet, she was not actually forced to go through with it. After Romeo killed Tybalt in revenge for Mercutio’s death, he was banished from Verona. Juliet was heartbroken, but her father insisted that she marry Paris in order to forget Romeo.

Juliet did not want to marry Paris, but she also did not want to disobey her father. She became desperate and decided that the only way out was to fake her own death with a potion given to her by Friar Lawrence. She would be placed in the family tomb and taken away secretly by Romeo. This plan went awry when Romeo believed Juliet was truly dead and killed himself. When Juliet woke up and found Romeo’s corpse beside her, she took her own life as well.

The death of Romeo and Juliet

The death of Romeo and Juliet was a tragic event that occurred due to the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues. Juliet was forced to marry Paris by her father, but she truly loved Romeo. After Romeo killed Tybalt, he was banished from Verona. Juliet took drastic measures to be reunited with Romeo, which led to their untimely deaths. While it is clear that Juliet was forced into her marriage with Paris, it is uncertain whether or not she would have married him if Romeo had not been exiled.

The Montague and Capulet feud

The Montague and Capulet feud is one of the most famous in all of literature. It is the centerpiece of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and has been adapted countless times for stage, film, television, and opera. The story begins with a longstanding grudge between two powerful families in the Italian city of Verona: the Montagues and the Capulets. The feud is further complicated by the fact that Romeo Montague falls in love with Juliet Capulet, who is due to marry the County Paris.

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy, so it is no spoiler to say that things do not end well for the young lovers. But was Juliet truly forced into marrying Paris? Let’s take a closer look at the evidence.

On the one hand, it seems clear that Juliet’s father, Lord Capulet, is eager for her to marry Paris. He first mentions the possibility when she is just thirteen years old, and he seems very pleased when she agrees to marry him later on. Furthermore, when Juliet rejects Paris’s advances and pleads to be allowed to marry Romeo instead, her father becomes angry and threatens to disown her:

“Hang thee, young baggage! Disobeying me! / […] I tell thee what—get thee to church o’ Thursday / Or never after look me in the face. / Speak not; reply not; do not answer me! / My fingers itch. Wife, we scarce thought us blest / That God had lent us but this only child; / […] And now I find this underhand marriage!” (Act 3, Scene 5).

Lord Capulet here seems more interested in upholding his family’s honor than in his daughter’s happiness; he even goes so far as to say that he would rather see her dead than married to a Montague. In light of this evidence, it seems likely that he would have forced her to go through with the marriage to Paris if Romeo had not intervened.

On the other hand, there are some hints that Juliet may have been planning to use her marriage to Paris as a way of getting out of her parents’ control. For example, she tells Romeo that she will fake her own death in order to be reunited with him: “I am resolved on Thursday next / To watch my Henry’s nighted color come / And sleep in quiet where I may not see it… Come on Thursday night…And help me by your dear advised counsel [to] further [my] desperate remedy…I take thee at thy word: Call me but love…And I will do whatsoever thou requirest./ Even go with thee into thy distant land./ Yes…if thou wilt no let me speak my mind/ On Thursday morn I definitely will die…Some word there was writ ‘Have care of my heart — I have left it with you! Hie hence!/ Gone! Forgive me stepdame and parental dames!/ hence from my sight forevermore depart!/ O late forbear!/ Distance be Perspective!/ Death approached without warning making immature mortals true men)/ Happy some men seem positive dying!/ Cherish then life for death soon ends all./ Death makes no conquest though some miscreants seek/ earthly crown crumbling soon indeed defenseless decay speeds lives end/ Therefore farewell! Rest eternal grant them O Lord:/ Blessèd be their memory from earth arise waived writing woe worth worser wracked wrecked rueful requite regret reproach ruin wretched divide doom despair disgrace deadly deface dissension dire disaster dreadful decline deplore depths despite destruction detest dishonor dissolve distress distraught ditchdivision doomsday dread drunkenness eclipse enemy enmity faithless false fatality fight fire flaming force grief harm hatred hell horrid injury killing lament lawless loathing malice misfortune mortal murder nation Nicolaist nineteenth night oblivion Othello Pandemonium pestilence plague poison politics ponderous power quarto recklessness revenge road rows seventeenth Sheakespeare treachery twenties universe unnatural vice violation wickedness xanthippe yarn zounds/. (Act 4 Scene 1).

It is possible that Juliet was only pretending to go along with her father’s plans in order to get out of them later on; if so, she may have never intended to actually go through with the marriage. This would explain why she was so quick to agree to marry Romeo instead – perhaps she saw it as an opportunity to escape from her family’s control altogether.

In conclusion, there is evidence both for and against the idea that Juliet was forced into marrying Paris against her will. It seems likely that her father would have made her go through with it if Romeo had not intervened; however, there are also hints that Juliet may have been planning to use the marriage as a way of getting out of her parents’ control altogether

The Nurse’s role in Romeo and Juliet

While Romeo and Juliet is commonly thought to be a play about young love, it is actually a play about the forced marriage of two young people. The Nurse plays a key role in this forced marriage, as she is the one who ultimately persuades Juliet to marry Paris.

The Nurse is first introduced in Act I, Scene III, when she is summoned by Lady Capulet to help her with her daughter. The Nurse immediately takes on the role of a mother figure to Juliet, and she quickly becomes Juliet’s confidante. In Act II, Scene IV, the Nurse overhears Romeo and Juliet professing their love for each other, and she gives them her blessing.

However, in Act III, Scene V, the Nurse’s allegiance starts to shift. Lady Capulet tells the Nurse to go and tell Romeo that Juliet wants to marry him. However, instead of going to Romeo, the Nurse goes to his rival Paris and tells him that Juliet wants to marry him.

It is not until Act IV, Scene I that the Nurse finally goes to Romeo and tells him about Juliet’s wish to marry him. However, by this point it is too late, as Romeo has already been banished from Verona.

The Nurse’s final betrayal comes in Act IV, Scene V, when she persuades Juliet to marry Paris. The Nurse does this by telling Juliet that Romeo is dead (he isn’t) and that she should forget about him and move on with her life.

While the Nurse’s intentions may have been good (she simply wanted Juliet to be happy), her actions led to the tragic deaths of both Romeo and Juliet.

Friar Lawrence’s role in Romeo and Juliet

Eager to end the feud between the Montagues and the Capulets, Friar Lawrence offers Romeo a plan: if Romeo will agree to marry Juliet, Lawrence will marry them in secret and then Romeo can flee to Mantua. This would give Romeo time to grow up and be able to return to Juliet. In the meantime, Juliet will be mourning Romeo’s “death.” Her parents will eventually give up on trying to force her to marry Paris and she can be reunited with Romeo. However, Lawrence’s plan goes awry when Juliet finds out that Romeo has been killed and she believes it is all her fault. In desperation, she takes her own life.

The theme of love in Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is a story of young love. But is it truly love? Some people in the play seem to think so, while others appear to think that Juliet was forced into marriage with Paris. Let’s explore this idea a little further.

One reason some people believe that Juliet was forced into marriage is because her father, Lord Capulet, gives her no choice in the matter. When Paris asks for her hand in marriage, Capulet tells him that he will have to wait a year because Juliet is too young. However, when Romeo kills Tybalt, Capulet changes his mind and decides that Juliet will marry Paris immediately. This makes it appear as though Capulet is only interested in marrying off his daughter to someone wealthy, rather than allowing her to marry for love.

Others believe that Juliet did have a choice in the matter, and that she chose to marry Paris out of duty to her family. After all, Romeo did kill Tybalt, and by marrying his murderer’s enemy, Juliet would be helping to heal the rift between the two families. Additionally, as a noblewoman in medieval Verona, Juliet would have been expected to marry someone of similar social standing – which Paris definitely was. So while some may see her actions as those of a dutiful daughter following her father’s wishes, others may see them as those of a young woman in love trying to find a way to be with the man she loves despite the obstacles in her way.

The theme of fate in Romeo and Juliet

Many people believe that Juliet was forced to marry Paris because of the inexorable forces of fate. In other words, they believe that there was nothing she could do to change the outcome of her story.

However, others believe that Juliet was not entirely powerless. They argue that while fate may have played a role in her story, Juliet also had agency (the ability to act) and made choices that contributed to her tragic ending.