Romeo and Juliet Tragic Hero Essay

Aristotle proposed what is believed to be the first definition of a true tragedy. Specifically, he states that a tragedy triggers great pity and fear caused by the main characters’ actions alone. Likewise, a true tragedy lacks coincidence and fate plays little in the overall play. William Shakespeare writes the play of The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in which the audience knows the destiny of these two tragic heroes from the very beginning. Although this play is tragic knowing that the lives of two lovers are lost, it is not a tragedy as Romeo and Juliet are not solely responsible for their own deaths. Destiny is determined through the hands of greater forces than that of Romeo and Juliet, making this play merely tragic and not a true

The play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare shows how Romeo and Juliet meet. The play takes place in Verona, Italy. The Montagues and Capulets have ongoing feuds with each other. Romeo Montague meets Juliet Capulet at one of her family’s parties, instantly fall in love, and decide to secretly get married the the day after the party. Throughout the play, both Romeo and Juliet show character traits they have which leads to a tragic ending.

In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is "a tragic hero.” This is according to Aristotle’s definition, a tragic hero is a character “who is neither completely good nor completely bad, but also a member of royalty.” Romeo is a tragic hero because he does many good things, but many bad things, as well. For example, he is a Montague and he marries Juliet, who is a Capulet. This is prohibited, so Romeo is bad. However, Romeo does everything he can to keep Juliet happy and risks his life for her, which makes him good. Romeo is also a man of royalty because he is Montague’s son. Romeo’s character has many contradictions, which makes the audience think, “is he good or bad?” Asking these questions and not knowing the answer leads

In the tragedy 'Romeo and Juliet', Shakespeare presents the inner struggles of Romeo and Juliet, the two protagonists as one of the main themes. This is clearly shown at the end of Act 3 Scene 2 when Juliet receives the news that Romeo has been banished and Tybalt has been killed. Juliet is distraught at the conflict of her loyalties. Should she express love for her family or should she express love for Romeo? By using many different language features, such as oxymorons, paradox, antithesis and dramatic irony, Shakespeare effectively displays Juliet's conflicting emotions. Later in the play, Shakespeare uses the betrayal by adults to again show the inner struggles of Romeo and Juliet.

In many literary works, there are methods that authors use to make a story better. In The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, dramatic irony is the driving method. Dramatic irony is something in which characters do not know something, but the reader or audience knows what the true reality is. According to some researchers, “A staple of Elizabethan and Shakespearean drama was dramatic irony” (Halio 25). Furthermore some researchers also belive that dramatic irony is very prominent in the play, “ One of the more prominent literary devices in the play is irony” (Sauer 673). Romeo and Juliet, and also their friends and families face a lot of instances of dramatic irony in the story. Dramatic irony creates suspense and adds to

Some may think that Romeo and Juliet died because their family’s rivalry doomed their relationship from the start. Although true, this is not the main cause of their death. Romeo and Juliet were more apt to die as tragic heroes because of the type of lovers they were. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is a play that takes place in Verona. The star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, take their own lives because many obstacles do not allow them to be together. Romeo and Juliet died as tragic heroes because they were manic and erotic lovers.

William Shakespeare is widely known for all of his literary works; one of his most famous love tragedies being 'Romeo and Juliet'. A Shakespearean definition of tragedy exemplifies the sense that human beings are inevitably doomed through their own failures or errors, the ironic action of their virtues, or even through the nature of fate and destiny (Sayour, Susan, 2007). Romeo and Juliet is a tragic tale based on two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. Throughout the play, Shakespeare intentionally draws on text structures and language features in order to replicate the attitudes, values and beliefs of Elizabethan audiences and intertwine it into his

There he was, lying in agony in the dark and weary night, next to his beloved's tomb in the ominous cemetery. Seeing the vile creature, Death, take away her soul from his hands. Death insisted to come with him with his hands filled with the white bones of the dead, he came along without hesitation. The well-known tragedy, Romeo, and Juliet by William Shakespeare was a transcendent illustration of the effects of the underdeveloped adolescent brain. The two star-crossed lovers had their destiny planned in front of them. The tragic and mournful deaths of Romeo and Juliet resulted from their impromptu love taking over their everyday lives. Romeo laid on the murky ground of the cemetery, weeping in front of the tomb of Juliet and he would soon kill

Life and joy left the bodies of two teenagers in love as they died on the cold stone floor of a tomb, looking at their loved one’s lifeless body. The blossoming love of two young and sanguine lovers turned dark and perilous as their undying love for each other lead to their untimely deaths. Romeo and Juliet written by William Shakespeare is a story of two adolescents whose only ambition, to be together, was deterred by copious amounts of obstacles and setbacks. Their inextinguishable love was tested by opposing parents, feuding families, marriage proposals and morbid murders. While the adolescent brain and the brain in love are partially responsible for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, Fate is mostly to blame.

Male characters use their narrative voices to show an enthusiastic response to the one they feel an attraction towards in many different ways. “Michelle”a song performed by Sir Paul McCartney is about the attraction that a male character has towards his lover and uses the language of love to convey it to her . In the song “Michelle” it is about the love and endearment that a man feels towards his lover that probably could not articulate English therefore he, uses another language to make her understand the pure emotions that he feels towards her. Likewise, in The play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare it involves two forsaken lovers and their desire for one another. In the play Romeo and Juliet Romeo express his utmost joy the first time he laid eyes upon her and believes that she is better than any

Lady Capulet tells Capulet he'd better have a crutch instead of a sword, and Lady

Romeo’s tragic flaw led to other bad decisions to be made and caused the story to end in a

Romeo and Juliet is a play with a lot of questions raised about the true nature of Romeo's heroism. Most people would say that he is a tragic hero based on his actions that lead to the inevitable downfall that resulted in death. Romeo is a character that is hard to relate to and warps our understanding of what it truly means to be a tragic hero. According to Aristotle's definition a tragic hero is someone who is noble with royal blood and has an inevitable downfall that causes audience distress and pity.

In the play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, the young couple, Romeo and Juliet, have a tragic ending. The deaths of the two wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for Friar Lawrence and Juliet’s parents, the Capulets. The audience, is made aware of the couple's ending in the beginning. Meanwhile no character is aware. Although many characters play a part in their deaths, Friar Lawrence is responsible. But he wouldn’t have been given the opportunity if it wasn’t for the Capulets.

Part of her desperately wished that the door had remained shut, that the lights had been out and he had not been home. She would rather that he play such a cruel joke, because Fate seemed to be making a crueler joke on the both of them. It was the only explanation for the anomaly that occurred between them -- what else could explain the way that she froze when her eyes met his? Or the ease with which she stepped into this Montague home? Fate was making a cruel joke and the punchline was this one gentle Montague and this incredibly selfish Capulet. But if this Capulet was to be the brunt of the universe’s humor ( for celestial bodies were not known for having a witty sense of humor ) then she supposed that she might as well laugh along with them.