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What Is Coincidence And Coincidence In Romeo And Juliet

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“The world is so unpredictable. Things happen suddenly, unexpectedly. We want to feel we are in control of our own existence. In some ways we are, in some ways we're not. We are ruled by the forces of chance and coincidence.” (Paul Auster). In the tragedy Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, sudden and unfortunate occurrences lead Romeo and Juliet to their calamitous fate. This infamous play from the late 1500’s portrays two “star-crossed” lovers whose emotions and mishaps lead them to their deaths. Throughout the play, unplanned events occur that influence and shape the ending. In Romeo and Juliet, chance and coincidence lead to the star crossed lover’s deaths as seen in the scenes where Capulet arranges Juliet’s marriage, how the letter was not delivered to Romeo, and when Juliet wakes up just after Romeo dies. In Act 3 Scene 4 of Romeo and Juliet, one “chance” event that occurs is when Capulet fixed an arranged marriage for Juliet. Capulet believed that Juliet “Loved her kinsman Tybalt dearly … she’s all mewed up to her heaviness” (Shakespeare 3.4.3-12) This quote shows that Capulet thought that Juliet was mourning over the death of Tybalt, but she was actually grieving over the fact that her love, Romeo, was banished from Verona. By chance, Capulet arranged for Juliet to marry Paris, due to the fact that he thought that the marriage would cheer Juliet up. This idea ending up stressing her out even more. The whole marriage scene is classified by chance because it

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