Contents
- 3. Fear of committing sins
Friar Lawrence (Ecclesiastical leaders, in addition, should be held to a higher standard. )
1. Self Interest(hidden agenda)
Friar married them for self interest. (See their household together) Friar Laurence, through his lack of good judgment, is largely responsible for the deaths of both Romeo and Juliet. Rather than being supportive of them and helping them disclose their loving situation, Friar Laurence took the “ easy” way out. He succumbed to their desire to elope.
He secretly married Romeo and Juliet instead of standing behind them and encouraging them to confront their families with the facts about their commitment to and love for each other. As a result, an even stronger bond between them was created through marriage: “ For, by your leaves, you shall not stay alone / Till holy church incorporate two in one” (2. 6. 36-37). Friar Laurence married Romeo and Juliet, hoping that their union would bring an end to the constant feuding between their two families, the Montagues and the Capulets.
Though the friar’s intentions were good and above reproach, they were certainly missteps along a pathway to tragedy. None of the tragedies would have occurred if Romeo and Juliet were not married Friar Laurence was the instigator of all these woeful events; he started the tragedies by marrying Romeo and Juliet. In the beginning, the Friar thinks that “… this alliance may so happy prove/ To turn your households’ rancor to pure love. ” (II iv 91-92) Which shows that the Friar has a slight hope of their marriage possibly working.
Therefore, he decides to marry the two lovers. However, as time moves on, the Friar lets on that he has regrets about the marriage. The Friar feels that “ Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow. ” (II vi 15) In other words, the Friar means that he senses that this whole wedding is happening too fast and starts to have second thoughts. If the Friar had thought this important decision clearly through, he may have prevented many future tragedies. Therefore, the Friar knows all along that, “ These violent delights have violent ends. ” (II vi 9) The Friar knew that this s an impossible situation, which if made possible by himself will without a doubt end up in tragedy in one way or another. Without the Friar the two lovers would not have been married, which would have prevented both depressions and future problems to come.
2. Irresponsible
(They are the adults; Romeo and Juliet are just children) Short-sighted plans -Shouldn’t give Juliet the potion -Letting Friar John send the letter to Romeo Even after Mercutio’s death and Romeo’s banishment, Friar Laurence did not see the destructiveness of Romeo and Juliet’s marriage.
Instead he continued to attempt to keep Romeo and Juliet together. The plan he concocted for this, however, was shortsighted, poorly thought out, and risky. Friar Laurence devised the plan in haste and in desperation because Juliet was there in the friar’s presence threatening suicide rather than marry Paris. “ Unless thou tell me how I may prevent it. / If, in thy wisdom thou canst give no help, / Do but call my resolution wise, / And with this knife I’ll help it presently” (4. 1. 51-54).
To appease Juliet, Friar Laurence gave her a potion to consume that would enable her to feign death, thereby averting marriage to Paris. He, meanwhile would send a note to Romeo informing him of the hoax that was being perpetrated on the Capulets and Paris, and asking Romeo to meet him at the graveyard where Juliet would greet them alive and well. Unfortunately, the message never arrived. This was revealed when Friar John told Friar Laurence, ” I could not send it, here it is again / Nor get a messenger to bring it thee” (5. 2. 14-15).
Friar Laurence obviously had not told the messenger the importance of the letter reaching Romeo. And, if Friar Laurence had followed the original agreement he made with Romeo: “ Sojourn in Mantua; I’ll find out your man, / Every good hap to you that chances have” (3. 3. 168-170), Balthasar could have delivered the letter to Romeo. However, because of Friar Laurence’s shortsightedness and lack of a contingency plan, he doomed those he tried to help. He admitted his responsibility himself: “ Miscarried by my fault, let my old life / Be sacrific’d, some hour before this time, / Unto the rigour of severest law” (5. . 266- 268). Not only were Friar Laurence’s plan and his involvement foolish, but his motives are also called into question.
In Friar Laurence’s religion, it was a sin to marry someone who was already married. Friar Laurence did not want to marry Juliet to Paris when she was already married to Romeo. Juliet questioned Friar Laurence’s intentions herself, saying, “ What if it be a poison, which the friar / Subtly hath minister’d to have me dead, / Lest in marriage he should be dishonour’d / Because he married me before to Romeo? / I fear it is – -” (4. 3. 5-28), but still, her faith in her confessor and lifelong friend overcame any suspicions that she might have had. It is truly Friar Laurence who is to blame, his haste and incompetence, was propelled by his inadequacy and impure motives.
When Juliet asks the Friar to help her break free from her wedding with Paris, he replies that: If, rather than to marry County Paris, Thou has the strength of will to slay thyself; Then it is likely thou will undertake A thing like death to elude away this shame, That cop’st with death himself to scrape from it; And, if thou darest, I’ll give thee remedy. IV i 71-76) Therefore, for the second time, the Friar acts unwisely and agrees to give Juliet this deadly potion. The Friar invents this entire plan, which will take total perfection and cooperation on everyone’s part to work.
The Friar has to make sure that Romeo is informed of the plan. However, the Friar puts too much trust in Friar John, who consequently fails to deliver the letter to Romeo. However, it is Friar Lawrence’s’ fault that Romeo is not informed and ends up confused about the recent happenings involving Juliet. The Friar played an important role in this part of Romeo and Juliet. Due to his careless actions, Romeo and Juliet could have been living happily ever after somewhere in Mantua.
3. Fear of committing sins
Friar ran away after seeing Juliet in the tomb, just because he is afraid he might be seeing in a tomb by guards Finally, it is the Friars’ fault that Romeo and Juliet are dead, which makes him undoubtedly to blame for Romeo and Juliet’s death. Romeo, who is not informed of the Friar’s plan, kills himself when he thinks that Juliet is dead. Juliet arises and sees Romeo dead, and takes her own life. The Friar is overcome by guilt and realizes that he has “… short date of breath. ” (V iii 229) This could also be a confession that he is to blame. If the Friar was not the reason for the two suicides he would have no reason for guilt.
In Friar Laurence’s religion, it was a sin to marry someone who was already married. Friar Laurence did not want to marry Juliet to Paris when she was already married to Romeo. Juliet questioned Friar Laurence’s intentions herself, saying, “ What if it be a poison, which the friar / Subtly hath minister’d to have me dead, / Lest in marriage he should be dishonour’d / Because he married me before to Romeo? I fear it is – -” (4. 3. 25-28), but still, her faith in her confessor and lifelong friend overcame any suspicions that she might have had. It is truly Friar Laurence who is to blame, his haste and incompetence, was propelled by his inadequacy and impure motives. He admitted his responsibility himself: “ Miscarried by my fault, let my old life / Be sacrific’d, some hour before this time, / Unto the rigour of severest law” (5. 3. 266- 268). Not only were Friar Laurence’s plan and his involvement foolish, but his motives are also called into question.
In the end, the Friar recollects the past events and cannot avoid responsibility for these two tragedies. This simple fact shows just how much of a key role the Friar plays in Romeo and Juliet. Without, the Friar, many important and tragic events would not have happened in Romeo and Juliet. The marriage of Romeo and Juliet, which led to Juliet needing to lie and escape another marriage, finally led to the deaths of Romeo and of Juliet. None of these events would have been possible if it were not for the Friar. In conclusion, the Friar Lawrence is most to blame for Romeo and Juliet’s deaths.
Romeo’s and Juliet’s deaths were the result of Friar Laurence’s shortcomings, his predisposition to act in haste, his shortsightedness and his fear of sin. He set the wheel of catastrophe in motion, mixed in a little rashness and hastiness and topped it of with a few bad decisions. In trying to please everyone, he pleased no one. “ They stumble who run fast” (2. 3. 101); it is odd how someone could not apply his own wisdom to his own actions. “ Virtue itself turns vice, being misapplied” (2. 3. 17). Friar Laurence’s own advice would suit him best and God help the rest.
