The purpose of this paper is to compare the ways in which Romeo's and Juliet's characters are developed by their love. Romeo and Juliet is a play about fate, about love, and about the tragic consequences of poor timing. Both Romeo and Juliet are, in one sense, characters whose fates are caught up in the web of intrigue woven by their families and by a society, which condones family feuds. Their lives are not their own. Swept away by the great passion of first love, their attempts to alter their family heritage and to unite in marriage causes their tragic deaths. Shakespeare develops the characters of Romeo and Juliet in the light of the purity of their love, and contrasts these innocents to those who would control their lives, their feelings, and their actions. By using the power of love as a device of character development, Shakespeare has painted a portrait of the essence of true love, marred as it is by tragic circumstances beyond the control of the lovers.
It is notable that what is memorable about the play is not only that the lovers are "star-crossed," but that their devotion to each other is unsullied and pure. The development of each character depends on the depth of feeling motivated by a pure love. Although Romeo is youthful and impetuous, and Juliet
impatient and headstrong, these qualities enhance the importance of each to the other. They are uniquely committed to the love that is between them, so much so that each will choose death over a life without the other. This ideal, innocent love is what
creates the characterizations of Romeo and Juliet.
It is possible to argue that "love," in Romeo and Juliet, is a powerful, shaping force. It is the presence of the pure energy of love that informs the development of both Romeo and Juliet. Pitted against the energy of pure love is the negativity of death and the numbness of the grave. Love inspires, and death removes. The dramatic tension between these two forces co...