Passion Vs Reason in Romeo and Juliet

All decisions in life should be made with a balance of emotion and logic. If not balanced correctly, there will be consequences. Throughout Romeo and Juliet, a play by William Shakespeare, the theme of emotions outweighing reason is explored, resulting in the deaths of many, including the deaths of young lovers, Romeo and Juliet. This is shown through many characters and their actions caused by their personalities, which eventually lead to their downfall. Along with that, the motif of fear causes emotions to outweigh reason, and on top of that, multiple conflicts arise, which cause many characters to think unclearly and use their judgment based on emotions solely.

Firstly, Romeo is known to be a very emotional character, often becoming upset about small situations. He lets his emotions run wild when he kills himself after thinking his love, Juliet is dead. An example of this is when Romeo says “Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavoury guide/ Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on/ The dashing rocks thy seasick, weary bark/ Here’s to my love!” (Shakespeare 5.

3.116-119). Romeo was clearly sunken in sorrow at the fact that Juliet died, and he is only thinking with emotion, which leads to his demise. Moving on, Romeo’s emotions outweigh reason when he kills Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin, after Tybalt kills Mercutio, Romeo’s loyal friend. Romeo was outraged by his friend’s death and didn’t take the time to think about the consequences. His emotions were leading him to revenge, which led to Tybalt’s death and eventually, Romeo’s exile from Verona.

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Furthermore, Juliet is also known to be an emotional character, who makes many hasty actions due to her overwhelming emotion.

Secondly, the motif of fear is often explored throughout the play. Fear causes people to do irrational things and there are always consequences. Firstly, Juliet is afraid of marrying Paris, the man she is forced to marry, so she takes a sleeping potion to make he…