Friar Laurence in Romeo and Juliet

Friar Laurence plays many important roles in Shakespeare’s tragedy of Romeo and Juliet He acts as an adviser to the young lovers, an informer at the end, and makes decisions crucial to the tragic plott Portrayed as a holy man who is trusted, respected and selfless and imperturbable, yet makes irrational decisions out of the goodness of his heart. One example is when he agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet: “But come, young waverer, go with me In one respect I’ll thy assistant be; for this alliance, may so happy prove, to turn your households to pure love” (11, iii, 96-99) The marriage is only one part that eventually leads to the tragic end, and the part being the plan, Both of these crucial plot points was heavily associated with the involvement of Friar Laurence, Friar Laurence is at least partly responsible for the death of the two star crossed lovers in in this aspect acts as a plot device The Friar act against his betterjudgement, out of pure interest to help others.

However, goodness itself is not enough sometimes, and often blame the high power, as he states in the Capulet Mausoleum: “I hear some noise —Lady, come from that nest of death, contagion, and unnatural sleep.

A greater power than we can contradict hath thwarted our intents,” The Friar‘s words often involve god or fate, supporting his position as a priest and holy man persona on one hand On the other hand, his decisions depict himself as a rational foolr He uses reason to try and convince Romeo to control his love: “These violent delights have violent ends and in their triumph die, like fire and powder, which as they kiss consume.

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The sweetest honey Is loathsome in his own deliciousness and in the taste, confounds the appetite. Therefore, love moderately, Long love doth 50‘ Too swift arrives as tardy as too Slow”  The Friar comes off as extraordinary rational, yet is quite foolish as seen through the decisions he made and lack of awareness of the situation.

The decisions Friar Laurence makes, and does not make, are the actual causes of the tragedy, upon closer examination. If Friar John was told that the letter was urgent, he may have taken more effort to getting the letter delivered. Friar Laurence also did not prepare in the case a component of the plan failed, in this case the delivery of the letter. Fate, the very cause Friar Laurence blames for the failure of the plan, actually gave him a chance to lessen the damage, as he arrives just in time when Juliet awakes. He does not even attempt to comfort Juliet, and instead says: “Come, come away. Thy husband in thy bosom there lies dead; And Paris too, Come, I’ll dispose of thee among a sisterhood of holy nuns: Stay not to question, for the watch is coming; Come, go, good Juliet, [dare no longer stay”. Neither does Friar Laurence stop Juliet’s suicide, something a rational and philosophical man was expected to do. Due to Friar Laurence’s decisions, rather than supernatural force, which he constantly reiterate as the cause of the tragedy, is the actual cause of the tragedy.

He acts out of good intent, and his plan was utilitarian, but a series of events lead to the eventual tragedy, described by Prince Escalus that: “For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo,“  Each event is merely a small increment that adds up to the tragedy, making it difficult to find a single particular person to blame. The Friar does one last thing in the play, and explain to everyone who arrived at the scene the long and sad story of Romeo and Juliet. Friar Laurence exiles himself and lives as a hermit, dying soon after, Once known as a kind, rational, and holy man, who provided neutral advice and guidance to Romeo and Juliet. Such advice, of good nature, nonetheless along with his actions, or lack of, greatly contributed to the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. Being a crucial and invaluable component of the plot, one can only imagine how different the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet turned out without Friar Laurence if it be a tragedy at all.