Romeo and Juliet Punishment

Punishment

At the end of the play the Prince says, "All are punished," however this isn't completely true. Some people in the play get off to easily and others don't deserve to be punished. When saying this, the Prince does not consider everyone involved in the set of events leading up to the end of the tragic play. Friar Lawrence isn't ever punished when he is greatly responsible, Romeo did not deserve to be banished, and the Nurse is never chastised for the problems she caused either.

Friar Lawrence does not take any responsibility for the tragic deaths of Romeo and Juliet's that he brought about. It was his unwell thought out plan that caused it. If he had thought of the consequences of marrying them before hand, maybe he wouldn't have rushed into it. Also, he should have anticipated what could go wrong in his plan for getting Juliet out of marrying Paris before giving her the potion. After he finds the lovers dead in the tomb, he still doesn't take responsibility for his actions, but instead makes it seem like the chain of events that lead up to the lovers' fatal demise was mere coincidence. He deserved more than anyone else to be punished for their passing away because it was he who encouraged them to turn to deception, which led to their deaths. Friar Lawrence was unjustly left unpunished for his actions that led to the death of the two passionate lovers, Romeo and Juliet.

One person that is unjustly punished is Romeo. He should never have been banished because Tybalt would have been killed anyways for killing Mercutio and he was just doing what the law would do anyways. Tybalt committed an unjust murder and Romeo just gave him what was coming to him. Saying Romeo was unfair in his actions is just like saying that if the Prince had sentenced Tybalt to death on account of murder. His actions were both justified and fair. Romeo did not deserve the punishment that he was given.

Another person that didn't get a punishment that she deserved was the Nurse. She kept on giving Juliet romanticized ideas of Romeo instead of giving her solid advice. She should have warned of the possible consequences of disobeying her parents. She also helps the lovers secretly plan their wedding. The Nurse is liable for everything that happened as an effect of Romeo and Juliet's relationship because she was completely aware of what was going on an could have

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