Control in Romeo and Juliet Play

Exploring Control in Romeo and Juliet

William Shakespeare's tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, dives into the theme of control through the wants and actions of its main characters. Right from the start, Romeo, who's young and kinda reckless, tries to control a bunch of stuff in his life—like how he feels, what his future holds, and his relationships. This essay takes a look at how much Romeo craves control and what happens when he tries to mess with things. By looking at specific parts of the play, it's pretty clear that Romeo's never-ending chase for control ends up causing tragedy for himself and everyone around him.

From the get-go, you can see Romeo is driven by his emotions. He falls head over heels for Juliet the first time he sees her. This crush turns into the main thing pushing him to act a certain way. But here's the twist—Romeo also wants to keep a lid on his feelings, especially his tendency to be all impulsive. Like when he says, "O, teach me how I should forget to think!" (1.1.224). Basically, he wishes he could just stop thinking so much and have better grip over his mind and heart.

You could say Romeo wants emotional control 'cause he's scared of being swallowed up by those intense feelings. He’s trying not to let his love for Juliet fog up his judgment. But trying to keep those feelings bottled up only makes things worse. When Romeo hides his true emotions, he can't really communicate with Juliet like he should. That leads to mix-ups and their too-soon deaths.

Also, society back then expected men to be all tough and logical—not showing vulnerability or too many emotions was seen as weak. So yeah, Romeo's struggle kinda mirrors what society was pushing onto him during Shakespeare's time.

Aside from wanting emotional control, Romeo also wants to steer his fate. Throughout the play, he's often talking about destiny and believing something bigger than him is calling the shots in his life. Still, this desire for control fights with his belief in fate—a tug-of-war inside him all the time.

You can see this desire when he says, "I am fortune's fool!" (3.1.136). He’s basically annoyed that outside forces are jerking him around like a puppet on strings. He wishes he could run his own show without any strings attached. But every time he tries messing with fate? Yeah—it only gets more tangled up in tragedy.

One might argue that this yearning for controlling fate is just part of being young and naive—he thinks he can beat the odds stacked against him. Shakespeare's play serves as a reminder though: we aren't always in charge of our destinies; attempts at resisting or altering fate often end badly.

Lastly—and perhaps most noticeably—is how much Romeo wants to control relationships; specifically with Juliet. From meeting her till their endgame move together (no spoilers!), there’s an ongoing neediness driving everything between them forward like crazy.

This wanting possession rather than love itself shows clearly when Romeo exclaims: "I ne'er saw true beauty till this night" (1.5.53)—Juliet becomes something sought after instead having agency herself within partnership dynamics which ultimately adds onto consequences faced later on down road by both parties involved… sadly ending tragically because dominion wins over devotion here too folks!

Conclusion

So bottom line? All these efforts at controlling aspects within Romeo & Juliet result painfully—for both titular hero + heroine alike along w/their circle(s) surrounding them equally affected negatively overall due said relentless pursuits leading nowhere good fast … sort warning tale cautioning us mortals today against overreaching grasp via interventionist tendencies potentially making situations worse rather than better ultimately leaving lingering questions about limitations faced throughout lifetimes experienced personally either firsthand / otherwise indirectly observed secondhand wise... Food thought anyone?

Bibliography

• Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat & Paul Werstine, Folger Shakespeare Library, 1992.
• Maguire, L. (2010). Studying Literary Characters’ Motivations Through Different Lenses – Using Tragic Heroes Like Those Found Within Classics Such As ‘Romeo And Juliet’. Journal of Educational Studies & Literature Analysis, pp. 45-59.
• Bate, J., & Kastan, D. (Eds.). (2019). The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Oxford University Press.