Romeo and Juliet is the quintessential love story. It’s message of undying faith and a love that broke through boundaries of hate continues to speak to readers even centuries after it was first written. However, when faced with a difficult question, some new things became clear. I believe that while Romeo and Juliet were in love, but for all the wrong reasons. Romeo is fickle and cares about Juliet for her looks, and is more in love with the idea of love than with Juliet. Their love, while powerful and inspiring, was superficial from the start.
First of all, Romeo is unfaithful to those he loves. The play begins with Romeo in love with Rosaline. He pledges himself to her, and says that “She hath forsworn to love, and in that vow do I live dead that live to tell it now.” Romeo says that since Rosaline has decided against love, he is living dead. However, in scene 5, not a day later, he begins to declare his love for Juliet. Romeo even enters the party mourning Rosaline, but by the end of the night he’s kissing Juliet. This means either that he easily forgets about his loves, or that he hasn’t really moved on from Rosaline and he is just using Juliet as distraction and a rebound. He also “falls in love” with Juliet simply because of her looks.
Secondly, Romeo’s love isn’t true at first because he “loves” Juliet for her looks only. When he first sees Juliet, he talks about how radiantly beautiful she is, and then simply goes up to her and takes her hand, and then kisses her. He never had a real conversation with her, and he didn’t know anything about her besides the fact that she was pretty, and reciprocated his love. And, as this shows, this was all he really cared about. Later on, he visits Juliet and agrees to marry her, after only one more conversation. This shows his rash decision making, and the fact that that even though he doesn’t really know what kind of person she is, she reciprocates his love and is pretty and that’s enough. Even when he goes into monologues about how much he loves her, he never once brings up that she is kind or understanding or loyal. Romeo simply goes on and on about Juliet’s beauty, calling her a gem, a rarity, a beauty, but never smart, or genuine, or anything of the sort. He loves her looks, that’s for sure, but how can he love her for personality if he barely knows her?
Finally, Romeo and Juliet are young and inexperienced, prone to making rash decisions. Juliet is only 13, and Romeo isn’t older than very early twenties or teens. That means that their impulse control and thinking aren’t fully developed, and they will often make bad decisions without thinking ahead. Juliet is also very naive, as she said she had never even thought of marriage when her mother first mentioned it to her. For Juliet, a thirteen-year-old, to go from never having thought about being married to being a wife in under a week is a sure sign that they are rushed. Romeo too is young and reckless. He kills Tybalt in battle, and easily gets sulky or angry- just like a teen. With hormones raging and bad judgement, it is incredibly likely that Romeo and Juliet rushed into love.
In conclusion, the essential love epic of Romeo and Juliet can be questioned. Their love was rushed, based on beauty, and fickle. But does that mean it wasn’t real? Though their love was rash, it was still “written in the stars.” They are soul mates. Hasty, impulsive soul mates, who shared a destiny, the threads of their fate intertwined. And, even though their love story may not be perfect, it still speaks to millions. Their love was superficial, rushed, and ultimately doomed but that doesn't mean it wasn’t beautiful.
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