A text response essay on the topic: “There is no world without Verona walls, but purgatory, torture, hell itself.” ‘It is impossible to feel sympathy for Romeo.’ Do you agree? Romeo and Juliet

1. “There is no world without Verona walls, but purgatory, torture,
hell itself.” ‘It is impossible to feel sympathy for Romeo.’ Do you
agree?
In WilliamShakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the titular character Romeo is undoubtedly a
flawed character, who is all the worthier of sympathy and compassion because of this.
Romeo and Juliet tells the tale of two young lovers who are divided by their feuding families
which ultimately renders their budding love untenable, resulting in multiple deaths from
both sides of the feud. Shakespeare utilises the craft of playwriting and a wide range of
largely one-dimensional characters to illustrate the strengths and fatal flaws that exist in all
humans. The key characters that will be referred to in this essay are; Romeo, the
sympathetically flawed leading man; Juliet, the sheltered young woman overcome with
love; Montague and Lady Montague Romeo’s uninvolved parents; and Friar Lawrence the
less than wise confidant and guide to Romeo. Firstly, Romeo’s fatally flawed nature and
character traits will be outlined. Secondly, the nature of his young and unbridled love,
caught at ‘first sight’ will be explained. Thirdly, the lack of sage and timely advice or
guidance will be outlined with reference to its effect on Romeo himself. Ultimately, the
message of WilliamShakespeare through Romeo and Juliet is that if young people without
proper parental or elder-lead advice meet under a cloud of dangerous choices they will not
be able find the correct path.
Firstly, Romeo is a sympathetic character to the audience and readers of Romeo and Juliet
because he is such a flawed and uncompromising character. We feel for him and relate to
him because of his many failing and flaws. Most notably he is almost clinically suicidal, with
at least three attempts made upon his own life and many more mentions or allusions to the
act of suicide. His first allusion to suicide comes in Act 1, Scene 1 he states, “She hath
forsworn to love, and in that vow – Do I live dead, that I live to tell it now.” (Line 214-215).
Later in Act 1 he retorts, “With this night’s revels and expire the term Of a despised life.”
(Line 109-110). These two quotes reveal that he was instilled with a penchant for suicide
even prior to meeting Juliet, it also shows that for a young person in the throes of their first
love, failing to be met with love can seem like a death sentence. Furthermore, love is a
seeking of one’s own self to persist beyond their life, so considering suicide as the other
darker side of this, is not impossible. Though he is suicidal, not a quality that many people
would happily feel acquainted with, the other side of his emotional coin is that he is also
overwhelmingly passionate and sure-footed in love. He does not pause to question his
feelings, or the possible consequences of his love-fuelled actions, but rather throws himself
fully into each and every one of his actions. As an audience member older than Romeo’s
young adulthood, we may consider the moments we would liked to have been more
forward, or more passionate, so we see Romeo as the hero that he is. Upon his first sighting
of Juliet, he pronounces “O she doth teach the torches to burn bright!” (Act 1, Scene 5, Line
43), where a lesser person would have mildly noted, ‘she looks nice’. Yet, mere moments
later, he pronounces, “Is she a Capulet? O dear account! My life is my foe’s debt.” (Act 1,
Scene 5, Line 117-118), which also shows the darker side of his passion, his suicidal
tendencies. Lastly, his final fatal slaw is his short fuse and the way that he is quick to anger,
which is only shown once, when he pursues and murders Tybalt. A final aspect of Romeo

2. that is not often reflected upon however, is his murder of Paris, a character almost
completely unknown to him. In modern retellings of Romeo and Juliet this fact is often
glossed over, or left out entirely. His killing of Paris is not a heated act of passion, he has
time to explain, “I beseech they, youth, Put not another sin upon my head, By urging me to
fury: O be gone!” (Act 5, Scene 3, Line 61-63), yet he still murders Paris. This is the one
aspect of Romeo that is without excuse and goes beyond a ‘flawed character’, to a criminal
and unfeeling murderer. Though he proves to be a flawed and passionate character, some
of the blame for his actions can be laid at the feet of his love.
Secondly, Romeo is a sympathetic character simply due to the fact that he is in love. Love is
now, in modern times, understood to be similar to the effects of certain illicit drugs, and is
likened to a short bout of genuine insanity. People in the throes of love forget to eat and
often can think of little other than their newly discovered beloved. Romeo fits this modern
conception of new love very neatly. He climbs fences and trespasses on the land of his
sworn enemies, spends a night in Juliet’s chamber, attends a Capulet party and sword fights
openly in the streets of Verona, despite his own proclamation that “Mercutio, the prince
expressly hath, Forbidden bandying in Verona streets:” (Act 3, Scene 1, Line 80-81). His
actions do not match his words in this sense, we see glimpses of a more temperate and
thoughtful nature that is extinguished in the ardent flame of his passionate love for Juliet.
As a young man with a small conception of the world he lives in, after laying aside Rosaline,
“With Rosaline, my ghostly father? no; I have forgot that name, and that name’s woe.” (Act
2, Scene 3, Line 44-45), Juliet becomes his entire focus and Verona his entire world. So,
when he is banished, it is understandable that he decries, “There is no world without
Verona walls, but purgatory, torture, hell itself.” (Act 3, Scene 3, Line 17-18). Just as there is
no life worth living without Juliet. Love at first sight and a love felt truly is something really
seen or experienced in life, so people should throw themselves at it wholeheartedly when
they do get a chance to claimit. He explains clearly, “Heaven is here, Where Juliet lives” (Act
3, Scene 2, Line 29-30), which shows the way that he feels complete and whole when he is
around Juliet. Shakespeare reveals the effect that love has on people’s minds when he has
Firar Lawrence note, “The wit, that ornament to shape and love, Misshapen.” (Act 3, Scene
3, Line 130-131), expressing that Romeo’s mind is literally misshapen. Though love mishapes
Romeos mind, a strong influence of strong-willed adults would have been able to properly
mould, or reshape his mind and mental state towards something more temperate and calm.
Thirdly, Romeo remains throughout the play largely unadvised, unguided and also un-
parented, which leaves him unchecked to make a slew of awful decisions. Running through
the dramatis personae of the play, we note many potential guides to Romeo. His father
Montague and mother Lady Montague appear so infrequently and are so ineffectual that
combined they speak less than fifteen times in the play. So their role in the play is merely to
perpetuate the feud and not to parent or guide their son and young lover Romeo. Next, we
must consider Romeo’s friends, Mercutio and Benvolio. Both of these characters are
themselves flawed and limited characters, Benvolio offers little assistance as he is an ardent
believer in the power of love.
He also makes the fatal, for Romeo, error of instructing Romeo to attend the party and
“Examine other beauties.” (Act 1, Scene 1, Line 118). He believes that, “Alas, that love, so

3. gentle in his view, Should be so tyrannous and rough in proof!” (Act 1, Scene 1, Line 160-
161), which shows that he does not know of love that is sharp and challenging, but he sees it
as lovely and soft to the touch. Benvolio’s advice and very existence encourages Romeo to
pursue love, as he presents it as soft, safe and beautiful. By contrast, Romeo’s other close
friend Mercutio, speaks lustily of sex and the carnal elements of love, “O, that she were, An
open-arse, thou a pop’rin pear!” (Act 2, Scene 1, Line 37-38). He provides advice that
encourages risks and dangerous actions, stating, “If love be rough with you, be rough with
love; Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.” (Act 1, Scene 4, Line 27-28), which
only encourages Romeo’s rash actions and violence on the streets. He then goes on to give
his ‘Queen Mab’ speech, which reveals Shakespeare’s talent for floral language and rich
symbolism, but in the world of the play only confuses and disturbs Romeo with the
possibilities of ill-tidings. The actions, or more suitably the inactions of Friar Lawrence speak
for themselves. He is a chaste and celibate man being asked to give advice on love, an area
far beyond his realm, Romeo notes, “Thou canst not speak of that thou dost not feel: Wert
thou as young as I,” (Act 3, Scene 3, Line 64-5). Which neatly summarises the failings and
flaws of Friar Lawrence in this regard, which puts the priest beyond blame for the calamities
that later eventuated. Blame must sit squarely on the shoulders of one character most
strongly however, Prince Escalus, the man charged with maintaining order on the streets of
Verona, fails numerous times to put in place clear boundaries for the two feuding families
and their youthful, violent sons. Hearing of Romeo’s killing of Tybalt, he states, “And for
that offence, immediately we do exile him hence” (Act 3, Scene 1, Line 177-178), which is
perhaps the least impactful approach he could have taken. As the prince of Verona, he could
have banished an entire family from the area, thus ending the feud, or put in place any
number of more effective measures to quell the fighting and end the feud. Though the feud
is ultimately ended, despite the Prince’s best efforts, even at the very end of the play he
does little to ensure the feud does not continue, noting glibly, “Some shall be pardon’d, and
some punished:” Act 5, Scene 3, Line 308). Yet, it was his very failure to do this throughout
the play that caused the numerous deaths in the first place.
Overall, Romeo is a character for whom it is easy to feel sympathy for. He has a notably
flawed character, in that he is suicidal, passionate, and quick to anger. He was addled by the
powerful effects of love, whilst being provided limited clear counsel by anyone who had
actually experiences love. His risks are clearly justified when you consider the powerful and
narcotic effects of young love. Lastly, Romeo’s flaws are underlined by the inaction and poor
support network that he has in place. Benvolio and Mercutio have the opposite views on
love but their conflicting and unclear advice leaves Romeo confused and unsure. Whilst Friar
Lawrence is understandably out of his depth speaking on the topic of young love, Prince
Escalus is a character who wholeheartedly fails at his primary job, maintaining peace on the
streets of Verona. Overall, Shakespeare presents a perfect storm that surrounds Romeo,
that plays naturally to his inbuilt character traits, which are ultimately very human and very
relatable to the audience of Romeo and Juliet. It is quite possible for those reading, or
watching a performance to empathise with Romeo and to relate to his simple-minded and
pure actions that none-the-less result in failures and unexpected outcomes.