Maria Gatto Jan.28 , 2015
Romeo and Juliet essay pd.3
Is Romeo and Juliet's suicide a tragedy of two families or a tragedy of a city ? In the following quote, W. H. Auden says, "The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is not simply a tragedy of two individuals, but the tragedy of a city." I disagree with this quote said by W.H. Auden because the citizen of Verona did not have much of an opinion on the tragedy between Romeo and Juliet . Though Poet W.H. Auden may claim that Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy of a city, and not of only two lovers” , yet it is portrayed that the tragedy is really more set on the star crossed lovers and their families, and not the city of Verona . The reason for this discord is that you don’t hear much of any from the citizens of Verona because street fights were common in the Capulet / Montague feud
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There are a plethora reasons why I think that this is more of a tragedy of two lovers, not of a city. First of all, Romeo and Juliet were alone on their quest for love. No one was around to help them. Everyone around them was ignorant toward the thought of a Capulet and a Montague falling in love because of the sheer hatred they showed toward one another . The street fights looked to have been over the petty nonsense that went on between the Capulets and Montagues to the citizens of Verona , that didn’t know that the two children of each head of the family had fallen in love . The tragedy was created because of the selfishness of Capulet and Montague that showed pure hatred toward each other . If Romeo and Juliet’s parents were to accepted that their own children were in love and put their selfishness aside there would not have been a tragedy . When Romeo found out that Juliet had died he went to an apothecary ( someone who sold medicine and drugs ) he too demanded poison to kill him so he would be with his true love forever. (5, 1, 34) The tragedy here is that Romeo does not know that she is being forced to marry Paris , and makes it his own tragedy. Once the Friar leaves Juliet decides not to go with him but to commit suicide instead . (5, 3, 168-169)
The citizens of Verona were not involved in this tragedy because the meetings between Romeo and Juliet were handled in
