A person is never completely in control of their life. There is always some type of outside force, or fate, influencing a person’s actions and decisions. The philosophy of fate often relates to astrology, the belief that celestial bodies influence human action. The characters in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare believe that fate and the stars have absolute control over their lives and the actions they perform during the play. Fate determines who lives and who dies throughout Romeo and Juliet. While explaining events that are going to happen in the play, the Chorus declares, “From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, Whose misadventured piteous overthrows Doth with their death bury their…show more content…
While Romeo is in the Capulet tomb, he sees Juliet’s “dead” body and says, “For fear of that I still will stay with thee And never from this palace of dim night Depart again. Here, here will I remain With worms that are thy chambermaids. O, here Will I set up my everlasting rest And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars From this world-wearied flesh! Eyes, look your last” (5.3.106-112). Romeo thinks that he can “defy the stars” by making a rash decision to kill himself. Sadly, Romeo does not know that Juliet is alive, and his careless decision to kill himself is for nothing. Similarly, Juliet makes an irrational decision to kill herself once she sees Romeo laying next to her, dead. Juliet says, “Yea, noise? Then I’ll be brief. O happy dagger, This is thy sheath. There rust and let me die” (5.3.174-175). After seeing Romeo dead, grief overcomes Juliet, and she decides to kill herself with Romeo’s dagger. Fate causes Juliet to do this because she would rather die than live without her husband. This pair of quotes displays how fate forces the characters in Romeo and Juliet to make reckless decisions, and act upon impulse rather than assess the situation they are in, and then make a