Foil Characters In Romeo And Juliet Essay Example

Romeo has many characters he is a FOIL too. Many people experience this in the real world sometimes too. In the play Romeo And Juliet there is a nobleman named Paris, and who wants to marry Capulet’s daughter Juliet. Juliet is very young in the play she is 14, Friar Lawrence is logical and not emotional about most situations, he does marry Romo and Juliet because he thinks it will end the quarrel between Montagues and Capulets. Romeo and Juliet get married after less than 2 days of knowing each other, Mercutio doesn’t think this is such a good idea because he doesn’t believe in true love. Romeo, who is an emotionally immature configure who only wants love, meets noble and gentleman Paris, logical and unemotional Friar Lawrence, and the aromantic and teasing Mercutio.

The first foil character for the focus character Romeo is Mercutio. In Act 2, scene 1, Mercutio is assuring the crowd he does not believe in true love. Also, he almost reveals love is just foolish, and he doesn’t understand it almost like love is something for the weak and dull. The poem says, “if love is blind, love cannot hit the mark”. This is him explaining love cannot be a thing if you were blind, people fall in love from their eyes. In contrast, Romeo falls in love within minutes and hours later he is admitting his feelings to Juliet about how much he loves her. “It is my lady. Oh, it is my love”. This is a quote from Romeo saying he loves Juliet after just a couple of hours this is found in act 2, scene 2. There are several other ways these characters differentiate, this is what makes them friends. Romeo and Mercutio can help and tell each other when they are wrong and what they need to work on. This demonstrates they have some contradictory and are foil characters.

The second foil character for Romeo is Friar Lawrence who is logical and wise against Romeo who is stupid and emotional. In act 2 scene 3 friar Lawrence says something really sensible and wise. “He says Wisely and slow. They stumble that run fast”. When he says this he is telling Romeo not to rush his relationships like he rushed getting into love with two women, because if he rushes then they will not last they will end fast, and with this quote he is predicting the future as the audience knows. This is the opposite of Romeo because he is not sensible and wants to kill himself without even thinking of other possibilities to get out of a situation, and he does it very emotionally. In scene 3.3 Romeo is talking to Friar Lawrence once more and says “Is death mistermed. Calling death “banishment,” Thou cutt’st my head off with a golden ax.” Friar Lawrence continues by telling Romeo he is foolish and should take punishment as a gift because he wasn’t killed. Romeo finishes by being really emotional and is crying saying he would rather die than be banished. Friar Lawrence thinks he is very foolish for this. This is how they are foil characters and how they are completely different.

The final foil character for Romeo is Paris and they are counterparts in the way they approach the marriage of Juliet, and how Paris is a nobleman and Romeo is immature. In act 2.1 Paris reveals to Capulet how they are both noblemen and he would like to marry his daughter, this is very gentleman-like because back in the day and sometimes today it is very polite if you first ask the father to marry his daughter before you propose. The play says “Of honorable reckoning are you both. And pity ’tis you lived at odds so long.

But now, my lord, what say you to my suit?” This is very polite of Paris to do since he wants to marry Juliet. Capulet, later on, says she is too young, even later he agrees and says he can marry her, the audience knows Juliet has some other intentions by the time she meets Paris. This is very different from Romeo he doesn’t even speak to Capulet and continues to ask Juliet to marry him in secret and it is kept a secret from Capulet until they die in a way this is unfledged. The quote from act  2.2 quotes “I would be satisfied if we made each other true promises of love.” This is Romeo’s line after he and Juliet agree to marry each other they go on to make a time and how to do it in secret. As the spectators have seen this is the entire contradiction of the way Paris went about it Romeo hasn’t even spoken to Capulet neither has he talked to the rest of Juliet’s family and it is immature. 

Romeo is emotional and immature as the audience figures out, Paris is a gentleman, and Mercutio doesn’t believe in love like his friend Romeo, finally friar Lawrence wise and old and sometimes mistakes. In the first body paragraph, It is explained how Mercutio and Romeo have some differences in their perspective of love and how this kinda drew them apart at times. The second one was about how Friar Lawrence doesn’t see the reasoning of how Romeo has fallen in love incredibly quickly again and wants him to take it slower and Romeo’s relationships might work. And finally how Paris and Romeo were different Paris is a gentleman as everyone says and asks for permission to marry Juliet, Romeo is immature and didn’t even think of this. You see these problems in the real world all the time people might have a strong bond, however, individuals have differences driving them apart. They might do something because of these disagreements. These differences could harm them and this is what happened in the tragedy, Romeo and Juliet.