The character I have chosen for my essay from Romeo and Juliet is Romeo. Romeo is the main character of the story, the hero and the protagonist. Romeo’s role in the story is defined by his search for love, first with Rosaline where his heart is seemingly broken, then with Juliet who puts back together his love. When Romeo saw Juliet he loved her instantly but he has to go through massive amounts of tribulations just to be with Juliet. Romeo is part of the Montague family and Romeos love Juliet is a Capulet, the very family his family is feuding with. Romeo is on a quest to be with Juliet no matter what the cost and many things get in his way.

Romeo has many positive characteristics as well as many flaws. Romeo’s positive traits include his great passion, his incredible loyalty to his friends and family, his ability to love and his desire for peace in both families. Romeo’s flaws include loving too strongly too fast, he is overly dramatic, he is a murderer who has killed two people, he is impulsive, immature and he’ll put his desire for revenge above Juliet’s feelings.

Romeo’s core quest in this story is to find love, which he does twice in this particular book but discovers later his only real love is Juliet. Romeo is willing to do anything it takes to love Juliet. When Romeo was fighting Talbot he continued to say nothing but nice things and showed great respect to Talbot. Romeo killed Talbot because he didn’t take in consideration Juliet’s feelings above his own desire for revenge. This action shows that Romeo is well-meaning but impulsive and selfish in his actions.

 

Romeo has many interactions with others where he speaks of romantic love calling Juliet his “bright angel” and a “dear saint” speaking of Juliet he is generally spiritual, intense and innocent. Characters like Mercutio and Nurse speak of love in crude sexual ways. Romeo is in love with being in love in this book. At first he seems devastated by Rosaline’s resistance to a relationship and then almost in the same day falls in love at first sight with Juliet.

During the course of the story Romeo overcomes a great deal and matures some. In the beginning Romeo is in love with the concept of love but he doesn’t actually love Rosaline. As the story goes on Romeo matures and realizes that his love for Juliet is real but the city of Verona has a feud going on and their tragic story of love can never really fully bloom because they cannot be together. By the end of the play Romeo has been banished and is isolated from his friends and family causing him to mature very quickly. There is no true resolution to the character’s emotional or spiritual growth because Romeo impulsively drinks the poison that causes him to die before Juliet wakes up, that is why the play is a tragedy.