More Words, Deeper Hole

Juliet's situation is what gets her married so young. Actually, her marriage to Romeo is of dubious legality, considering her age and that she married him without her father's consent.

R & J are just two young kids who think that their love is like no other, and they will die without each other - just like any early teens today think. If they had been able to date like modern teens, they would have likely broken up by the end of high school. But the Friar decides this situation could be exploited to bring peace between the two powerful and wealthy families by marrying the two. If that whole Mercutio/Tybalt incident hadn't happened, the two would have consummated their marriage and announced it the next day, making it a fait accompli. Whether it would have brought peace is another matter.

The second thing that derails the story is Juliet's father deciding to marry her to Paris. The article stated that the wealthy and aristocratic got married earlier, and the Capulets were definitely wealthy and ambitious. Yes, she was young, but her father badly wanted the political connection, and didn't care how much a dick he had to be to get it.

And in the overly dramatic way with teens everywhen, they both think death is better than living without each other.

Does anyone really think that the Prince's entreaty to the families to bury the hatchet will have any lasting effect? I give it less than a week before the two families are screaming blame at each other for the whole mess.

Blah blah blah blah....I could probably go on, but I'm sure you're already thinking this post is too long....