Everybody has their own opinions on every situation in one's life. Be it theirs or others. And some choose to voice their opinions to others that are going through something in their lives. Some would say that fate decides our decisions/destinies. Others say our decisions are influenced by the advice we receive from others. At the end of the day, I believe that it is we, the ones making the decisions, who decide to listen to others' opinions. As a result, it changes our own opinions and then changes our judgments. It is all up to us if we listen, ponder, and make our decisions. It is we who control which path we take to our destinies. I believe that we should, at the least, listen to others' opinions. And based on the situation and our moral beliefs, it is up to us if we take one's advice to heart.
Romeo and Juliet hold different parts in the play, Romeo and Juliet. And in our case, they either took others' opinions to heart or didn't. In Romeo's case, Benvolio is the one who advises him to forget about Rosalind and start looking for someone else ( Act 2, Scene 1, lines 221-222 ). Romeo listens and decides to go to The Party. On the other hand, Juliet decides not to listen to her parent's advice to marry Paris. Her parent's reasoning was so she would be happy. She initially didn't want to get married. In Act 1, Scene 3, line 68, Juliet states, " It is an honor I dream not of." Juliet didn't get married because she listened to her parent's advice to get married. She got married because of her so-called love for Romeo.
Additionally, when Romeo and Juliet were to be married, Friar Lawerance advised Romeo that " Too swift arrives as tardy as too slow." ( Act 2, Scene 6, line 14 ). Friar Lawerance is suggesting for Romeo to slow things down with Juliet. And that their relationship could fall since they're moving too fast. Romeo's decision to dismiss the Friar's advice leads to the complicatedness that follows. In Act 3, Scene 5, Juliet asks the Nurse to advise her on what she should do about her arranged marriage to Paris. In return, the Nurse says that she should forget Romeo and marry Paris. Juliet, again, doesn't take others' advice to heart. But, she did listen to the Friar about drinking the potion that would "kill" her for 42 hours. ( Act 4, Scene 1, line 122 ) The Friar's advice gives her hope for her decision to be with Romeo.
Earlier in the play, her parents tell her that if he doesn't marry Paris she won't have a place to sleep. So, they are disowning her. This would be the perfect situation for her to run away with Romeo so she wouldn't be looked for. But, her decision to take the potion that the Friar gave her led to the downfall of Romeo, Juliet, and not sadly Paris. And if Romeo and Juliet had decided to take it slow and declared it to their parent's. They could have both been disowned. And they would've been able to, possibly, start a life together. And maybe, since Romeo was no longer a Montague and Juliet was no longer a Capulet, Tybalt would've never fallen.
There are many different decisions we can make. And they all have different outcomes/scenarios. Some say that the decisions we make are determined mostly by the opinions of others. For example, in Romeo and Juliet, Paris decides to confront Romeo at the tomb because he believes him to be a villain. Not only does Romeo's killing Tybalt support his claim, but the stories he hears from the Capulets have influenced him to think ill of Romeo. While that is true, Paris chose to be convinced by the Capulets. He didn't have to listen to the Capulets, but his desire for Juliet allowed him to fall for the bitterness in the Capulets' hearts that happened even before they were born. You could even say that the Capulets were influenced by their parents. And so on.
Even if we are influenced by someone else's opinions, we make the choices. Only we can control our paths to our destinies. Our destinies are already laid out. One way or another we will get to that point in our lives. But, in a way, we can control our destinies or anothers'. One can only accomplish this by killing oneself or by killing another. The person may have been destined to die. That was their fate. But, always, no matter the situation, it is going to be us making the decisions for our lives. For our paths to destiny.
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