Love Is Stronger Than Hate In Romeo And Juliet

In the play, Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, the notion that hatred is stronger than love could be evidenced by the ancient grudge that exists between two feuding families in the city of Verona. Many have fallen prey to this vicious feud as it flourished through generations passed; children turn to bullies and men to killers as the vendetta draws the darkness from within them all; even the love between the star-crossed teens is tainted with the hatred and rage of their parents. On the other hand, the concept that love is stronger than hate can be witnessed through both the love from parent to child and between the two besotted. It is the love between parent and child which thaws the hostility between the two families and puts

“Doth with their death bury their parents' strife.” With their deaths, the children of the feuding families manage to extinguish the elongated conflict between the families. This act exhibits the strength of a parent's love because that is the very thing that makes the families see sense and stop the gratuitous fighting. The use of the word “bury” infers connotations of death; this highlights both the feud but also the children who committed suicide because of it. Through the use of irony and macabre humour, Shakespeare shows that love is, in actuality, stronger than hate as it has managed to quench years of hate in one single act of love, and so, is more dominant than hatred within

This is evident in the tragedy that unfolds throughout the play and the cruel deaths that occur to end an equally brutal and pointless feud. The way in which both Montague and Capulet leaders refuse to let go of their strife, even after their children’s deaths, exhibits the inexorable desire for destruction ingrown into human nature. In a discussion about peace and resolving the feud, the Montague leader still feels the need to usurp the Capulets, this can be seen in the way he offers more: “But I can give thee more”. After many, many years of feuding, both sides wish to see the strife between them burn and die yet the idea of peace and agreement seems to be a difficult concept to grasp. Though neither of them realises it, the feud is not in fact buried with their children but simply laid to rest before their human nature resurrects it once more. This magnetic pull towards disaster can be seen through the need for a competition even in a time of grieving and love. Shakespeare held the ability to set himself aside from humanity and achieve a third person perspective on the world; he saw the ingrown destructive nature embedded through society even when many then, and now, could not. Through Shakespeare's innate ability to see through humanity, one can deduce the extent to which