Loyalty

The tragedy Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is the infamous story of two lovers whose families, the Montagues and the Capulets, have always loathed each other. Romeo and Juliet struggle to overcome their parents' hatred. The families are both wealthy, living in grand houses flanked with nurses and servingmen. I noticed that loyalty is a recurring theme in this book. Each family and their help are loyal to each other and are always willing to stand up for their kinsmen and masters.

The first example that I see of this is when Sampson and Abram, two opposing servingmen, defend their masters. When Abram, a Montague servingman, says that he does not want to fight, in Act 1, Scene 1, Sampson replies, "But if you do, sir, I am for you. I serve as good a man as you." Sampson is saying that the man he serves, Capulet, is just as good as the man that Abram serves, Montague. Then Abram argues this by saying, "No, better." This argument over who serves the better man shows that Abram and Sampson both are loyal and respectful to their masters. They defend them when someone insults them. True loyalty comes from standing up for the people that you respect and are loyal to.

Romeo and Juliet feel an obligation to hate each others' families, but it is difficult. When Juliet finds out that Romeo is a Montague, she is torn. She must choose between being loyal and following true love. She says, "My only love sprung from my only hate!" Romeo is Juliet's first love, but she is supposed to despise him! Juliet faces a lot of pressure to hate Montagues. Sometimes, loyalty can get in the way of where people belong. If Romeo and Juliet are meant to be, then they might have to let go of some of their loyalty to the hatred of each other. This made me think that maybe the Montagues and the Capulets don't have true loyalty to their houses, maybe they just are loyal to their hatred. I think that the Montagues and Capulets have an obligation to hate each other, so that causes them to be loyal to their own houses.

Loyalty is very important. It helps people stand up for the people that they care about and respect. However, I don't think that loyalty is good when people are just loyal to hatred. People should be loyal because they believe in their side, not because they hate their opponents. And sometimes, loyalty needs to be let go. When Romeo and Juliet first met, they began to realize that sometimes, love gets in the way of loyalty. Sometimes, if you love someone who you are not loyal to, you may have to loosen up on your own loyalty to make room for loyalty for a new love.