Friar Lawrence Flashcards, test questions and answers
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What is Friar Lawrence?
Friar Lawrence is a character in William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet. He is a Franciscan friar, who plays the part of a wise advisor to Romeo and Juliet, who are from two feuding families. Friar Lawrence secretly marries the young couple in an attempt to bring peace between their families. The Friar’s abiding trust in Providence and his belief that God will work out all difficulties despite human errors make him an exemplary figure of faith for readers and audiences alike.Friar Lawrence is known for his wisdom, kindness, and deep understanding of human nature. He recognizes that love often leads people to act impulsively without considering consequences, as evidenced by his warning to Romeo: Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast (2, 3). His willingness to marry Romeo and Juliet against the wishes of their families speaks to both his dedication to helping them find happiness as well as his disregard for social conventions. His deep love for God also informs his advicehe believes everything happens because it was preordained by Godand he often prays for guidance or asks for divine mercy when faced with difficult decisions. Though Friar Lawrence has good intentions throughout the play, he ultimately fails at bringing peace between the two warring families due to miscommunications and unforeseen events outside of anyone’s control. He shows great courage in taking responsibility for this mistake when confronted by Prince Escalus after Tybalt’s death: I do repent me as it concerns/Some part of my precedent scorn/Which `scap’d observation(5, 3). In spite of this failure, he remains resilient throughout the playeven offering comfort when all hope seems lostand uses every opportunity he gets to stress the importance of forgiveness and reconciliation over violence or revenge. Ultimately, Friar Lawrence serves as an example that good intentions do not always lead to good outcomes however, our actions can still have positive effects regardless how things turn out in the end.