Infatuation in Romeo And Juliet Argumentative Essay

The romantic tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, really pushes the idea of love at first sight. Many people think that their story is in fact a true, devoted, story. However, in reality, it is very controversial. Plenty of people will argue that the story is not love, but infatuation. After reading a credible source explaining the difference between love and infatuation, the story is leaning more towards infatuation rather than the idea that there is truly lust. I believe that they were infatuated and not really in love. I think this because they wanted to get married right away, they had an element of sexual excitement and they did things they would regret later.

One reason that led me to believe they weren’t in love was that they wanted to get married right away. After reading an article about love vs infatuation, Juliet says,” Go ask his name- if he be married my grave is like to be my wedding bed.” Juliet is saying she wants to get married. The credible source adds,” Infatuation says, we must get married right away. I can’t risk losing him.”Another thing I might add is that this was their first time meeting. Before that night, they had never heard of or even seen each other. Both Romeo and Juliet had decided from first impressions they were going to marry each other. Finally, they were going to run away with each other after their ceremony. They thought this life could work. In reality, they really needed to get to know each other better than on the first day they met. They didn’t even have a first date! Because they wanted to marry each other so fast, it made me think that they were infatuated. 

Another reason that made me believe that they were not actually in love was that they had an “element of sexual excitement.” First of all, they had very many makeout sessions. After they met for the first time, Romeo found her house, her room, and was watching for her. He did all of this and got married afterward. And to me, that does not sound like love. Also,  The credible source says, “ If you are honest, you will admit it is difficult to be in one another’s company unless you are sure it will end in intimacy,” This leads me to my next point, which is that he literally stalked her, made out with her, and decided to get married all in the same night. And to be quite honest, prior to Romeo meeting Juliet, he was in love with another girl. She dumped him because she wanted to save herself and become a nun. So he just wanted to rush things so he could get down to business. In the play, he said,” By love- that first did prompt me to inquire.” So he was saying that he found her and her house by love. The element of sexual excitement in their relationship shows me that they were not in lust. 

Although they literally devoted themselves to the idea of getting married and living happily ever after, they did things that they probably would’ve regretted later if they had lived longer. Which is what my next reason is. Infatuation can “lead you to do things you might regret later,” as my credible source says. First off, Juliet faked her own death because she was so in love that she had to find a way to get out of her town and run away with Romeo. And as the play says,” Give me, give me- O tell me not about fear.” When Friar suggests that she should drink this sleep-inducing drug to fake being dead, she did not hesitate to take the vial and follow through with the plan. Finally, Romeo drank poison after learning that she was “dead.” After trying to fake her death, she never was able to get a hold of him and tell him it was all just to be with him for the rest of eternity. So, he would probably regret drinking the poison that killed him if he knows that she was not dead, but just faking.  Because they did things they would have regretted in the future, they are not actually in love. 

In conclusion, After comparing what love and infatuation are, It is safe to say that they were not in lust, but infatuated. This is because they wanted to marry right away, they had a large element of sexual excitement, and they did many regrettable things. They were too young to understand what true love was. The definition of infatuation is ”Strong but not usually lasting feelings of love or attraction.” Just like the way Romeo was able to move on after losing Rosaline, his ex. He would’ve found someone better and left her behind.