“They Stumble that Run Fast”

In at least three different situations in Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare communicates that speedy decisions can lead to terrible consequences: Lord Capulet tells Paris that marrying Juliet when she is still very young will make her marred; Friar Lawrence warns the two lovers that a rushed marriage will lead to unhappy endings; Romeo doesn’t wait to see if Juliet is really dead before he takes the poison. Through the course of the play, Shakespeare communicates that moving too quickly can lead to despair.
At the beginning of Romeo and Juliet, Lord Capulet and Count Paris have a conversation about the count’s request to marry Juliet. Capulet replies that she is too young and immature to be married. Later he consents to letting Paris marry his daughter only a few days later. On account of this rash pronouncement, Capulet looses his daughter; because of her father’s decision, Juliet feigns death and the whole family grieves. If Capulet had not rushed into the engagement of...