Just as the nurse's role in the play is of Juliet's surrogate mother, so can Friar Lawrence be said to play the part of Romeo's surrogate parent. This is due to the fact that throughout the play both children seem much "removed" from their parents, in both cases emotionally but also physically in any acts of affection, or even, in Romeo's case, presence within the same acts of the play.

It is Friar Lawrence therefore who plays the part of Romeo's confidante; we are shown when first introduced to the Friars character that he is closely involved with Romeo's more intimate thoughts and affairs. The friar is familiar where Romeo's own parents are ignorant. For example, Romeo's passing obsession with Roseline, the cause of his melancholy in act 1 scene 1, is unintelligible to...