In William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," the young lovers can be seen as victims of circumstances beyond their control, simply because the families play such an important role in the play and have so much input into Romeo and Juliet's lives. Although `Fate' may play a large part in this too, a lot of the blame must also be placed upon the young lovers themselves and their poor decision making, as it was because of this that the play ends in tragedy.

The Capulet and Montagues ongoing feuds, can be seen as a major reason for the extent by which Romeo and Juliet are seen as victims of circumstances beyond their control. It was not their fault that they were born into two families that hated one another, nor was it partly their fault that because of such feuds such tragedy could occur. It was the fault of...