romeo and juliet: friar lawrence

At first glance, some may look over the character of Friar Laurence and only see him as only a minor character in the story of Romeo and Juliet. However, upon closer examination, it becomes obvious that the Friar plays an essential role in the development of the play and is notable for moving the action along. Friar Lawrence is an expert of plants and natural remedies. At the beginning of the play, we learn that he is very close with Romeo and does many favors for him. Romeo considers Friar Laurence someone he can confide in, and opens up to him and tells him about his new lover, Juliet, as soon as possible. The Friar is not convinced and feels that Romeo is not making very good decisions. Being a very wise man, he warns Romeo to slow down a bit, but Romeo sticks to how he feels about Juliet throughout the play. At this point, the only good Friar Laurence sees in the relationship is that it could eventually bring together the houses of Capulet and Montague. This character of Friar Laurence stands firm throughout the play, as he attempts to guide Romeo and Juliet during their struggles. The next time with Friar Laurence comes into a major part of the story is when he is about to perform the secret wedding ceremony for Romeo and Juliet. The Friar still believes that Romeo and Juliet are just infatuated with each other and are not truly in love, but he agrees to marry them anyway. He does this because he still hopes that he could help bring their feuding families together. Friar Laurence’s sense of duty here identifies him as the “peacemaker” of the play. Ironically, his intentions were never truly fulfilled because the circumstances surrounding the marriage made it almost impossible for peace to occur.
Later, Romeo returns to the Friar again when he is in need of help after he murdered Tybalt. The Friar tells Romeo the good thing is that he has only been exiled, not killed. He tells Romeo to go to Juliet for their wedding night, and then to travel