Persuasive essay help in Romeo and Juliet?Need help writing a persuasive essay on the following topic: Prince Escalus should have ended the feud...

Regarding Shakespeare's Romeo and
Juliet, and Escalus' responsibilities, if I were to write a persuasive essay
on this topic, I think that I would discuss the sense that this has been going on a long
time—much too long for a Prince not to do something
constructive.

Escalus should have done something sooner
because the feud has been going on for so long that no one even knows what the original
fight was about—and still Escalus done nothing.

I would
include comments from the beginning (Act I, scene i) that show how pervasive the hatred
is, which must be obvious even to Escalus: it's not just that the
families are fighting, but it has reached down to the servants who are willing to kill
each other for the sake of the family. (I don't think I could be paid enough money in
any job to put my life in jeopardy for the sake of my boss and his personal problems:
this simply shows the obsessive trend that has permeated all levels of their
society.)

Another situation that points to how out of
control the situation is can be seen (in Act III, scene i) when Tybalt kills Romeo's
friend, Mercutio. Being related to the Escalus himself, I would have thought this would
have been the last straw for the Prince. Just because Mercutio is a friend to a Montague
does not constitute reason for his death at Tybalt's hand. And even though Tybalt is
after Romeo for disrespecting the Capulets by attending their party, he reaches
past Romeo to kill Mercutio—other than emotionally hurting Romeo,
it would make no sense, except that Tybalt is a hot-head. And in doing this, Tybalt has
lashed out at Escalus, not just Romeo. This should have been the wake-up call Escalus
needed.

In essence, when looking for blame, is it not
possible to find Escalus at fault? If he, as their ruler, is interested in protecting
his people as a father would protect his children, shouldn't he have taken steps prior
to Romeo's banishment, rather than waiting for tragedy to take place? Based on the depth
of this problem within the society, it was inevitable that something truly tragic would
ultimately take place. Escalus should have been more concerned and more
forward-thinking.