Romeo and Juliet

Parental Expectations

Parental expectations are basically the way parents expect their kids to live their lives. The definition of expectation is “the act of expecting; to have a prospect of future good or profit”. Parents often expect their kids to be perfect. By this I mean make all the right decisions, do everything the way the parents want it to be done, and live up to their parents standards. I don’t always agree with a lot of today’s parental expectations because some parents try to benefit themselves instead of the kids. In this essay, I will describe parental expectations from today and from the play Romeo and Juliet. I will link some of the examples of expectations to movies, or real life scenarios.
These families are trying to fight a war that they weren't even involved in to start. This feud could have been completely avoided if the original family members that were in conflict didn't expect their children to pass it on. If they just kept it between themselves like grown-ups should, the grudge would not have been passed down. In this case, the parental expectations were for the worst and not the best.

Marriage is very different now then it was before. The children were expected to marry someone that either their parents chose for them or someone their parents approved of. Oftentimes, parents would try and get there children to marry a richer family or a family of higher social rank to improve their family's name. Who has the right to expect their children to marry someone they don't even love? In Romeo and Juliet, Capulet was always pushing Juliet towards marrying Paris. Although he never directly tells her, "I want you to marry Paris", you can always tell it's what he wants. Although the Nurse, pretty much like a mother to Juliet, does mention that she prefers County Paris more than Romeo. "I think it best you married with the County. O, he's a lovely gentleman. Romeo's a dishclout to him." 3.5.228-230. Marriage is about love, and I don't agree how, in these days, parents could expect there children to marry someone they don't even love and not feel bad about it.

To conclude, parental expectations can be for the better or the worse.