“But o, how bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man’s eyes” Hamlet written by William Shakespeare during the Elizabethan age revolves around the setting, time and the nature of its characters. Happiness in Hamlet is a vague theme that involves almost all the characters, who are significantly influenced by the time and place of the play, the sexuality of the characters and also, how they practice deception. The tragedy of Hamlet presents various characters who pursue or compromise their happiness to satisfy their conscience. This is shown through characters such as Hamlet, Claudius and Ophelia. In addition, to how their differences and similarities shape their personalities, which causes them to pursue or compromise their happiness. The character of Hamlet is expressed as a protagonist. His irritated attitude towards Claudius in scene 2 of act 1 leaves the audience with a clear first impression of his nature. He is deceitful of the king, his uncle Claudius who is now the ruler of Denmark after his brothers “death”, and disgusted of his mother marrying his uncle. Hamlet is an example of someone who has compromised his happiness, in order to avenge his father’s murder. When Hamlet is assured by the ghost of his father, that Claudius was the cause …show more content…
This is what causes Hamlet to compromise his love for Ophelia, as she is stunned and disrespected by his attitude. Similarly, Claudius wanted to gain power, and uses his ambitious attitude to murder his brother, quickly marry his widow, and take the throne himself. Despite their similar nature the two men are driven by different goals. Claudius works to gain and keep power, while Hamlet is working to seek revenge for his father. However, Claudius continues to rule in his power, and dwell in his wronged achievements allowing himself to pursue his
Shakespeare plays Hamlet displays the character flaws of Hamlet, Ophelia, and Claudius and their downfall. Hamlet’s inability to take action leads him his demise, Ophelia follows her father and brother decisions, and Claudius is an antagonist who let his greed of power control him. Shakespeare displays that every character falls victims to their own flaws, but in the play, Hamlet, Ophelia, and Claudius stand out in the play. Especially in Shakespeare other tragic plays, he shows how their flaws are their own demise. For example, in the play Macbeth, Macbeth’s
“ My lord, I have remembrance of yours, that I longed long to re-deliver; I pray you, now receive them” (Shakespeare 2. 2. 93-95). Ophelia’s decision to relinquish her love to Hamlet for her father’s sake spurred Hamlet’s decision for his feigned madness and also made it easier for him to reject Ophelia and emotionally abuse her, which in turn, spurred her own internal disappointment and hatred in herself. However,“We see Hamlet’s nobility and realise that his flippant comments to her stemmed from his antic disposition and feigned madness” (Tuohy, 2012).
Hamlet Accepting Life In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the character of the prince is developed by the unfortunate murder of his father and the events that follow. Hamlet’s witty character is progressively changing, showing his anger, intelligence, and love that develops the meaning of the work. The purpose of Hamlet is to demonstrate “the development of an acceptance of life despite the existence of human evil” (Boyce 232). Hamlet’s first line in the play introduces the reader to his sarcastic wit in an aside Hamlet makes after Claudius calls him his son, stating “A little more than kin, and less than kind.”
Hamlet's character is enraged and despotic as he considers the nature of his uncle's brutal and deceitful murder, “foul deeds will rise through all earth overwhelm them to men's eyes. ”(Act one scene 5.) Here, Hamlet presents himself as decisive and totally committed to the idea of revenge and bringing his uncle to rightful justice. As the play progresses, Hamlet begins to face the consequences of becoming too loyal, and having the responsibility of getting revenge on his uncle.
Claudius, as seen in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, is intelligent and a great schemer, he devises a plan in which he murders his brother in order to take the throne of Denmark and then easily charms the royal court into accepting his quick marriage to his brother’s wife, Gertrude. From there, he does all that he can to then further protect his ill-gained power. The death of Hamlet’s father throws Hamlet into a state of mental turmoil and, after seeing his father’s ghost, is determined to seek revenge on Claudius for his father’s murder. Polonius, The Lord Chamberlain of Denmark, aids Claudius in spying on Hamlet, and in return, Hamlet does all that he can to keep Claudius on edge. Within Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the characters Claudius,
When Hamlet himself sees the ghost of his father, his father tells him to avenge his death, that Claudius indeed murdered his own brother. “ Ghost. Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder. ”(1.5.25)
He like one of those child who want everything in peace and when his father died and his mother married his brother, that peace just broke. This is what Hamlet have to deal with after his death. “The king he suspects of treachery, his mother he accuses of weakness and folly, his lover Ophelia betrays him and spies for her father Polonius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are convenient hirelings ready to escort Hamlet to his death”, said Kalpakgian. The real bad guy here is Claudius, if it wasn’t for Claudius none of this foolishness would be going on and everybody else would be alive. Claudius have this addiction for badness and greediness and like he can’t control it because as in Kalpakgian article “Even though his first artful plot to have Hamlet executed in England is foiled by Hamlet’s sleeplessness during the night when he awakes and “rashly” opens the packets with the order for his death (“And praised be rashness for it”), Claudius devises two other stratagems to eliminate Hamlet.
Hamlet eventually kills Claudius like his father told him to, but only did it after his mother, Gertrude, drank the poison that Claudius meant to give Hamlet. This is a result of external action from all the sorrows that was building up in Hamlet’s life. This brings us to our next character, Gertrude, Claudius’s wife and Hamlets
This aids the reader in analyzing the motives for each of the intricate characters and how every action has a motive that can tie back to Hamlet’s grand scheme which is to get revenge for the kingdom overtaken by an authority figure who did not earn that title, honor his father’s legacy that is taken from him in the crossfire of jealousy, and for the good of Denmark. Between the murder of King Hamlet and Polonius, Ophelia’s death, and the disloyalty of many characters, we enable ourselves to see the mood of confusion
Hamlet is a story filled with calamity. Hamlet’s uncle Claudius kills his own brother in order to become king, then moves forward marrying the king 's widow. The tragic event powered by the death of his father becomes too overwhelming for Hamlet. Queen Gertrude exhibits no emotion towards the death of her husband and tells Hamlet to leave
The play Hamlet is one of the most-famous plays written by William Shakespeare. This play dealt with madness, revenge, mortality, deceit, religion, and much more. Overtime, this paper will explain why Hamlet is so upset. Hamlet first learned that it was his uncle, Claudius, who had murdered his father. “Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift as meditation or the thoughts of love, May sweep to my revenge” (I.v.23).
In the Shakespeare play Hamlet, young Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet, was murdered by Claudius, the king’s brother. The king’s ghost speaks to young Hamlet about his death and that he wants revenge. Soon after the king’s death, Hamlet’s mother Gertrude marries Claudius. Hamlet is very upset with his mother because he feels that she did not mourn his father enough. Hamlet begins to act as if he has gone insane, even to his love, Ophelia, and edits a play to see how his uncle reacts.
Upon hearing Polonius’ cry, Hamlet rushes over and stabs Polonius through the curtain, believing that he is Claudius. When he finds that it is not actually Claudius that he has killed, but rather Polonius, Hamlet nonchalantly states how foolish he was for spying on their conversation. In Act IV, Hamlet is sent off to England where Claudius has plans for the English to kill him. When Ophelia’s brother Laertes comes back from France, he finds that not only has his father been killed, but also that his sister has gone mad, and he believes this all to be the fault of the royal court and he bursts into the room followed by a throng of followers who wish to make him king. Claudius seeing the rage of not only Laertes, but also the people backing him, decides to let himself be questioned.
The book Hamlet is all about revenge, and wrongs doings. During this play characters go through faces and act out on their emotions. These emotions drive them to do the unthinkable, however, while seeking revenge their plans backfire. Hamlet is the main character of the play, and is the first person to act out in revenge. When he finds out about his father's assassination, he starts plotting against his uncle/stepfather, the king.
The first character trait a tragic hero must fulfill is to awake a feeling of pity and fear in the audience. This happens at the point where Hamlet is thinking about suicide were he gets an interesting character (Act 1 Scene 2 p.23, 25). Furthermore, Hamlet is tough, grief world and upset with his mother’s love life with her new husband Claudius. He also feels betrayed when his mother marries his fathers brother so soon after his father’s death