ipl-logo

Cruelty In Hamlet

692 Words3 Pages

Revenge comes in all types of cruel, menacing actions. Hamlet’s theme is surrounded by cruelty and the cruelty progresses the play throughout. During the play the main perpetrator is King Claudius and the victim that is affected through most of his actions is Hamlet. Cruelty functions in the work two ways, it causes a chain reaction full of conflict and it helps develop a greater theme inside of the work. Hamlet is a tragic play that combines revenge with cruelty to develop a timeline of barbaric events that result in utter disaster. All events that take place in the play resulted from one single choice made by King Claudius. He chooses to poison his brother, the former king, so he is able to marry the Queen and become a part of royalty. This cruel and despicable action results in six different deaths that could have been avoided if he had not taken action. Not only does he cause this chain reaction of deaths, his cruelty spreads like a rampant disease throughout the kingdom. This causes Hamlet to be fixated upon his uncle's death because of what he did to his father. The cruelty takes over …show more content…

In Hamlet you have themes of madness and revenge. These themes arise because of all the bloodshed and hatred but what causes the bloodshed and hatred? Cruelty. The theme is based on the cruel nature of humans and how selfish a nation has become. A lot of this chaos comes from the family, a group of people who should love each other and take care of each other. In this play the exact opposite takes place. The theme is made greater because of the family environment surrounding Hamlet. This aspect heightens the theme and deepens the meaning revenge. It is not like Claudius killed a monstrous villain at the throne, he killed his own blood. This really speaks about how corrupt our families, nation, and government has become. The theme is not the same without knowing the full details regarding relationships in the

Show More
Related

  • Jimmy Cross The Things They Carried

    1357 Words  | 6 Pages

    Shakespeare questions the value of revenge as a means of finding closure and justice, suggesting that it often leads to more harm than good. To draw a conclusion, the tragedy of revenge in Hamlet is a prominent theme in the play, demonstrating the destructive nature of seeking vengeance. Hamlet’s relentless pursuit of revenge causes internal conflicts, brings about a cycle of violence, and ultimately leads to tragic consequences for himself and people around him. Shakespeare’s exploration of this theme raises profound questions about the nature of revenge and its deeper effects on both individuals and

    Read More

  • Why Is Fortinbras Important In Hamlet

    1905 Words  | 8 Pages

    The drama illustrates the rage for revenge that follows the King's assassination by his brother, who then assumes the throne. The play's main motivator is the idea of payback. Along with Hamlet, Laertes and Fortinbras also desire justice. Revenge is feeling that exists in people from since they themselves exist, also this psychological feeling is a primitive justice in the absence of norms and laws. People are often blinded by revenge and fail to realize that it causes more harm than good.

    Read More

  • Hamlet Act 4 Essay

    775 Words  | 4 Pages

    A constant struggle Hamlet faces in the play is whether or not to act out his vengeance. At this point in the play, Hamlet decides to overcome his internal struggles and seek revenge. This point in this scene is central to the theme represented in this play which is revenge, followed by the underlying theme of decay and

    Read More

  • Violence In Hamlet Analysis

    1906 Words  | 8 Pages

    In William Shakespeare’s well known play Hamlet , there are several acts of violence that often keep the readers on their toes constantly wondering what will happen next. It all begins with the death of King Hamlet and comes to an end with no royal family in control of the castle, Elsinore, in Denmark. Each character has their own unique motive for self gain throughout the play, but Hamlet has a strong drive for the dangerous game of revenge. Hamlet wants to earn justice for his father who had his kingdom, wife, and crown all stolen out from underneath him when his life is innocently taken by his greedy uncle. “To be or not to be?” is the question

    Read More

  • Why Is Hamlet Acting Crazy

    271 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of the play Hamlet is faced with a very hard situation, the loss of his father. While grieving he discovers that his mother will be married to his uncle Claudius. Hamlet had to talk to the ghost of his father, and found out Claudius was the reason for King Hamlet’s death. He wants revenge, he is to kill Claudius, without hurting his mother Queen Gertrude. Hamlet writes a play to get

    Read More

  • Examples Of Revenge In The Crucible

    1066 Words  | 5 Pages

    Revenge is prevalent in society as well in literature. It is also a common topic for Hollywood movies. Revenge is the action of inflicting harm on someone for a wrong suffered at their hands.

    Read More

  • Hamlet Compare And Contrast Hamlet And Ophelia

    932 Words  | 4 Pages

    The story of Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a story of betrayal, revenge, and intrigue. Hamlet, the title character discovers that his uncle killed his father and married his mother effectively stealing the throne. Hamlet decides he must kill his uncle Claudius as revenge for what he had done. However, as the new king, Hamlet isn't sure how to get to him, so he decides to fake madness, but his plan backfires as Claudius doesn't trust him and makes sure he is always watched. In his fumbled plan for revenge, Hamlet accidentally kills Polonius, forces Polonius's son Laertes to seek revenge against him, and drives Ophelia crazy causing her to kill herself.

    Read More

  • What Are The Similarities Between Hamlet And The Great Gatsby

    729 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet, also, could not get over the death of his father. He found out when his father’s ghost came back that his brother, and Hamlet’s uncle, murdered him. He then was willing to do anything possible to get revenge on Claudius, his uncle. Both of

    Read More

  • How Does Fortinbras Get Revenge In Hamlet

    2017 Words  | 9 Pages

    Have you ever been wronged by someone so badly that you felt as though revenge was needed? Perhaps your best friend stole the woman you loved, so you felt that you needed to act and do something to get back at him. Maybe you destroy his life by starting a false rumor about him, or you get in a fight with him and humiliate him. This is just one common example of “revenge” in our everyday lives. In the play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, there are much more serious things going on, involving death, murder, and wars between nations.

    Read More

  • Violence In Hamlet

    1505 Words  | 7 Pages

    Throughout the story, there are many times where violence seems as if it is the only way to solve the problem. The violence is this story is significant to the meaning of the story as a whole because the story starts out with an act of violence, placing the royal family at the funeral of their own king. Suicide, murder, and execution are all forms of violence portrayed in this work. Hamlet himself portrays many different acts of violence in this work such as murder and physical harassment. Violence is a major theme in Hamlet because without it, there would never be an end to the story because no one could ever get the revenge and justice they felt needed.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Revenge In Hamlet

    764 Words  | 4 Pages

    Revenge is a major part of life, even with minor things people like to get major revenge, and the same can be said for major things also. While revenge is a huge thing it can lead to bad results. Revenge is a major theme in William Shakespeare 's Hamlet, revenge is seen through Hamlet’s revenge for his father, Laertes’ revenge for his father, and Fortinbras’ revenge on Denmark for Norway. Hamlet’s revenge is the main part of the play, after his uncle killed his father and married Hamlet’s mom Hamlet wanted to get revenge. However due to Hamlet not being able to do it fast, his revenge tends to drag on leading to many other people getting affected by it, namely Polonius.

    Read More

  • Essay On The Ghost Of Hamlet Sr

    596 Words  | 3 Pages

    Revenge is arguably the most prominent theme in Hamlet. The essence of the play practically revolves around it. The beginning of the play, however, contains the themes of sorrow and anger because of Hamlet Sr 's death and Hamlet’s mother’s rash wedding with his Uncle Claudius. The spirit of Hamlet Sr. first presents the theme of revenge during his second appearance. He presents the secondary themes of death and an afterlife as well when he tells his son the following “And for the day confined to fast in fires, / Till the foul crimes done in my days of nature / are burnt and purged away’’(1.5.15-17).

    Read More

  • Shakespeare Use Of Revenge In Hamlet Research Paper

    1305 Words  | 6 Pages

    By the end of the play, Shakespeare shows how all of the characters attempt to get their revenge and how revenge does not always work out for the best. Hamlet is the main character of the play and it seems as if everything he does is based off his wanting to revenge Claudius for killing

    Read More

  • Themes in Hamlet

    1310 Words  | 6 Pages

    To Theme or Not to Theme (An analysis of the main themes portrayed in the first three of Hamlet’s soliloquies in Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet) “The tragedy of this play, then, lies in the ways that we are sometimes asked to assume roles that will destroy us as moral beings” (Crocker). In Shakespeare’s famous play, Hamlet, the character Hamlet is a very conflicted individual who is forced to deal with many hardships at a very young age. The death of his father and the remarriage of his mother to his uncle is a bases for Hamlet’s desire to get revenge.

    Read More

  • Reflection On Hamlet Horatio

    1612 Words  | 7 Pages

    Well in order to answer it, you as a reader have to dig-in and unwind the play thoroughly, page after page to come up with that answer. While reading Hamlet, a reader is taken on a maelstrom of emotions; love, sadness, anger, fury, revenge, empathy, and pity. At the end of this emotional ride, I asked myself: what does every character in the play seems to be motivated by? Revenge? Yes, on the surface, but when digging deeper, every person's action seems to be influenced by the

    Read More

More about Cruelty In Hamlet

Open Document