On Hamlet, Mortality, And the Narrow Divide between Life and Death Hamlet- one of Shakespeare’s most thoroughly referenced works, and one the most widely studied pieces of English literature. Thanks to modern ignorance and terrible acts of misattribution, Hamlet has become synonymous with epic single acts, standalone speeches and incredible and ageless words of wisdom. But the reality stands alone in its travesty- Hamlet is more realistically akin to incestuous desire, copious amounts of death, unreciprocated love and the dire consequences that result from waiting too long to carry out your premeditated homicides. Too often are Hamlet’s self-pitying words associated with emotional intelligence, and his madness feebly mistaken as a reference …show more content…
Aforementioned in this paper, Hamlet is of the school of belief that life is essentially worthless in the end- that in all its glory and grandeur, it is simply farcical to even attempt anything that does not provide immediate necessity to the individual because ultimately it has no bearing on society, there is no good or evil, there is only death and its living companions. But Hamlet merits that death too has its uncertainties, and (because of his Catholic faith) acknowledges that he will go to Hell if he kills himself, so he decides to continue, motivated further to at least live long enough to avenge his father’s death by killing Claudius. Here too Hamlet faces a dilemma whereupon he ventures out to kill Claudius only to find that he is repenting of his mortal sin of killing Old King Hamlet and thus clearing his path to heaven. Hamlet resolves to catch him in his whereabouts some other time in which he is not graced by the spirit of forgiveness, so that Claudius is to suffer an eternal torment- which Hamlet decides is the only punishment that will indeed fit the crime. In so choosing to do this, the true madness is revealed in the lapse of judgement Hamlet exercises by choosing to take it upon himself to kill the king- will he not also bear responsibility for Claudius’s death, and therefore susceptible to the same eternal discipline as his
In William Shakespeare's renowned tragedy, Hamlet, the titular character's thoughts on death are frequently expressed throughout the play. Hamlet's perception of death evolves as he experiences the consequences of his actions and begins to understand the true nature of life and mortality. At the start of the play, Hamlet is already contemplating the nature of death, and he speaks of it as an escape from life's pain and suffering. In his first soliloquy, Hamlet expresses his frustration with his mother's hasty remarriage to his uncle, who has become the new king of Denmark.
Hamlet sparks an internal philosophical debate on the advantages and disadvantages of existence and whether it is nobler to live miserably or to end one's sorrow with a single stroke. Hamlet is in a state of madness that leads him to question get suicide, comparing it to a peaceful sleep. Through Hamlet's internal struggle with suicide his conscience guides him to live. Hamlet is contemplating suicide because he is going mad over the truth of his father's death, and his mother remarrying so quickly. ” Hamlet is suffering” due to the loss of his dear father “and he wants his anguish and strong passion abundantly evident to the audience”(Source1,Point3).
Death is a common tragedy used in stories; from B.C. to now, movies, books and even songs are based on death. This may convey the impression of emotions being dark or dreary, but it seems to be a fan favorite, not only among adults, but children. In Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, the story is based around death, and the same could be said for The Lion King, but it is the audience that separates how deep or complex the story line can be. In the story written by Shakespeare, King Hamlet is not in the story line at all because he was murdered before the story began.
When applied correctly, soliloquies successfully allow the reader to experience characters in their most vulnerable state: within their own minds. Hamlet is no exception to this principle, as Shakespeare’s mastery of rhetoric in establishing the main character’s inner conflict provides depth and rawness to his complex character. In this well-known soliloquy, Shakespeare employs logos to acknowledge that death can be both a relief and nightmare due to natural human emotions; accordingly, Hamlet personifies a severe case of teenage depression by simultaneously wishing for an end to suffering yet remaining hesitant to act on his own thoughts due to his fear of the unknown. Throughout this passage, Hamlet attempts to rationalize ending his life over continuing to endure the painful reality of his existence. The parallelism in this particular soliloquy serves several rhetorical purposes, including the development of an implicit contrast between Hamlet’s mental state and the actual organization of his thoughts.
“The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them.” is a quote said by Lois McMaster Bujold. When someone loses their life, they no longer get the opportunity to get revenge. It is up to the living to get the revenge or justice that they feel is fair.
Death is one of the most prominent themes in Hamlet, appearing in different forms. Shakespeare displays death through the suicide of Ophelia, Hamlet’s own thoughts and eventual suicide, and the murder of King Hamlet and Polonius. Hamlet displays suicidal tendencies throughout the play through his soliloquies. The first time that Hamlet contemplates committing suicide is when Gertrude and Claudius tell him that he has to stay in Denmark in Act one. “Oh, that this too, too sullied flesh would melt, thaw, and resolve itself into a dew, or that the Everlasting had not fixed his canon ‘gainst self-slaughter!
When Hamlet encounters his Father death, he becomes obsessed with death itself. He begins to wonder if suicide is the answer to end his suffering. In the play, hamlet says “O, that this too sullied flesh would melt, Thaw and resolve itself into a dew”(I.ii.133-138).
Jan-Erik Aavik IB English HL B. Raid 04.11.2016 Written Task 2 Outline: Part of the course to which the task refers: Part 3 Literature - text and context Title of the text for analysis: Hamlet, William Shakespeare 1599
But we can see after he finds out about the truth, he is forced to act because of his morality beliefs. The battle in Hamlet’s tragedy occurs in a dynamic society that is created by opposing forces that contradict with each other and Hamlet is a philosophical prince who blames the court for impunity, injustice, and murder; and all of these problems prevents him from being a part of court’s social life and he becomes depressed. Hamlet’s deep depression effects on his behaviors until he even doesn’t act like prince and becomes mad. His madness effect on his judgment and makes him to become obsessed with the death; even he sees death as the only way to take revenge. We can see that Hamlet explores death in every facet of the play from many different angles and how he develops his definition of death from the materially to morality perspective.
Hamlet, written by famous playwright and poet, William Shakespeare, is frequently referred to as the “Mona Lisa” of literature. The true purpose and complete understanding of the play is, up to this day, not remotely knowledgeable by scholars and the audience alike. The play has led to much conversation about what Shakespeare was ultimately trying to accomplish with it. One vexed and widely referred critique was that made by T.S. Eliot, in which he described, “The ‘madness’ of Hamlet lay to Shakespeare’s hand…a deliberate dissimulation, but a form of emotional relief” (Eliot 93). In creating Hamlet, Shakespeare achieved perplexity in the scheme that created for misinterpretation of an unexplained Hamlet.
This quote reveals how all these things have affected Hamlet psychologically and emotionally. The death of King Hamlet has led the play toward more death themes, making this the most tragedy
The story of a young man by the name of Hamlet has been told since it was first written in the early 1600s. The timeless classic tells the tale of Prince Hamlet, who discovers that his mother had wed his uncle, two months prior to his father’s passing. He visits the throne in Denmark because he is disgusted at the act of incest, where the ghost of his deceased father confronts him, insisting that he was murdered by Claudius, the new king. Hamlet is enraged, and he becomes obsessed with the idea of proving the crime so that he can obtain revenge against Claudius (Crowther). Despite the myriad of themes that circulate throughout the Shakespearean play, many do not realize one hidden yet extensive theme: actions and their consequences.
Shakespeare presents death as an inevitable act of life, noting that all that is living must eventually come to an end. Due to “Hamlet” being a Shakespearean tragedy, the theme of death recurs throughout the play. Additionally, Shakespeare can be seen as using revenge as the main motive of a character’s murder, which makes “Hamlet” a revenge tragedy. The tragic nature means that by the end of the play, majority of the characters would have died. In this case, many of the characters have died due to murder or suicide.
Hamlet is a very diverse character that goes through several different emotional stages throughout the novel. Some think that he is depressed because of his father’s death, and some think that his breakup with Ophelia has made him go mad. Though Hamlet does seem out of control at times, it is because he is keeping a secret about his father’s death. The average person does not usually deal with the death of their parent well, and knowing that it was intentional makes Hamlet even more emotionally unstable. From the beginning of the novel, Hamlet proves to be very melancholy, and upset with his life.
Williams Shakespeare is recognized as the greatest English writer. One of his best works ever written is “Hamlet”, which is the most complex, confusing, and frequently performed play. The extreme complexity of the main character – prince Hamlet in this play contributes to its popularity until today. “Hamlet is supposedly the most quoted figure in Western culture after Jesus, maybe the most charismatic too” (Bloom 384). In the most famous revenge tragedy, his biggest weakness that he procrastinates completing his revenge for his father’s death by killing the murderer.