Hamlet Anti Hero

Most stories, whether it be plays, novels, movies, etc. tend to have a similar list of characters: a protagonist, the dynamic “good guy” who is focused upon, several other static “good” characters, and the antagonist, the enemy to the protagonist, whether they are good or bad is debatable. In Shakespeare however, the characters are never that simple, major characters often possess multiple traits and minor characters have distinct and static roles that all piece together to form a story that is rich, dynamic, emotional, and humorous. In Hamlet, the main character for whom the play is named, deals with the mental struggles that come with the realization that his uncle Claudius killed his father and married his mother Gertrude, the plot follows
Heroes do not succumb to temptation or doubt; they know what is good and overcome the evil forces. However, Hamlet doesn’t quite meet this. That is why Hamlet is considered an “Anti-Hero”, which is a protagonist who has many flaws such as greed, pride, or a lack of care. In Hamlet’s case he lacks ambition, and can also be quite rude. For example he treats Ophelia quite poorly, even though she didn’t really deserve it. Hamlet is very intelligent, which is a positive characteristic in most cases, for Hamlet though he over thinks everything to a point that he never reaches decisions. He takes the change in his family poorly but doesn’t defend himself until the end when his inner turmoil may have caused him to go insane. Only when he is mad does he act quickly and when he does he ends up stabbing and killing Polonious, which Hamlet did not intend to do. Afterwards Hamlet shows no remorse, which seems much more like a villain than a hero, but for all his bad deeds he puts the blame on the world and not on himself, not taking responsibility for his actions. Towards the end of the play, Hamlet becomes ruthless; arranging the death of his childhood friends, killing Laertes, Claudius, and Polonious, and not blaming himself for it all. This reveals a lack of empathy, for Hamlet kills many and says it is the will of God and he isn’t bad because of it; when Claudius kills his brother Hamlet doesn’t think that it was God’s will when Claudius kills someone, Hamlet gives himself religious excuses but does not apply the same rules to others which is a double standard. All this reveals that though Hamlet is the protagonist, he isn’t a hero, even possessing at times more villainous traits than heroic ones. Hamlet’s polarizing personality is made clear when Hamlet is the protagonist, however if examined from the point of view of other characters, Hamlet’s role would change