To what extent does Seneca’s Apocolocyntosis reflect popular attitudes to the Emperor Claudius among his contemporaries? Emperor Claudius is a figure of largely mixed popularity and opinions‚ and Seneca’s satire‚ the Apocolocyntosis (herein abbreviated to Apoc.) poorly reflects the multifaceted character of Claudius (Fagan‚ 1998). The opinions of his many contemporaries which are not limited to nobles‚ but to a wider range‚ included those within Rome and without‚ which in turn reflects the people:
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Why Hamlet took to long to kill Claudius? Shakespeare’s drama Hamlet has become a central piece of literature of Western culture. It is the story of a prince named Hamlet‚ who lost his father. Soon after that he has to confront multiple obstacles and devises a series of situations to defend the new king’s royalty. Furthermore‚ he had to prove that King Claudius‚ who was the prince’s uncle‚ had killed Hamlet’s father. This story has remained among the most popular and the most controversial plays
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However‚ it can be seen that Claudius is not a typical villain‚ as he does appear to have some redeeming features. Literary critic F.C. Hunt stated that ‘Claudius is painted by Shakespeare as bold‚ keen-sighted and resourceful’. Although all of these features are redeeming and there are many examples of these characteristics are presented throughout the play‚ this does not necessarily mean that Claudius is a wholly innocent character. As the King‚ Shakespeare presents Claudius as an able ruler who is
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1. In Act 3‚ Scene 3‚ Hamlet has an opportunity to kill Claudius‚ but he does not act. One scene later‚ however‚ Hamlet does not hesitate at all when he kills Polonius in Gertrude’s chamber. Why is Hamlet able to act in Scene 4 but not in Scene 3? What does this tell readers and viewers about Hamlet’s character? Answer: Hamlet decided against killing Claudius in Scene 3 because Hamlet thought Claudius
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small roles portraying their historical status at the time. Although Gertrude is the Queen of Denmark and Ophelia is the prince ’s lovers‚ they have no standing in the society and their voices are never heard. Their actions and fates are greatly influenced by the men ’s decisions. All their lives Ophelia and Gertrude are led by the men ’s power; they together make a weak image of dependent women at Shakespeare ’s time. Although Gertrude and Ophelia are not well developed through out the play‚ their actions
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The conflict in the mind Gertrude is a subtle struggle that surfaces in act 3 scene 4 of Hamlet. Gertrude is split between Hamlet‚ and her husband Claudius. Hamlet has clearly been through a struggle with the quick marriage of Claudius and Gertrude and the death of his father. Hamlet’s quest to kill Claudius puts another aspect of the conflict unknown to Gertrude. Gertrude s force to pick between her son or her current husband. This conflict shines a light of the meaning of loyalty. Gertrude’s character
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feelings have been buried within him since his childhood. These feelings were hidden during the life of Hamlet‚ Sr. because the two had a strong connection. However‚ the death of King Hamlet and hasty marriage to Gertrude by Claudius sparked jealousy within Hamlet. He felt no connection to Claudius‚ nor felt guilty by having feelings for his mother. It was due to this event that Hamlet’s latent Oedipal Complex took over. Although Freud outlined this complex almost 300 years after the publication of Hamlet
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familial gestures on Hamlet Jr.’s character. Claudius and Gertrude are now the King and Queen of Denmark‚ and Gertrude’s son‚ Hamlet Jr.‚ is the Prince. Claudius murdered Hamlet Sr.‚ the former King of Denmark‚ usurp the throne and married Gertrude‚ Hamlet Sr.’s former wife within two months of his death. Hamlet Jr. experienced anguish for the loss of his father‚ resentment towards his mother’s betrayal of him and his father and hatred against Claudius for his recent acts of deception‚ which all
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be or not to be." The main purport of that soliloquy is: whether one should love Ophelia or give up loving altogether whether he should take action against Claudius and end his frustration whether he should give in to his mood and commit suicide whether he can continue to cope with the lies of Claudius whether he can find a solution to the infidelity of his mother 2 When Ophelia is "loosed" on him in this scene‚ Hamlet answers her with curious answers. Those
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Denmark: Why did Gertrude Marry Claudius? Claudius classified his marriage to Gertrude as an "equal scale weighing delight and dole" (1.2.12). However‚ the audience of William Shakespeare’s play‚ The Tragedy of Hamlet‚ Prince of Denmark‚ has a hard time comprehending exactly what drove Gertrude to her hasty marriage a mere two months after the death of her husband. Character analysis along with evidence taken from the play makes the answer obvious. Gertrude married Claudius because she needed
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