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Through King Claudius’s choice to murder former King Hamlet and marry Gertrude, he betrays his brother, Hamlet, and even his own morals. This act of disloyalty and deceit turns Claudius against the other characters, and leads to their eventual demise.…
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Anger, disappointment, and disbelief are often reactions an individual encounters after confronting betrayal. In fact, it is an unwanted experience due to its reputation of dissolving relationships. In history, fine literature has provided us with novels and plays that reveal betrayal as the basis and central theme of the story. The fact is, it can emerge from acts of revenge and even through pure selfishness. Furthermore, betrayal is a recurring topic in the tragic play, Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare. Many characters deceive one another as well as deny their own feelings, causing the betrayal of their emotions. The universal notion of betrayal is exemplified through Shakespeare's portrayal of dishonesty in his characters. They demonstrate…
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Use general quote about betrayal (brainyquote.com) not from Hamlet. This quote from Shakespeares Hamlet includes two very important words; The words “Haste” and “revenge” not only deal with life but with many other literary works as well. In order to take revenge upon someone often means to get back at them or to inflict hurt or harm on them for an injury or wrong done to oneself. Such is the case in Hamlet where Betrayal (revenge) is the biggest and main conflict of the play because, King Hamlet was ruler of Denmark until his brother Claudius, murders him to become King and marry the Queen, Gertrude. That plot right there creates a whole lot of tension between Hamlet and the new…
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In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, deceit is a major cause of the downfall of Hamlet. This is demonstrated in three instances in the play. First, Polonius spies on Hamlet while he is talking privately with his mother Gertrude. Second, Claudius sends Hamlet away to England. Finally, Laertes and Claudius scheme to kill Hamlet.…
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The play is introduced by the appearance of the ghost of Hamlet's father in the first scene, which automatically gives the impression that something is amiss. This is later clarified by the statement; "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark" (I.iv). The ghost materialises before Hamlet suggesting that his death was not as natural as it may first have seemed. The ghost requests Hamlet to "Revenge [my] foul and most unnatural murder" (I.v) and points him towards the murderer with "The serpent that did sting thy father's life now wears his crown" (I.v). This indicates that King Hamlet murder was committed by his brother, Claudius, who had now taken over as King of Denmark. The Ghost taunts Hamlet, telling him that it is part of every man's honour to avenge his death. Hamlet agrees to revenge his death, but his mind is still full of many doubts, and he just thinks about what he will do, rather than actually do it. However, when the time for action comes, it is the beginning of a ferocious cycle of hatred, death and revenge, which ultimately consumes all those who use…
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If you have ever been betrayed, you may know how Hamlet felt in William Shakepseare's play Hamlet. To some people betrayal means being dishonest or disloyal, but it may have a different meaning to others. Betrayal is doing something that affects a person in a negative, even life changing way. Dishonesty could be the cause to the negative outcome but the lie would have to be about something very bad. Betrayal and revenge play a big part in Hamlet.…
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She wanted to help Hamlet, but she could not stop herself from loving Claudius. Thus Gertrude was feeling guilty about her quick marriage to Claudius after her late Husband’s death, “I doubt it is no other but the main: His father's death, and our o'erhasty marriage" (II. ii. 56-57). She thought that her marriage was causing Hamlet's behavior, because it started after her hasty marriage to Claudius. Also she never told Hamlet about her love towards Claudius until they got married. She was right about the marriage being the cause of Hamlet's behavior, but this started after Hamlet heard these things from the ghost of his father, “If thou hast nature in thee bear it not; let not the royal bed of Denmark be a couch for luxury and damned incest" (I. v. 81-83). However, Gertrude only knew one of the causes for Hamlet's behavior; and she did not really see the big picture. She still felt guilty about her decision; the only thing was that she would not stop now. Seeing that she already did it, she only wants to help her son adjust to this truth now. But Claudius wants to help Hamlet get accustomed to his new…
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Hamlet has been pressured greatly by the ghost of his father to seek vengeance on the throne and restore justice. Hamlet at first is eager to do so, but as the play goes on Hamlet constantly finds himself unable to take action against Claudius. This is because Hamlet sees the world as a prison, “a goodly one; in which there are many confines, wards, and dungeons, Denmark being one o’ the worst” (2.2.262-263). One would believe that Hamlet would simply take action against Claudius for his own satisfaction, but Hamlet realizes that Claudius’s death will not restore his own faith in the natural goodness of human life. Because Hamlet becomes aware that committing the death of his father would not hinder any of the evil still present in the world, Hamlet decides to hold back on his action, revealing his inhuman quality of being influenced by such distant forces. Unlike Hamlet, Claudius doesn’t allow the influences of the outside world to affect his decisions. Claudius assumes Hamlet will not feel grief and anger towards him for quickly marrying Gertrude after the death of Hamlet’s father. Hamlet expresses his feelings about the quick marriage to Horatio by saying “the funeral baked meats did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables” (1.2.189-190). Hamlet tells Horatio that marriage followed the funeral so quickly that the…
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William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet relays Hamlet’s quest to avenge the murder of his father, the king of Denmark. The late King Hamlet was murdered by his brother, Claudius, who took the throne and Hamlet’s mother Gertrude for himself. Hamlet is beseeched by the ghost of his father to take vengeance upon Claudius; while he swears to do so, the prince inexplicably delays killing Claudius for months on end. Hamlet’s feeble attempt to first confirm his uncle’s guilt with a play that recounts the murder and his botched excuses for not killing Claudius when the opportunity arises serve as testimony to Hamlet’s true self. Hamlet is riddled with doubt towards the validity of the ghost and his own ability to carry out the act necessary to avenge his father. His depression and feigned insanity both serve as impairments to his mental health and sense of judgment, which all impede his ability to focus on his goal. Laertes, the son of Claudius’s royal advisor Polonius, serves as a direct foil to Hamlet in his response to the news of his own father’s death, and the immediate action he takes in order to avenge Polonius.…
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Once Hamlet and his mom lost King Hamlet, it did not take long for Gertrude to find another man. She married Claudius, the new king of Denmark and Hamlet’s uncle, just two months after she lost her first husband. As expected, Hamlet is furious by this because he believes that Gertrude did not show any respect towards King Hamlet and she is just trying to stay in power. As a result, Hamlet is told that it is his responsibility to avenge his father’s death. The ghost of his father said, “So art thou to revenge, when thou shalt hear… I am thy father’s spirit, doomed for a certain term to walk the night and for the day confined to fast in fires till the foul crimes done in my days of nature are burnt and purged away” (1.5.12-18).…
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At the beginning of the play a ghost reveals himself to Hamlet. The ghost is King Hamlet who was murdered. The ghost explains to Hamlet everything that happened and asks Hamlet to seek revenge on King Claudius. At this point Hamlet decides that he will fake madness and insanity while he plans his revenge on Claudius. Hamlet’s character change is noticeable to everyone and Claudius wants to find out why he has not been acting the same but, Polonius tells King Claudius that it may just be that he is in love with Ophelia. Hamlet then sets up a play re-enacting his father’s death to see if Claudius shows any guilt. When the murder scene in Hamlet’s play takes place, King Claudius leaves the theatre and, now Hamlet is certain that Claudius is guilty of murdering King Hamlet. Claudius begins to fear Hamlet’s insanity and plans on sending him to England. Hamlet speaks with his mother, Queen…
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Betrayal is a disloyalty action that one individual casts out the selfishness and puts it higher the good will. The betrayal is born from the greediness that blinds human’s perception that leads them to disheartened actions . In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the betrayal of Claudius to Hamlet’s father reveals the theme of autonomy, appearance vs. reality and revenge. Create something from nothing, Claudius succeed put himself to throne after taking Hamlet’s father out. He decides his fate to be with his dreamed woman (Gertrude), to be Hamlet’s new father and controlling his sibling’s Denmark.…
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There are many examples of betrayal in the play Hamlet. In these examples betrayal leads to the destruction of relationships. Claudius is the king of Denmark and he will do anything to stay that way. His wife Gertrude loves her son Hamlet and Claudius knows that. In order to stay king he must please Getrude, therefore he pretends to love Hamlet in front of Gertrude but behind her back, he plots to murder Hamlet. “I will work him To an exploit, now ripe in my device, under the which he shall not chose but fall. And for his death no wind of blame shall breathe”1. Gertrude’s trust is betrayed by Claudius at that moment because Gertrude believes that Claudius loves Hamlet, when in fact, he despises him and wishes death upon him. Claudius is not the only character that betrays in the play Hamlet. Hamlets makes Ophelia believe that he loves her for a long time, until one day he tells her things that break her heart. Because Hamlet suspects that someone is listening to his conversation with Ophelia, he acts like a mad man and says cruel things to Ophelia. “Virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock but we shall relish of it. I loved you not.”(III, i, 118-120) All the promises he had made to her before that day are now broken; he has betrayed her trust. Hamlet and Claudius betrayed someone that they where supposed to love. Because of this betrayal the relationships they had ended in a sad tragedy.…
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Betrayal is portrayed in Hamlet as one of the main themes. Hamlet’s first experience of betrayal was instantaneous. Shortly after his father’s death, Queen Gertrude and the newly reigning King, Claudius, married while Hamlet was still in mourning. “But two months dead—nay, not so much, not two. So excellent a king…so loving to my mother that he might not beteem the winds of heaven visit her face too roughly,” (1.2.139-142). This boiled up Hamlet’s blood because his mother, who he thought was just as much in love with his father as he was with her, moved on so quickly and as though she was not a widow. Nothing hurt him more than knowing that his mother did not care about his beloved father anymore. But thus far the biggest betrayal that Hamlet has experienced in the play was the murder of his father by his own uncle who is now married to his mother. When the Ghost first appeared and spoke to Hamlet, he confesses the truth about his death and tells Hamlet, “But know, thou noble youth, the serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown…Let not the royal bed of Denmark be a couch for luxury and damned incest,” (1.5.38-40,82-83). As soon as the Ghost informed Hamlet about the murder, he promised to take revenge for his father’s death. And that promise drove him off the edge.…
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Hamlet is the story of a young prince whose uncle has married his mother shortly after his father, the King of Denmark 's, death. Hamlet presumes, but is never clear as to whether or not Claudius has killed the king. It is also uncertain if Hamlet 's mother, Gertrude is involved because of how quickly she married Claudius, and how deep their relationship appears to be. Hamlet 's uncertainties about the events that surround his father 's death delay any action of revenge that he wants to take against his uncle. This delay in…
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