Fate Reshapes Hamlet
Hamlet
What is a tragedy? A tragedy can be defined as a form of drama that depicts the suffering of a heroic individual who is often overcome by the very obstacles he is struggling to remove (Tragedy 1). Shakespeare 's play, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, is considered a tragedy in literature and the character of Hamlet in the play is considered to be a tragic hero. In addition, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is considered to be a type of tragedy called revenge tragedy. Basically, this type of play consists of a murder that has to be avenged by a relative of the victim (DiYanni 1394). Ultimately, the play is about a son that is called upon by the ghost of his father to avenge his death. On the surface, the play about Hamlet may appear to be a typical revenge tragedy. However, crime, madness, ghostly anguish, poison, overheard conversations, conspiracies, and a final scene littered with corpses: Hamlet subscribes to the basic ingredients of the formula, but it also transcends the conventions of revenge tragedy because Hamlet contemplates not merely revenge but suicide and the meaning of life itself (DiYanni 1394). There are three crucial points in the plot in which Hamlet expresses his particular thoughts and positions. In each of these scenes, Hamlet displays his character in and through the manner in which he chooses to act in the situations in which he finds himself, and provides information about his stance on life as a whole. In addition, in each of the scenes there are reoccurring themes of revenge and appearance versus reality. As mentioned before, the major theme of the novel is revenge and this can be seen because Hamlet must avenge his father 's murder by killing Claudius. The second major theme of the play is the theme of appearance versus reality. The play makes several references to how things appear versus the truth (Hamlet 6). For example, King Hamlet 's death appears to be a snakebite in the beginning of the play, but it turns out to be a calculated
What is a tragedy? A tragedy can be defined as a form of drama that depicts the suffering of a heroic individual who is often overcome by the very obstacles he is struggling to remove (Tragedy 1). Shakespeare 's play, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, is considered a tragedy in literature and the character of Hamlet in the play is considered to be a tragic hero. In addition, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is considered to be a type of tragedy called revenge tragedy. Basically, this type of play consists of a murder that has to be avenged by a relative of the victim (DiYanni 1394). Ultimately, the play is about a son that is called upon by the ghost of his father to avenge his death. On the surface, the play about Hamlet may appear to be a typical revenge tragedy. However, crime, madness, ghostly anguish, poison, overheard conversations, conspiracies, and a final scene littered with corpses: Hamlet subscribes to the basic ingredients of the formula, but it also transcends the conventions of revenge tragedy because Hamlet contemplates not merely revenge but suicide and the meaning of life itself (DiYanni 1394). There are three crucial points in the plot in which Hamlet expresses his particular thoughts and positions. In each of these scenes, Hamlet displays his character in and through the manner in which he chooses to act in the situations in which he finds himself, and provides information about his stance on life as a whole. In addition, in each of the scenes there are reoccurring themes of revenge and appearance versus reality. As mentioned before, the major theme of the novel is revenge and this can be seen because Hamlet must avenge his father 's murder by killing Claudius. The second major theme of the play is the theme of appearance versus reality. The play makes several references to how things appear versus the truth (Hamlet 6). For example, King Hamlet 's death appears to be a snakebite in the beginning of the play, but it turns out to be a calculated
Cited: DiYanni, Robert, Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry and Drama. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2002. Hamlet. 2001-2002. Bookwolf. 14 Dec. 2004 . Hamlet. 1997. PinkMonkey.com. 14 Dec. 2004 . The World of Hamlet. 5 Mar. 1992. Dr, Gerald Lucas. 14 Dec, 2004 < http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000382.shtml>. Tragedy. AllRefer.com. 14 Dec, 2004 < http://reference.allrefer.com/>.