HAMLET’S OBSESSION: REVENGE AS THE THEME OF THE PLAY Shakespeare’s Hamlet has many themes such as Impossibility of Certainty, The mystery of Death. But the basic theme would be Revenge. Revenge, in Hamlet, serves as the driving force of the play. The main character of the play, Hamlet, is always obsessed with the revenge for his father’s death. This obsession leads to the actions he performs and eventually to his death. Hamlet just wants the revenge to be perfect. He even spares the life of King Claudius even when he had the opportunity to kill him just because he thinks that if he killed him then, his revenge wouldn’t be perfect. “Now might I do it pat, now he is praying; And now I'll do't. And so he goes to heaven; And so am I revenged" (3.3.73-75). Whatever Hamlet does in the play, he does it in order to avenge his father’s death.…
Throughout the play, Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, various characters seek for revenge, including protagonist, prince Hamlet. While he seeks for revenge for his father since his uncle disgracefully killed him, Hamlet murders Polonius, the father of his friend, Laertes, causing an avengeful domino effect. Hamlet has to face many obstacles, including his own indecisive mind, to take action for his father and the revenge obligations of Laertes and Polonius parallel the plot.…
In the William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet the Prince of Denmark is plotting to kill his uncle, who is the king because he poisoned his father, the previous king. The theme of the play is revenge and the protagonist, Hamlet is characterized as being fully devoted to avenging his father, no matter the cost. After two months of mourning for his dead father, Hamlet encounters his father’s ghost, who tells him that it was his brother, King Claudius who killed him. Hamlet then promises his father that he will get revenge on Claudius however, his inability to act prolongs Claudius’s death. Hamlet must first find out if it was actually his father’s ghost and not Satan trying to trick him so he modifies a play that shows a similarity to the murder of Hamlet’s father at the hand of Claudius. Claudius leaves before the play before it ends and berates himself for the murder, “Oh, my offence is rank, it smells to heaven. It has the eldest primal curse on it, a brother’s murder.” Therefore, Claudius will pay the price for killing Hamlet’s father by losing his throne, his wife, and even his own life. Hamlet will also pay greatly for avenging his father. He will lose Ophelia, the woman he loves who drownes herself after her father, Polonius is killed by Hamlet who thought it was Claudius. He will lose his mother, Gertrude who drinks wine that was poisoned by Claudius and intended for Hamlet. Hamlet will also lose his own life after being stabbed with a poisoned sword by Larates in a fencing duel, who was seeking…
The line “to be, or not to be, that is the question” refers to being alive or dead, but can apply to many different conflicts in life and within ourselves (III.i.62). The tragic play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, brings out many of these inner battles of madness with oneself, which can include choosing life or death for oneself and others. The play Hamlet tells the story of a boy, whose father was murdered by Hamlet’s throne seeking uncle, Claudius. Hamlet portrays many examples of madness, but points out the question of whether Hamlet’s and Ophelia’s madness is real or fake.…
As more events led to the questioning of Hamlet's sanity, the reader was given a glimpse into the mind of Hamlet in the famous "To be or not to be" soliloquy. Hamlet's questions of life and contemplation of suicide revealed his emotions of depression, which derived mainly from his family conflicts. His build up of stress, depression, and inability to cope with these emotions could have easily affected him. His constant reminder of the evil in King Claudius and his vow to seek revenge also added to his burden. His struggles against these emotions weakened him, and ultimately led him to actual madness.…
“To be or not to be, that is the question,” is a famous quote from Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy called Hamlet. Detailing the prospects surrounding Prince Hamlet, this play portrays Hamlets return home and disappointment with his mother for marrying his Uncle Claudius. Shakespearean writing comes alive in this play about friends and foes while developing several elements in the play. The essence of act ii scene ii lines 352-580 take into the consideration of the development of the theme, plot, characters and of Hamlet as a whole.…
Hamlet's Soliloquies Reveal His Personality "To be or not to bethat is the question (Hamlet, III, i, 64)" The previous quotation is the opening line from Hamlet's most famous soliloquy in which he is contemplating suicide as an end to all of his adversities. "Hamlet's world is bleak and cold because almost no one and nothing can be trusted ("Folger Shakespeare Library")." Hamlet allows his words to exhibit his emotions through the soliloquies in the play. While dealing with the sudden loss of his father, Hamlet must now face the reality of his mother's (Gertrude) marriage to his uncle, Claudius, only two months after his father's death. Hamlet learns that Claudius murdered his father to become the king of Denmark. These dilemmas in Hamlet's life are the cause of his depression and desire of revenge against his father's killer. Joanna Montgomery Byles states that "The concept of the superego, both individual and cultural, is important to our understanding of the dynamics of aggressive destruction in Shakespeare's tragedies involving revenge. (Tragic Alternatives 1)." "According to the psychoanalytic perspective on human development, the superego represents a person's conscience, incorporating distinctions between right and wrong; ("Saskatchewan Learning")" therefore, superego may justify the reasons for Hamlet's actions because both his father's death, and mother's marriage, have mentally affected him, not allowing Hamlet to know any better action to take. All of Hamlet's seven soliloquies in William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark reveal Hamlet's grief, indecision, insanity, and revenge; however, the three strongest soliloquies are essential to the reader's understanding of Hamlet's motivation leading to his tragic end.…
Is it evident that act 3 might be the climax of this play? This is because at this point we discover who Hamlet truly was. He is not the ideal hero we actually perceive him to be. His murder of Polonius was equal to the murder of King Hamlet. In both cases, there are children who lost their lives. Even though Claudius’s murder was pre-meditated, murder is still murder. Even though Hamlet did this without planning, the fact that he was able to take a life so abruptly shows that he is not in essence the ‘hero’ within the play.…
"To be, or not to be? That is the question-." One of Shakespeare's most remembered and famous quotes. This speech can be read in act 3, scene 1 of Hamlet. Hamlet recites this famous speech as he is strolling into one of the castle rooms, right before he speaks to Ophelia. Many people believe it has no significance to the play at all. This could be one reason as to why it is so famous. It could also be in part of the topic he is speaking of. Either way, the speech not only demands readers attention, but piques their interest…
In the play "Hamlet" written by William Shakespeare, is a play that revolves around tragedy and revenge and this revenge leads to Hamlets death and people that were close to him. Hamlet's pursuit to revenge his father's death blinded his morals and intelligence and lead to his untimely death. It can be argued that Hamlet is the most complex character Shakespeare has ever written, there has been many debates revolving around his insanity (real or fake). The progression of Hamlet is quite astonishing he begins as a young prince with the world in his hand, to a lunatic who becomes obsessed with revenging his fathers death. The revenge theme is acted upon throughout the novel and is essentially what drives Hamlet. He believes that Claudius has killed his father (we later find out this is true), this begins his investigating. We can be easily fooled by Hamlets insanity but there is intelligence behind his every move. Revenge has essentially ruined his life. Revenge has made his relationships with the two women he loved gone sour (Gertrude and Ophelia) as well lead to their death. It has even made him question his own existence. His antics lead to the death of Polonius who was innocent, and his pursue for revenge leads to his mothers death. Revenge has the ability to take over ones ability to make proper judgment.…
Without any doubt, the most essential theme present in Hamlet is revenge. Revenge is a frightening bloodthirsty emotion which forces individuals to act blindly. This aspect of revenge is explored through the play by Shakespeare creating the idea in which Hamlet seeks to avenge the murder of his father, King Hamlet, by Claudius. In a typical revenge tragedy, a revenger craves and takes his revenge, leaving himself in a vicious cycle of ongoing revenge. However Hamlet is quite different, “prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, / must like a whore unpack my heart with words” As instead of taking revenge he talks about it.…
Revenge Revenge is the main theme of Hamlet. Not only is it a major theme in Hamlet, but it surrounds humans daily. I can't connect to revenge on the level of murder, but my brother made me experience a lot of revenge when we would get into fights. We ruined easily one-hundred dollars worth of each others things. Revenge is developed the most with the need to kill Claudius by Hamlet. Another way revenge is embedded into the story is Laertes wants to kill Hamlet because Hamlet accidentally killed his dad, Polonius. The most confusing plot of revenge is young Fortinbras seeking to avenge his fathers death, by killing Claudius; it is confusing because Old King Hamlet killed Fortinbras, not Claudius.…
Revenge has the overwhelming ability to deteriorate a man into a monster. It influences Hamlet to make reckless decisions that ruin him and eventually lead to his downfall. Hamlet is driven to insanity by his own desire to kill Claudius. Hamlet becomes so obsessed with revenge that it quickly consumes him. He exclaims in one of his soliloquy, “Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause And can say nothing- no, not for a king Upon whose property and most dear life A damned defeat was made” (II.ii.595-598), feeling guilty and remorseful for not yet acting on his impulse for revenge. At this point, calling himself a coward for not having taken revenge, Hamlet clearly demonstrates his madness for vengeance. Moments later, blinded by revenge, Hamlet stabs Polonius on the impulsive whim that it may be Claudius spying on him. He feels no guilt for his reckless action, suggesting that he acted out of madness and had little thought through the affair. Consumed by revenge, Hamlet has deteriorated into a murderer.…
The work of Hamlet is known for the theme of death due to hatred and revenge, however, Hamlet performed the biggest act of love by his willingness to abandon everything he obtained out of respect for his father. In the play, the audience focuses on how the characters are trying to plot revenge on one another which translates into their fatal flaw. Even Hamlet took part in the vindictive act. But despite his revenge, what exists deeper beneath lays the truest act of devotion out of the play. Mourning his father’s death, Hamlet decides to evoke revenge on Claudius. He gives up all of who he is as a person and the things he holds dear to trick people into believing he has gone insane.…
Hamlet’s attempt to use the acting troupe to verify his understanding of reality leads to him questioning his own understanding of identity. After speaking to the actors, Hamlet asks himself, “Is it not monstrous that this player here, / But in a fiction, in a dream of passion, / Could force his soul so to his own conceit / That from her working all his visage wann'd, / Tears in his eyes, distraction in's aspect, / A broken voice, and his whole function suiting / With forms to his conceit? and all for nothing!”(). Hamlet opens this soliloquy with an open lamentation about his current situation. He is so bewildered and self-deprecating because while these actors are almost able to trick themselves, reflected through the word “conceit”, into showing emotion, while he cannot bring himself to take action. Hamlet goes on to explain how he feels as though he “can say nothing; no, not for a king,/ Upon whose property and most dear life / A damn'd defeat was / made. Am I a coward?/ Who calls me villain? breaks my pate across?/ Plucks off my beard, and blows it in my face?/ Tweaks me by the nose? gives me the lie i' the throat,/ As deep as to the lungs? who does me this?” (). Hamlet is questioning whether he is able to be a prince and fulfill his role in Denmark as a prince. Even after Hamlet has used the play to justify that the ghost was telling the truth, and Claudius did kill his father, Hamlet still struggles with his sense of his identity in the “to be, or not to be” soliloquy. The opening line, “To be, or not to be: that is the question”, is particularly interesting (). Hamlet is caught between his own self-concieved ideas of his own identity and cannot escape it, and, like in the exchange with the ghost, when faced with hesitation, Hamlet immediately decides to stop. This line can…