Preview

Essay On Free Will In Hamlet

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1409 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Essay On Free Will In Hamlet
Hamlet is generally regarded as Shakespeare’s magnum opus, sometimes it is even referred as the highest literary product of human genius. Critics have always been argued on the interpretation of Hamlet and even after more than 400 years, yet these argues still going strong. One of the most controversial that topic for critics since the beginning is the interpretation of the third act of Hamlet, where many critics themselves baffle because normal interpretations will make Hamlet subsequent actions irrational and impossible to explain. Many will use insanity to explain Hamlet actions. However, we will presume that Hamlet is staying sane throughout the course of the story. This paper is an attempt at interpreting the purpose and significant of …show more content…
However, that is the fact that he has to face since his meeting with the Ghost. Since the beginning of the story, Hamlet has suspicious about Claudius being the killer; however, after meeting with the Ghost, all of the Hamlet’s actions are based on the “fact” that Claudius murder the king by pouring poison through his ears. This including The Mousetrap. Meeting with the Ghost makes Hamlet discard all of his previous postulations and putting his mind on the direction that the Ghost pointed to. The Ghost also forbids Hamlet from any murderous intentions toward Gertrude, he also order Hamlet to stop Gertrude’s relationship with Claudius.
Later, in the bedroom, Hamlet promptly doing of what are contrary to the Ghost injunction. Even the ideal of matricide once cross his mind.
However, Hamlet incapable of doing it and proceed to what according to Ghost told him to (Javed 332). This is an identity crisis for Hamlet, as he does not know whether he is acting upon his free will or upon the Ghost words. Killing Claudius is what the Ghost wanted. However, Hamlet is confused whether he want to Claudius or not, hence the delay in his actions. ”Hamlet is too delicate or too subtle for the purpose. A less self-questioning hero would have been a better instrument” (Javed

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In this book “Hamlet” Hamlet is obsessed with suicide even though he never does it. Hamlet falls in deep love in the book and Hamlet's mother marries Hamlet's uncle after his uncle kills the king with poison. Claudius killed Hamlet Sr with poison in his ear and then not long after marries his wife. Hamlet then is told about a ghost that is haunting the kingdom Hamlet declares to see this ghost and ask it questions because they think it is his father. Hamlet sees the ghost and ask it what its purpose is for being in the kingdom and Hamlet says “To be, or not to be”(3.1.63) speech and he felt he needed to find the truth in the ghost’s words of wisdom so he would know how to respond to the ghost and that's how Hamlet finds out that Claudius…

    • 695 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Hamlet, Prince of Denmark has remained the most perplexing, as well as the most popular, of William Shakespeare’s tragedies. Whether considered as literature, philosophy, or drama, its artistic stature is universally admitted. To explain the reasons for its excellence in a few words, however, is a daunting task. Apart from the matchless artistry of its language, the play’s appeal rests in large measure on the character of Hamlet himself. Called upon to avenge his father’s murder, he is compelled to face problems of duty, morality, and ethics that have been human concerns through the ages. The play has tantalized critics with what has become known as the Hamlet mystery, that of Hamlet’s complex behavior, most notably his indecision and his reluctance to act.…

    • 1773 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    HAMLET INSANE OR NOT

    • 961 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The story of Hamlet is undoubtedly one of the most famous stories in the whole wide world of literature. It features everything one would wish for in a tale: death, love, injustice, revenge, doubt, and eventually, (in)sanity. How is it with the latter, though? Was the main protagonist of Shakespeare’s most famous play a real madman? Was he faking lunacy to baffle the others? Or did periods of sanity and insanity fluctuate throughout the course of the story? These are the questions that will be looked at and answered in the following paragraphs, and perhaps the enigma of Hamlet’s mental health will finally be resolved.…

    • 961 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Act I scene V, the ghost of King Hamlet intends to ensnare Hamlet because it seeks revenge against Claudius for killing him. The ghost of King Hamlet announced to Hamlet that he did not die from a snake bite but instead was killed by Claudius during the time of sleep. With Hamlet being desperate to communicate with his father, he is attentively listening to every word that the ghost of King Hamlet gives to him. The ghost of King Hamlet knows that Hamlet loves his father very much therefore he takes advantage of him by announcing that he must “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (I.V. 31). The ghost of King Hamlet is trying to entrap Hamlet into murdering Claudius by reassuring him that the deed or killing Claudius must be done…

    • 309 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A tragic hero is classified as someone born with nobility and heroines in his blood. As for the tragic part of the name, that one would be destined for doom and destruction. Usually, as any other character might think to do, the hero urges one’s self to fight his or her fate and win admiration from others; Though their personality flaw turns their attempts into struggled fails.…

    • 454 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the tragedy of Hamlet, Shakespeare writes about Hamlet’s journey of seeking revenge. The play begins with Marcellus and Barnardo taking watch over the Denmark castle one night and running into a ghost in the shape of King Hamlet who recently passed. Along with these two men enters Francisco and Horatio, Hamlet’s friends, who also witness the appearance of the ghost and decide to inform Hamlet of what they have seen. After explaining to Hamlet what they have seen they advise him to see for himself at midnight upon their next watch, and sure enough the ghost reappears. As Hamlet follows the ghost it describes the actions that led to his death, explaining that Claudius murdered him, then asks Hamlet to avenge him. In the midst of asking Hamlet to punish Claudius he also says, “Taint not thy mind, not let thy soul contrive/Against thy mother aught. Leave her to Heaven/And to those thorns that in her bosom lodge/…

    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Is Hamlet Truly Mad?

    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the ghost of Hamlet’s father reveals to him that he has been murdered by his brother Claudius, the man who also married Hamlet’s mother after he died. After finding out that Claudius killed his father, Hamlet makes it his mission to avenge his father by killing Claudius. Many believe that Hamlet went mad after seeing the ghost and planning his revenge, but really it was just part of the process that came with his revenge on Claudius.…

    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Hamlet Act 3

    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages

    A characteristic that made Shakespeare such an intriguing playwright is his ability to convey powerful messages to an audience in a creative and unexpected manner. When comparing act 5, scene 3 from Richard III to act 1, scene 5 from Hamlet, this niche can truly be appreciated by analyzing his usage of ghosts. Although the roles the ghosts have in their respective plays are different, they are still used as vessels that communicate profound points regarding the play’s context. Shakespeare utilizes such entities in the aforementioned scenes as a literary device that foreshadows the outcome of a circumstance and to define what is morally acceptable.…

    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Firstly, Hamlet is not willing to take any chances. He places the ghost’s statements in doubt that the ghost “may be the devil who hath the power to assume a pleasing shape”(II,ii,596). Until he has the perfect justifications and reasons for the revenge, he cannot perform the deed; therefore, he sets up a play “to catch the conscience of the king”(II,ii,604) which is merely an excuse for his cowardliness. Furthermore, Hamlet’s reluctance to kill Claudius while he is praying best illustrates the search for ideal opportunity. Hamlet considers the murder as “hire and salary”(III,iii,80) where he is doing a favor for the murderer by sending him to heaven. Hence, he decides to wait for the ideal moment when “there is no relish of salvation”(III,iii,93) in his actions where “his soul may be damn’d and black as hell, where to it goes”(III,iii,95). Hamlet’s refusal to commit revenge pushes him to a deeper predicament where the King directly threatens his life. Ironically, since perfection can never be attained, Hamlet will never be satisfied with anything he does. Just like a writer with deadlines, he will never be able to achieve anything, which is the ultimate cause of his…

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    William Shakespeare’s Hamlet tells the story of Prince Hamlet, as he seeks revenge on his uncle and the new King of Denmark, Claudius, for murdering King Hamlet, Hamlet’s father and Claudius’ brother. After Hamlet accidentally killed Polonius rather than Claudius, he spoke to the ghost of his father. His mother, Gertrude, said “To whom do you speak this?” Hamlet replied “Do you see nothing there?” and Gertrude again spoke saying “Nothing at all, yet all that I say” (3.4) “This the very coinage of your brain. This bodiless creation ecstasy is very cunning in” (3.4.133) Although it can be argued if Ghost King Hamlet was real or not, the ghost was quite possibly a figment of Hamlet’s imagination, much like a child in grief might imagine their deceased loved one. The problem with Hamlet was that the destruction of his traditional home life from his father's death put him in a child like state of coping with his grief.…

    • 798 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hamlet Response Paper

    • 1079 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The main grievance Hamlet has with his uncle is the murder of his father, the king. Already grieving over death of his father, Hamlet discovers, by confession of his father, that Claudius murder him in order to become king. Called to action by his friend Horatio and the guards who have witness appearances of a ghost during their night watch, Hamlet goes to confront the ghost that looks like the late King Hamlet. A ghost doomed to walk the earth for an unspecified number of years to atone for the sins that he was not able to confess, King Hamlet Sr., tells the prince that he was murdered by Claudius through foul means. He states, “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder. Murder most foul, as in the best it is; But this most foul, strange and unnatural” (249), demanding that Hamlet, his son, avenge his ill-conceived death. Overcome with grief and anger at the injustice done to him (as Claudius has managed to steal the crown from him) and his father, Hamlet begins to plot his vengeance. However, being the only one who has talked to ghost, Hamlet, wanting to ensure that…

    • 1079 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Hamlet's Dilemma Essay

    • 1249 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Ghost claims to be the spirit of Hamlet’s dead father, the King. The ghost says “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” and then continues with “Murder most foul, as in the best it is; But this most foul, strange and unnatural” (Shakespeare, Act1 Scene 5). At first Hamlet seems to welcome the idea of vengeance on the murderer of his father until he finds out that he must take this vengeance out on his Uncle. This creates the dilemma and now Hamlet is a little reluctant to kill his uncle. Hamlet must be sure that his uncle is in fact guilty of killing his father and comes up with a scheme for the truth to come to light. Hamlet knows no haste with exacting his vengeance because he is a very contemplative and philosophical individual he takes more time than most on deciding what he wants to do. Hamlet soon also discovers that his mother Gertrude had relations with his uncle before the death of his father and is highly upset that they married so soon after the king passed away. I feel as though this web of complications causes a dilemma that can be directly contributed to the flaw Hamlet has. Most people in Hamlet’s position would take revenge for their father’s death as soon as the opportunity arises, but Hamlet goes through a much more internal conflict that postpones him from killing his uncle Claudius until the end of the…

    • 1249 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Seeking Revenge In Hamlet

    • 369 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, is despondent over the death of his father. He is visited by a ghost of his father who tells Hamlet that is uncle, Claudius, is the one who killed his father and should get revenge for his death. Making everything worse, Hamlets mother remarries Hamlets uncle. As the ghost and Hamlet speak, the ghost tells him to “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (Hamlet 1.5.25). The main focus is to avenge Claudius for his most horrible murder.…

    • 369 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Ghost in Hamlet

    • 1703 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Hamlet is not naturally a man of action, and, although suspicious of his Uncle Claudius, would not have tried to find out more about the circumstances surrounding his father's death. It is the appearance of the ghost that forces Hamlet to take action, and therefore moves on the action of the play. The ghost begins by telling that he is in purgatory. "Doomed for a certain term to walk the night" Hamlet must have felt puzzled and, at the same time, full of wonder and despair at the terrible situation his father is in. When his father finally reveals that he was murdered, Hamlet is overwhelmed.…

    • 1703 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ghost and Hamlet

    • 1143 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The depressed young prince was struck by tragedy early on in his life, when his father King Hamlet was killed in battle defending the kingdom. Not only did the prince have to deal with the sudden death of his father, but also cope with the idea that his recently widow mother would soon be married to his uncle Claudius his father's blood brother. In order to keep the kingdom running and to keep the throne in the family there was no other way. Hamlet mad at the fact that his father's death wasn’t given the respect he deserved, instead a wedding was planned. Not long after did Hamlet receive a message from the soldiers stating that King Hamlet's spirit had been seen roaming the courtyards night after night, Intrigued Hamlet set out into the night in search of the “ghost”. The prince was curious as if perhaps indeed it was his father's spirit trying to give hamlet a message. The “Ghost” indeed presented himself to the prince and confused to him that he was in fact murdered. But, not killed in battle, but rather murdered by his own brother Claudius in attempts to overtake the throne and marry his queen. Repulsed, betrayed and disgusted Hamlet had sworn to his father that on his honor he would seek revenge for the blood shed by the king.…

    • 1143 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays