Essay On Loss Of Innocence In Hamlet

In life, certain experiences cause changes in people’s belief systems. These changes can cause people to act or react a certain way. In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, Hamlet’s belief system about his family is shattered. Throughout the play, Hamlet struggles to avenge his father while searching for the truth. Hamlet delays killing Claudius because of his loss of innocence. He also has an extreme way of looking at people or situations, causing him to constantly philosophize or overthink about killing Claudius.
In the beginning of the play, Hamlet experiences a loss of innocence when he finds out about the death of his father. He is not able to understand how everyone is able to move on so quickly, while he is still mourning for his father. Hamlet feels like his life is starting to become “an unweeded garden/ That grows
His loss of innocence is channeled through his anger towards his uncle. Hamlet has a difficult time accepting that Claudius and Gertrude have married each other, especially when Hamlet finds out that Claudius was the person who murdered his father. His father, compared to his uncle, is a “hyperion to a satyr” (1.2.140). In his mind, his father is seen as a very powerful and respectful god while his uncle is seen as a beast who is half-man and half-animal. Hamlet carries out the extreme comparison between his father and his uncle throughout the play.
In addition, Hamlet also experiences a loss of innocence due to the fact that it is the first time he is exposed to a hypocrite, or a two-faced person. This causes Hamlet to get distracted and instead of being focused on Claudius, Hamlet starts to focus on the “most pernicious woman” (1.5.105), which is his mother. He begins to see his mother from a different point of view; a view he has not seen before. His lack of experience in avenging people causes him to lose focus and target the wrong