Preview

Shakespeare's Revenge Tragedy Play: Hamlet

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
601 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Shakespeare's Revenge Tragedy Play: Hamlet
Any text that is rich in technique and deals with universal concerns will be effective in communicating significant ideas to the responder regardless of the context of the audience. Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy play, Hamlet, explores concerns such as morality and the difficulty of taking action, especially when certainty is impossible. His young protagonist, Hamlet, acts as an effective vehicle as he uses powerful language to explore his moral dilemmas.

What distinguishes Hamlet from other revenge tragedy plays is the amount of action expected, especially from Hamlet himself as he continuously hesitates due to him trying to be absolute certain of his actions. Hamlet handles an extremely complicated dilemma which is a combination of feelings that does not allow him to be tranquil. One of the reasons is due to the mourning of his father’s death, which he already feels distraught about. The other reason for Hamlet’s problem is his mother’s sudden remarriage of her brother-in-law, Claudius, whom here in this play he is presented as the villain. As Hamlet says, “A little month, or ere those shoes were old… a beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourned longer.” Hamlet here is showing his disgust towards Gertrude, his mother, as she is remarrying only two months after her husband’s death. Furthermore Claudius is blood related to Hamlet hence deepening his anger, turning to madness. Hamlets hatred towards Gertrude is seen in Act 1 scene 2 as Hamlet expressed in a negative tone; “seems, madam! Nay it is; I know not seems./ This not alone my inky cloak, good mother,” Also Hamlet’s first soliloquy in the play shows his distress towards Claudius and Gertrude’s marriage.

His internal dilemma is explicitly shown when this ghost of Hamlet’s father appears in Act 1 scene 5 as he calls upon, “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder.” It is from this point forward that Hamlet struggles with the dilemma of whether or not to kill Claudius, and if so, when to do

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    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.…

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a famous tragedy that follows the title character Hamlet’s wavering path of revenge. Early in the play, Hamlet encounters his father’s ghost, who tells Hamlet that his brother Claudius murdered him. Throughout the play, Hamlet is torn between his obligation to avenge his father and his uncertainty about this formidable task. Hamlet also experiences this indecisiveness when he contemplates suicide during several points in the play. Though he expresses disgust over Claudius’s inferiority to his father and his hasty marriage with Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, Hamlet more strongly detests his own procrastination in avenging his father. In order to conceal his insecurities, Hamlet decides to assume an “antic disposition”, which caused much confusion among other characters and led to a cascade of chaos. Hamlet’s indecisiveness, contrary to Laertes’ adamant desire for revenge, and his philosophy on suicide relate death and its uncertain nature to man’s irrationality.…

    • 1107 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better 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

    The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, William Shakespeare’s longest, and perhaps most notable, play explores several important aspects of the human condition. Hamlet’s battle between his emotions and logic, as well as his fatal flaws and what he considers to be morally good and looming evil, encased in a story of murder and betrayal enlightens audiences to contemplate the true meaning of being human. Ultimately, through Hamlet’s questioning of humanity and what it means to be alive and human, Shakespeare prompts the conversation in his audience.…

    • 943 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Revenge In Hamlet

    • 676 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The question of how far the Ghost persuades Hamelt into action hinges almost entirely on whether the audience agree that revenge is indeed the primary function of the play. Although this seems to be the case, an argument can also be made that it is Hamlet’s journey to taking action that is the important part of the story, not the simple action of taking revenge. It also depends on whether the audience sees a desire in Hamlet to seek revenge even before the Ghost shares the story of his murder; and to this end whether the Ghost is simply a manifestation of Hamlet’s subconscious, persuading him to take an action he has already decided on.…

    • 676 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the light of my critical study, the statement that "Shakespeare's Hamlet continues to engage audiences through its dramatic treatment of struggle and disillusionment" resonates strongly with my own interpretation of Shakespeare's play, Hamlet. It clearly continues to engage audiences as it presents ideas of duty and corruption. Shakespeare presents these ideas largely through the protagonist, Hamlet's, struggle with his duty to his father and his disillusionment with himself and the corrupt society in which he lives.…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gertrude has shaped Hamlet’s behavior negatively during the play. Gertrude’s marriage to Claudius adds to complexity of Hamlet’s revenge. Hamlet is still upset about his mom’s quick marriage to his uncle, Claudius so soon after the death of his dad. He feels as though his mom has in a sense betrayed his father, because she did mourn his death properly. Hamlet could not accept this saying, “my father’s brother, but no more like my father/than I, Hercules, with a month/Ere get the salt of the most unrighteous tears had left the flushing in her galled eyes, she married”(act 1, scene2,line157). By stating “Frailly, thy name is women” in earlier lines he is mad at all women including his mother.…

    • 410 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Hamlet is a play written by William Shakespeare that very closely follows the dramatic conventions of revenge in Elizabethan theater. All revenge tragedies originally stemmed from the Greeks, who wrote and performed the first plays. After the Greeks came Seneca who was very influential to all Elizabethan tragedy writers. Seneca who was Roman, basically set all of the ideas and the norms for all revenge play writers in the Renaissance era including William Shakespeare. The two most famous English revenge tragedies written in the Elizabethan era were Hamlet, written by Shakespeare and The Spanish Tragedy, written by Thomas Kyd.…

    • 2568 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    How Is Hamlet Similar

    • 2235 Words
    • 9 Pages

    His relationships with these people allow the audience to visualize his mental and emotional state and understand his actions. Once Hamlet found out that his father was murdered by Claudius, the good relationships he has starts to fall apart. Hamlet tries to find peace for his father’s death and he thinks avenging his death will help him. The first relationship that fell apart was with his mother Gertrude and it is demonstrated when he says “I will speak daggers to her but use none, my tongue and soul in this be hypocrites.” (3.2.???). This demonstrates Hamlet’s hatred for Gertrude. Hamlet was willing to go and hurt his own mother’s feelings, and in the play, Gertrude is seen as very fragile and vulnerable so he knew that his mother would not be able to bear his insults. Hamlet is so obsessed about getting revenge for his father’s death, he does not even realize that he is hurting other people. Also he does not let anything or anyone get in his way. This is shown when he says, “Why, man, they did make love to this employment. They are not near my conscience. Their defeat doe by their own insinuation grow.” (5.2.???). Hamlet lets his anger get the best of him. He was willing to kill is two best friends, just because they were working with Claudius. Hamlet has broken other relationships in the play as well such as his relationship with Ophelia and Laertes. He was trying to find the truth…

    • 2235 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    After finding Claudius guilty and murderer of his father through his skillful ‘Mousetrap’ play, Hamlet was called in her mother’s closet. There he bursts out and speaks daggers to her. He speaks harsh and vulgar language to show his anger and disgust on her hasty marriage. There can be no more convincing proof of Hamlet’s balanced mind than his own utterance to his mother. There he castigates his mother for her frailty and her wickedness and his words do awaken Gertrude’s conscience. Had he been mad, his words would not have left an inevitable influence on her that she turned to say that;…

    • 144 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Hamlet Revenge

    • 400 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Revenge inside the play . The theme of revenge is demonstrated throughout the entire play and it acts as an integral character. Revenge is seen as a motive for many effects. Hamlet seeks revenge on Claudius to avenge his father's death. Gertrude is targeted by Hamlet for marrying Claudius too soon after the death of her husband and also for her involvement in his murder. Hamlet's long time friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are sought after by him also, for attempting to carry out Claudius' orders to kill him. Lastly Laertes pursues Hamlet to avenge his father, Polonius' death. The play Hamlet being three different kinds of stories in one, proves to make an interesting and constantly turning plot. The ghost story gives the play an unnatural feel and leaves the reader guessing as to what Hamlet saw if anything. The detective aspect of the play extremely suspenseful and also makes the reader wonder what is going to happen next. The revenge theme, is one that affirms the readers suspicions about who the true murders was and how his death was avenged.…

    • 400 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Hamlet Analytical Essay

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Hamlet made sure toapologize to him, and he blamed it on his madness.Hamlet’s relationship with the evil of the world, was, in the beginning of the play, recognized ashis father, the ghost who came to haunt him in order for him to avenge King Hamlets death. But the realevil was his “madness” because it brought out a side of Hamlet that the audience didn’t know wascapable to surfacing. Hamlet was always known as the little boy, who lost his father, and returning hometo find his mother married to his Uncle Claudius, angered him, and when he truth was revealed that hisuncle killed his father, something arouses in Hamlet, something with anger and grief combined. Withthis Hamlet believed for a long time that he was supposed to kill his Uncle and that was his destiny, andhe felt that the best way to do so was to act crazy, in hope that it would force Claudius to expose hisguilt, but in Act 5, the readers are able to see that his destiny was to forgive, and to allow to be…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    William Shakespeare’s Hamlet has no shortage of murder; in fact, most of them are accidental, out for revenge, or greed. Revenge is prominent in the drama. Two specific characters that are driven by revenge are young Hamlet, son of the late king of Elsinore in Denmark, and young Fortinbras, son of the late king of Norway. These princes, driven by motives to clear their father's names after their assassinations, gave up their chance at a life of royalty to ensure justice be served. The first prince, young Hamlet, has a particular way of slowly getting his revenge.…

    • 627 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Literature, as any other kind of art, is abstract and gives the readers the possibility of applying different meanings and therefore learning new morals. The critic Roland Barthes has wisely said that “Literature is the question minus the answer.” The tragedy Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a perfect example of how a central question is left unanswered thus allowing for various interpretations.…

    • 609 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hamlet is a play written by popular playwright William Shakespeare. In the play, Shakespeare explores the theme of vengeance through an interaction of various characters. The main character of the play is Hamlet. He is a protagonist seeking to avenge the death of his father. Hamlet’s character in the play is quite dynamic. This is due to the fact that it is a contrast between good and evil. In the beginning of the play, readers are introduced to Hamlet, an intelligent young man grieving the death of his father. However, as the play progresses, Shakespeare highlights a change in Hamlet’s character from good to evil. This is due to the fact that Hamlet discovers that it was his uncle Claudius who murdered his father (Shakespeare…

    • 1462 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics