Consequently, Hamlets’ tragic flaw leads to his downfall. His lack of action causes him not to kill Claudius when he has the chance, giving him the advantage. It can be seen that Claudius has the advantage to kill Hamlet when he states, “By letters conjuring to that effect/The present death of Hamlet. Do it, England” (4.3.65-6). Since Hamlet reveals that he knows that Claudius killed the former king, Claudius is deceiving Hamlet into going to England, where he will be executed. Hamlet reveals his knowledge of the murder when he puts on the play, re-enacting the former King’s murder. Now Claudius knows that he must kill Hamlet in order to avoid getting caught and stay on the throne. Claudius tells Hamlet that he is sending him to England for…
Hamlet himself does not know why he procrastinates the murder when he has "the means motive and opportunity"(4.4.2833-2835). But I think Hamlet hesitates to kill Claudius for religious reasons. The audience witnesses Hamlet admitting that he wants Claudius to go to hell, and that is the reason Hamlet hesitates to kill Claudius when he is praying (3.3.2375):…
Hamlet seems to be the one who lets things dwell in his mind before taking any action or making an attempt at trying to get on with his life. After the death of his father he becomes depressed and gradually becomes enraged with his mother's immediate marriage to his uncle Claudius. He was lead to believe his father died of natural cause but he became aware of the murderer when his father's ghost appeared to him. When Hamlet learns the truth of his father's murder, he cries, but promises action, though he delivers none. He says "Haste me to know't, that I, with wings as swift as meditation or the thoughts of love, may sweep to my revenge." (Act 1, Sc. 5, 29-31). At the end of the scene he says "The time is out of joint: O cursed spite, that ever I was born to set it right!" (Act 1, Sc. 5, 188-189). This shows that he is no longer in such a rush to avenge his father's death by killing his uncle Claudius.…
signs of guilt. Having established the evidence his Wittenburg education would require for action, Hamlet now felt he could now enact revenge on Claudius. Any action against his uncle was postponed for sometime, but the complexities of Hamlet's character necessitated the delay.…
Another major theme in Hamlet is procrastination. Throughout the play, Hamlet wants to avenge his father's death by killing Claudius, but every chance that arises is pushed aside by Hamlet. Claudius was praying all alone, and rather than kill him at that moment, Hamlet thought about the situation and decided that he didn't want Claudius to have a chance to go to heaven. Had Hamlet simply went ahead and done what he wanted to do, deaths that occurred later in the play could have been prevented. It's this obsessive nature that led Hamlet to his tragic ending. Hamlet never thought about whether or not killing Claudius would hurt his mother;…
Hamlet succeeds in troubling Claudius, and because of this, Claudius decides to act. Claudius plans to send Hamlet to England where Hamlet would be executed upon arrival. The fact that Claudius could so easily organise Hamlet’s death shows the fear and panic that exists within Hamlet and Claudius’ relationship. While it is believed that Claudius would have always feared Hamlet, and what he would do if he learnt of the King’s murder, this scene, where Claudius discovers Hamlets murderous intentions and utter madness drives him to action.…
Hamlet tries to acquire proof in order to gain sufficient grounds to kill Claudius. Hamlet puts on a play where “[he’ll] catch the conscience of the king” (II, ii, 603-604). He waits until he's sure of the king’s actions by first observing his guilt (as to not act on mere suspicions) then, attempts to murder him. Both attempts of murder are simply out of revenge. Claudius plots to murder Hamlet in an effort to rid himself of any problems. He sends a letter to the king of England asking that “if [his] love thou hold’st aught- thou mayst not coldly set our sovereign process” then may he cause “the present death of Hamlet” (IV, iii, 59-66). Claudius sees hamlet as a threat to his power and sees no problem in eliminating him once and for all. Both men are selfish in their quests for power and vengeance but technically, ultimately…
Hamlet’s decisiveness ruins his life. He has the best chance to kill Claudius, but his hesitation just let Claudius go from Hamlet’s hand. “That would be scann'd: A villain kills my father; and for that, I, his…
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…
Why does Hamlet wait so long to act? Or, rather, to attempt to act? The answer lies in what has happened just before the attempt--the staging of the play within the play during which Claudius, seeing enacted a murder similar to the one of which he is guilty, calls out for lights. At that point, Hamlet knows Claudius is guilty.…
Herman Ulrici believes that Hamlet delays killing Claudius because he is too religious. Characteristically speaking Hamlet is a philosophical being, he is very capable in succeeding in his revenge but his religious views stop him from doing so. “Even though the King were trebly a fratricide, [someone who kills their own brother or sister] in a…
King Claudius kills Hamlet’s father, so Hamlet is in a confused as to how he will get revenge. He wants to do what it takes to avenge his father’s death. "Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder," demands the ghost in (Act I, scene 5, line 23). The ghost tells hamlet he needs to kill King Claudius but Hamlet is to busy consumed in all the problems he has, that he doesn’t act at the right time. He had many chances to do something about King Claudius but didn’t because he was too indecisive about it. For example: when the King is kneeling paying Hamlet has a chance to kill him but he doesn’t. He talks himself out of murdering him, and instead makes a play to see if he is guilty.…
Claudius craved the throne, and went to great lengths to obtain--and keep--his position as king once he gets it. He is able to manipulate other people to do what he wants them to. Take for example Polonius, who does his bidding all of the time. Also take Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; they used to be trusted friends of Hamlet's, but under Claudius' manipulation turn into spies and potential murderers. Then, Laertes is cunningly manipulated into challenging and intending to kill Hamlet. Claudius takes what he wants, with no concern for others. He murders his brother and woos the queen, all to obtain the kingdom. Whether this hurts people in the process is of little concern to him. One telling scene in the play shows Claudius on his knees, praying, tormented by his sins. So despite his crimes and cunning nature, he still has a conscience that afflicts him occasionally. Even though Claudius is able to take the throne and manipulate people, he is very smart in how he does it. He is aware of his position and popular opinion, and works around it very well. Instead of having Hamlet killed for Polonius' murder, he sends Hamlet away on a ship, ordering his death away from the kingdom where people might rebel. He carefully arranges for Hamlet's…
Hamlet is fated to his own destruction. Hamlet should’ve just killed Claudius when the Ghost first told him that Claudius was a murderer instead of trying to give Claudius chances to prove him self innocent. For example after he watches the players, Hamlet berates himself for his inability to avenge his father’s murder, “O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!....monstrous that this player here….could force his soul so to his own conceit.” Also when Hamlet says, “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”, Hamlet is about to kill Claudius while…
Nevertheless, he withholds on killing Claudius because if he was to die at that given moment in time, than the sins of the uncle would be washed away. Hamlet states, "Now might I do it (pat,) now he is a-praying,/ And now I’ll do’t. And so he goes to heaven/ And so am I (revenged.)/ That would be scanned: A villain kills my father; and for that/ I, his sole son, do this same villain send/ To heaven.”(III.3.77-83) Hamlet determines that he wants to kill Claudius when he will cease to exist in the midst of his sins, which will allow Claudius to undergo some type of calamitous amercement after death. The reason Hamlet goes through as this trouble is due the fact that he wants his fathers killer to endure suffering in their afterlife, meaning hell.…