Why Is Hamlet Admirable

"Hamlet shows us no admirable human relationships." Discuss, supporting your views with detailed evidence from the play.

"We are arrant knaves, all..." Hamlet, written by the ever observant William Shakespeare, certainly seems to prove this true. Embroiled in corruption, Denmark the "prison" is barely the place for admirable relationships to flourish. Any claim that "Hamlet shows us no admirable human relationships," would therefore, on the surface, be mostly justifiable. The play's four kinds of relationships: in blood, in name, in romance, and in friendship, reflect the rotten state from which they spring. Hamlet's mother disregards his grief, Polonius disregards his daughter's love for Hamlet, Hamlet uses Ophelia, Claudius values power over his wife, and Hamlet
plots his friends' deaths.
Admirable relationships where mutual trust, respect, loyalty, and selflessness are key values shared between human beings are few and far between in Hamlet. The only relationship which comes close in Hamlet is the friendship between the Danish prince and humble Horatio. This gloomy reality not only reinforces central thematic concerns such as corruption, but also justifies Hamlet's brutal actions. Most importantly however, Shakespeare makes the concerns in the play relevant and important to our own lives. We learn to value and nurture the admirable relationships we do have, for the improvement of our own lives and the wellbeing of a society.

One of the closest and most impacting relationships that we have is that with our family. There is often no stronger bond than between a parent and a child. At the beginning of Hamlet, however, Shakespeare hits us with a mother and son whose relationship is far from admirable. Hamlet's first line refer to his Uncle and new step-father as "a little more than kin, a little less than kind," showing no respect for his mother's second choice of husband. Referring to his mother when proclaiming "frailty, thy name is
woman!" simply confirms his lack of respect for her. Gertrude, however, is also guilty of failing to be loyal to her son with sweeping, ignorant comments about his grief. She tells him "do not forever with thy veiled lids seek for thy noble father in the dust. Thou know'st ‘tis common – all that lives must die." Hamlet, however, simply cannot accept his mother's hasty marriage – "a beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourn'd longer." Her lack of respect and empathy here, and "dexterity to incestuous sheets," infuriate and sadden Hamlet to the point where he contemplates suicide, exclaiming "O, that this too too solid flesh would melt, thaw and resolve itself into a dew!" His mother's marriage has plunged Denmark into a hotbed of corruption, which Hamlet believes is "an unweeded garden, that grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature." The garden was an Elizabethan symbol of order, and even from the first Act Hamlet speaks of the "rank and gross" garden as a metaphor for the corruption destroying Denmark. Hamlet's threatening behaviour towards his mother in Act 3 cause her to question "thou wilt not murder me?" and as a result, lose trust and faith in him. Hamlet on the other hand disrespectfully asks her "where is thy blush?" and Gertrude fails to understand her son, instead thinking he's "mad as the sea and wind." It is the lack of admirable relationships, even between mother and son, which create a morally defunct society.

Hamlet and Gertrude are not alone, however. Polonius' total disregard for his daughter's relationship with Hamlet is patronising and shows he has little trust for her judgement – "you have ta'en these tenders for true pay which are not sterling." In Act 3, Polonius also uses his daughter to help Claudius find the cause of Hamlet's madness, treating her like a puppet "walk you here…read on this book..." Ironically his advice to Laertes – "to thine own self be true" – contradicts his attitude towards his daughter, who he typically directs like most fathers would have done in the patriarchal Elizabethan period. This relationship between daughter and father, again lacking in admirable qualities, shows us a different kind of corruption. Hamlet's feeling of Denmark being "a prison" is shown through the dishonest and secretive spying that takes place within the Castle. Together with the imagery of the corruption in Denmark being an illness, this idea of the prison extends to painting each character as criminal in some way. With morally tainted characters, the relationships between them turn sour (as with Hamlet & Gertrude).

Of course, Denmark was not always so corrupt. It is the "foul and most unnatural murder" committed by Claudius and his "incestuous" marriage with Gertrude, which begins his reign of corruption. The relationship would have been considered repulsive by Early Modern England Society standards and still would be by most today. It is established as corrupt, as both characters are sinners – Claudius kills his brother, and Gertrude betrays her husband by marring the killer within two months. Gertrude is also tainted by adultery – Old Hamlet refers to her as his "seemingly virtuous Queen." Hamlet's disgust with this is obvious, and Shakespeare's clever use of impassionate consonants "Oh most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to incestuous sheets" bring to light the intensity of Hamlet's emotions. It is because of the nature of this relationship that the audience finds it acceptable when Hamlet murders Claudius, as he is defeating the corruption which overtook Denmark. He is therefore able to retain the status of the tragic hero, the "noble heart" in the play.
Hamlet compares his father, the "Hyperion" to Claudius, the "Satyr," and also hints of the "loving" relationship that Claudius destroyed by murdering Old Hamlet. Denmark not only lost their King, but also an admirable relationship between the King and his wife which had ensured stability throughout the realm. The lack of loyalty and selflessness from Claudius towards Gertrude, and his inability to repent for want of power means he lets his wife die. This is obviously not admirable and leads to Claudius' death, which ends up being a similar fate for all those who do not have admirable relationships. This is also a timeless lesson about the importance of admirable relationships for the long-term well being of our lives. Shakespeare makes a pressing point about the ability of corrupt relationships to do damage to a society, and the importance of admirable ones in ensuring stability.

Ironically, Hamlet's relationship with the woman he loves could be just as criticized. Though his love notes tell her to "doubt truth to be a liar but never doubt I love" and reflect a genuine love for her, he fails to tell her the truth about his father's ghost or his plans for revenge. Though as her funeral he declares his genuine love for her yet again, telling Laertes "forty thousand brothers, could not, with all their quantity of love, make up my sum," his cruel and vindictive behaviour towards her earlier contradicts this. Not only are his comments telling her to "get thee to a nunnery" disrespectful, but their intent (furthering a façade of madness) shows no loyalty to her.
For the ultimate pursuit of revenge and cleansing what is "rotten in the state of Denmark," he casts Ophelia aside. This is just another relationship that has festered under the new "rotten" State of Denmark. Sadly, Hamlet himself actively participates in the corruption which has turned Denmark into a prison in the slaughter of his friends and Claudius, and spying at Ophelia's funeral. This is again one of the sad ironies in the play which Shakespeare uses to show the interdependent nature of corrupt relationships in a society and its impact on its citizens.
Unlike Claudius and Gertrude's relationship, however, Hamlet and Ophelia's was loving and pure to begin with. It is because of Hamlet's unenviable mission to cleanse the corruption that he has become a part of it and dragged Ophelia under. This fuels the tragedy aspect of the play. Though Hamlet is "cruel only to be kind" – both to his mother and Ophelia, it is a direct result of the other dysfunctional relationships. Polonius forces Ophelia not to see Hamlet, which would realistically cause Hamlet to be disgruntled with her even before she returns his love tokens. Hamlet's mother marries his Uncle only two months after his father's death, and fails to understand, or share in, his grief. The audience cannot help but feel Hamlet's eventual corruption is a result of the lack of admirable relationships surrounding and supporting him. Here Shakespeare illustrates the importance of admirable relationships in an individual's life. Hamlet breathes in corruption, and therefore that is what he breathes out as a result.

An example of this is his plotting of his friends' deaths. Both Hamlet and his friends Rosencratz and Guildenstern (R&G) fail to be honest, loyal, selfless or respectful towards eachother. R&G initially lie about why they arrive, and go behind Hamlet's back to help Claudius unveil Hamlet's insanity. Hamlet in turn lets them sail to their deaths and wittingly refers to them as "sponges."
Despite all of the corruption, Hamlet does retain one admirable relationship with another human being – and perhaps it is this that keeps the last shred of his decency alive, even after he dies. The relationship between Hamlet and Horatio is in fact the direct opposite to the one with R&G. They never show any signs of disrespect towards each other. Horatio is unfailingly loyal in helping Hamlet unmask the truth about Claudius' murder, and selflessly offers to join Hamlet in the afterlife when Hamlet is dying. Most significantly, Horatio is the only person Hamlet trusts enough to confide in and Horatio in turn is the only one who remotely understands how Hamlet is feeling. As a result of this admirable relationship, Hamlet is able to achieve his aims of revenge and cleansing Denmark. Most importantly, he is able to leave a legacy behind him through Horatio which will undoubtedly be glorious. Hope is provided to Hamlet that his story will be accurately retold, and that harmony and stability will be reinstalled in Denmark through Horatio's support of Hamlet's task. Shakespeare has shown us how a single admirable relationship can provide hope, harmony and stability, even among many relationships which are not.

Shakespeare's presentation of these characters' relationships could not be more relevant and relatable to us today. They are complex, unpredictable, often thought provoking, and deliver timeless, important messages about the importance of admirable relationships. History, however, would indicate that humans as a race have far too often neglected to appreciate the importance of admirable relationships in creating peace, order, and gratification. The war in Iraq could be argued to be selfish as the US gains oil while innocent Iraqi civilians die. Breakdowns in trust resulted in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Lack of respect forced Charles I to govern alone, which ended in disaster. Evidently, humans are not perfect creatures, and therefore neither are their relationships with others. It is this fundamental fact, which makes the dysfunctional relationships in Hamlet both realistic and understandable. Though Hamlet is a story centred around a royal family, the key relationships contain aspects that anyone could relate to. It is easy to appreciate Ophelia's wistful give-in to her father's orders, or Hamlet's anguish at his mother's lack of understanding. At a time where assets override admirable relationships, Shakespeare's Hamlet delivers messages that are more important than ever.

Hamlet certainly shows us very few admirable relationships. There is hardly any trust, respect, loyalty, or selflessness shared in the key relationships in the play. However, Shakespeare does this to show us the interdependence of corrupt relationships and the corruption that they breed. He also shows the effect of a lack of admirable relationships on a society and its individuals. Most importantly, however, the realistically represented relationships in Hamlet are ones which can easily relate to and learn from at a crucial time in history.