Horatio Is The Alpha And Omega Of Hamlet

In the early 1600’s, William Shakespeare created the masterpiece play Hamlet. Since that day, numerous theaters have performed the play and many publishers have made they’re version of the original playwright (the original copy is at an unknown location.) For these years, there has been numerous debatable aspects of Hamlet - one of which being whether or not the ghost encounter with the deceased King Hamlet was real. Of course, Horatio is the credible witness to tell us of the ghost’s existence - but the ghost never actually talks to him like he does Hamlet. In fact, no one besides Hamlet has actually heard the ghost of King Hamlet speak. Furthermore, Hamlet is already grief-stricken over his father’s death and completely expects this ghost

Horatio is Hamlet’s best friend in the play whom is let into the mind and secrets of

In the first Act in the play, Hamlet is the last person to see his deceased father. Granted, Hamlet is the only one to speak to the ghost and he is by himself when he does, but the guards and even Horatio, “Before (his) God, (he) might not this believe. . . Without the sensible and true avouch. . . Of (his) eyes. (Act I Scene I Lines 56-8)” serve as witnesses that there is indeed a ghost and it is not just a figment of Hamlet’s imagination.

The first soliloquy ends with the arrival of Horatio, the hero’s closest friend (“Horatio, thou art e'en as just a man / As e'er my conversation coped withal.”), and Marcellus, who escort the prince to the ramparts of Elsinore. At the ghost’s request, Hamlet swears to carry out vengeance on King Claudius for the murder of his father. John Dover Wilson in What Happens in Hamlet tells how the Bard envelopes the ghost in a “contemporary

     Hamlet’s friendship with his third colleague from this group is much different compared to that of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Horatio, also a classmate at Wittenburg, does not appear initially to occupy the same social status as did the former two. He addresses Hamlet and says, "The same, my lord, and your poor servant ever." So Horatio may be from a lower social-economic class. Like Hamlet, he sees a ghost, but is not sure that the ghost was the king, as he admits to only seeing the king once before, another argument for Horatio’s unfamiliarity with the royal family. 

Shakespeare uses Horatio to unfold the story of Hamlet, beginning with the opening scene all the way until Hamlet’s death. In Act 1, Horatio foreshadows what is in store for Denmark and Hamlet. After encountering the Ghost once before, Horatio becomes skeptical about its presence. Although Horatio has now seen the Ghost, unlike before when the knights spoke to him about it, he fears that it has appeared to share some dark news. "A mote to trouble the mind’s eye/In the most high and palmy state of Rome/A little ere the mightiest Julius fell,.../And prologue to the omen coming on,"

He has stuck by Hamlet the whole time and has never deceived him. Since Horatio has seen the Ghost of king Hamlet, he feels the need to tell Hamlet” As I do live, my honour’d lord; tis true(1.2.10)” Horatio is saying that he is loyal to Hamlet and is telling the truth about seeing the ghost. Horatio is loyal to Hamlet and his honesty is what lets Hamlet trust him. When Hamlet has received a message from the Ghost, that would be very beneficial if everyone else knew about it, Horatio kept it a secret “My lord, we will not (1.5.23).” Horatio is saying that hamlet can trust him to keep it a secret and not tell anyone. Horatio is loyal to Hamlet because if he would have told anyone about his plan, it would turn out very bad for Hamlet. Even after hamlet dies, Horatio keeps his promise to never let Hamlet be forgotten about “ of that I shall also cause to speak (5.2.4059).” Horatio is saying that he is there to tell Hamlet's story, so that he will never be forgotten and all the events that occurred can be cleared up. Horatio was honest to his word to Hamlet when Hamlet asked for his story to be

Horatio and Hamlet have very similar characters, but there is still some contrast between them. Horatio is a very sensible and reasonable character. When the ghost first appeared to Horatio, he quickly runs to tell Hamlet about it, disregarding the dangers. Horatio was always there to guide Hamlet. Horatio is a loyal, hardworking friend and is a reliable source of information. He cares so much for Hamlet that he even wanted to drink out of the poisoned cup.

We get more insight into Hamlet's mind after he meets the ghost of his father. He is speaking to his confidant and friend Horatio:

       In Act I, Scene II, one is first made aware of the strength of Hamlet's relationship with Horatio when the latter informs Hamlet that he has seen what he believes is the ghost of the former King Hamlet. This introduction to the relationship between Horatio and Hamlet demonstrates the strong bonds of trust and confidence they share. Unlike the other characters who have seen the apparition and would choose to shrink away from it, Horatio, recognizing the ghost for who it might be, tries to make contact with it, albeit unsuccessfully. After this initial contact, and recognizing the significance of what he has witnessed, it is Horatio that takes Hamlet into his confidence to relate what he has seen. "As I do live, my honored lord, 'tis true, / And we did think it writ down in our duty / To let you know of it" (1.2. 220-222). Horatio gives Hamlet a very detailed account of the sighting, answering Hamlet's questions with the honesty and insight of a concerned friend. It is obvious by Horatio's candor that he is neither fearful of Hamlet's response, nor is he concerned that Hamlet will not believe his accounting of the event.

Horatio is asked to speak with the ghost of Hamlets dead father. Who do the soldiers and Horatio resolve to speak with regarding the sighting of the ghost? Who do the soldiers and Horatio decide to speak with concerning the seeing of the ghost? They decide to speak with Hamlet. What reason does Horatio give for the ghost's exit at the end of the scene?

Of Horatio we know best that what distinguishes him from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and indeed from Polonius, Ophelia, Laertes, and Gertrude, is that Claudius cannot use him. Critics have remarked upon Horatio’s ambiguously shifting status at the court of Denmark, and the late William Empson confessed a certain irritation at Hamlet’s discovery of virtues in Horatio that the prince could not find in himself. Yet Shakespeare gives us a Hamlet we must love while knowing our inferiority, since he has the qualities we lack, and so he also gives us Horatio, our representative, who loves so stoically for the rest of us. Horatio is loyal, and limited; skeptical as befits a fellow student of the profoundly skeptical Hamlet, yet never skeptical about Hamlet. Take Horatio out of the play, and you take us out of the play. The plot could be rearranged to spare the wretched Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, even to spare Laertes, let alone Fortinbras, but remove Horatio, and Hamlet becomes so estranged from us that we scarcely can hope to account for that universality of appeal which is his, and the play’s, most original characteristic. (5)

All of these main characters cared very little for Hamlet except for Horatio. Horatio was the kind of friend to Hamlet that all people wish their friends could be. He was loyal, honest, and loving. Horatio was honest with Hamlet when he told him about seeing his father’s ghost. “My lord, I think I saw him yesternight”(I.2.189). Hamlet did not question Horatio because he trusted him with all of his heart. Seeing a ghost every day is not a common thing, but Hamlet never doubted him. Throughout the play Horatio is looking out for Hamlet. When he was about to fight Laertes Horatio told Hamlet, “if your mind dislike anything, obey it. I will

Without Horatio, there is no one to give truth to Hamlet's words. Horatio bears witness to the ghost: “Look, my lord, it comes” (I. iv. 38), giving credence to Hamlet’s later claims that he has seen the ghost of his father. When Hamlet is forcing the guards to swear an oath, it is to Horatio that he tells of his plan “to put an antic disposition on” (I. v. 172). If this scene did not occur as it did, with Hamlet informing someone of his actions, then Hamlet's sanity would be questioned from the very beginning of the play. After all, if there is no one else to confirm the facts, who can say that Hamlet truly loses his sanity in Act I, and then his "act" is not an act at all?

Hamlet is a critical thinker for the world around him, seeking opportunities to learn. When Hamlet is confronted with the ghost, he isn’t sure if his eyes deceive him. With further inspection, he learns it is his father who appears in front of him.