Essay on Revenge in Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy

Shakespeare sprinkles subtle lines alluding to Hamlet’s apparent cowardice and failure as a classical revenger. In addition to this, Shakespeare may intentionally delay Hamlet’s revenge and remove emphasis from his passion to break the trend of morally blind, obsessive, psychopathic avengers as traditionally depicted in plays such as “The Spanish Tragedy”.

“‘What, art thou drawn among these heartless hinds?/ Turn thee, Benvolio. Look upon thy death’” (Romeo and Juliet.1.1.56-57). The person threatening Benvolio is Tybalt Capulet from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet was a play written in the mid-1590s, and it involved two “star crossed lovers” (Prologue.6), Romeo and Juliet, from feuding families that eventually took their lives to be together. One important character in the play was Tybalt, a teenager of the house of Capulet and Juliet’s cousin. He was very skilled with a sword and very prideful. Tybalt was killed by Romeo in 3.1. Even though Tybalt was directly killed by Romeo in Act 3 of Romeo and Juliet, there are many other factors that indirectly led to his downfall, including Romeo and Juliet’s secrets, the ancient grudge, and Tybalt’s pride.

Hamlet. Horatio’s other part in the play is the reader’s indication that since he and Hamlet both

Horatio that he is going to act mad and if Horatio notices any strange behavior from

     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. 

As Benvolio attempts to pacify situations, Tybalt becomes increasingly hostile. Likewise, as Tybalt attempts to instigate a fight, Benvolio tries to reconcile the problem. These contrasts help showcase the character’s traits. The opening scene of conflict displays their differences. Benvolio implores Tybalt for peace, “I do but keep the peace”, however Tybalt instigates a fight saying, “Have at thee coward!”, and attacking (Act I, Scene I). This confrontation displays the stark contrast between the two, with the hostility of Tybalt being matched with the attempt of Benvolio to placate the anger. One critical review elaborates on the benevolence of Benvolio saying, “Benvolio is a caring individual accentuated by Tybalt’s inhospitable and discourteous manner towards others.” (Long, 121). This can be proven with Benvolio’s compassion towards Romeo, saying “Soft! I will go along. And if you leave me so, you do me wrong.” (Act I Scene I). Likewise, Tybalt is shown to be consistently hostile even after Lord Capulet agrees Romeo could stay at the party, “It fits when such a villain is a guest. I’ll not endure him.” (Act I, Scene 5). Benvolio and Tybalt are foils due to their extremely different characteristics, accentuating each

"But I am very sorry, good Horatio, /That to Laertes I forgot myself; /For, by the image of my cause, I see/The portraiture of his" (V.2). In seeking to revenge, Hamlet accidentally stabs Polonius, the king's advisor, thus killing the father of Laertes. Hamlet acknowledges, with his sense of higher justice and objectivity, that Laertes has a reason for hating him, given that he is also a parricide. There is a sharp, circular irony to this cycle of revenge. Similarly, Ophelia is driven mad by the death of her father and kills herself. Hamlet, while much of his madness is assumed, is also driven to a state of emotional distress. Laertes, Hamlet, and Ophelia all act irrationally in ways that bring about their death because of the extremity of their grief.

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.

    In Elizabethan times, a type of play known as a "revenge tragedy" became popular. These plays revolved around, "... the revenge of a father for a son or vice versa, the revenge being directed by the ghost of the murdered man..." (Harmon and Holman #6). Other characteristics include real or pretend insanity, philosophic soliloquies, hesitation on the part of the protagonist, conspiracy, and the use of horror. William Shakespeare's Hamlet fully satisfies each of these traits, making it an excellent example of a revenge tragedy. Certainly, the most critical theme in the play by far is that of revenge; it fuels the plot and story of Hamlet, reveals the hamartia of the protagonist, and is used successfully to

Whilst the Greek and Roman predecessors of revenge tragedy showed little compunction in gruesome on-stage violence, the Elizabethan spectators were, by the time of publication and performance of Shakespearian plays, a more educated audience who would appreciate the poetic style and subtle references to classical literature. This is not to say that the sixteenth century public were sensitive to acts of startling brutality; public executions and bear baiting were frequent occurrences that no doubt permeated the psyche of a nation. It has been argued that Shakespeare, conscious of his contemporaries' efforts in this genre decided to `out-do his predecessors' but a far more probable explanation is that Shakespeare, accommodating the

But we must remark how Hamlet speaks of Horatio; he does so in words of passionate admiration. His election had sealed Horatio for himself because in suffering all, Horatio suffered nothing; and it is the man who is not passion’s slave whom he would wear in his

     Claudius’ lies are effective enough to persistently deceive to play’s antagonist, Hamlet. Despite Hamlet’s disgust with Claudius for marrying Gertrude, and his view of Claudius as “a king of shreds and patches” (III.iv.104), Hamlet suspicion of Claudius as a murderer is preliminarily nonexistent. The appearance of a spirit claiming to be Hamlet’s dead father first alerts Hamlet to the actions of “that incestuous, that adulterate beast, /With witchcraft of his with, with traitorous gifts” (I.v.42-3). And yet still, Hamlet remains hesitant to believe that Claudius was the murderer, searching for complementary evidence. The play that Hamlet enacts -- designed to “catch the conscience of the king” (II.ii.562) --succeeds in revealing Claudius’ guilt, but does not provoke instant action on Hamlet’s part. So effective is Claudius’ manipulation of the royal circle that he manages to almost permanently stay the revelation of his guilt, and if it weren’t for supernatural intervention against an injustice, he may never have been exposed.

William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a tragic play. Most of the characters in the play have selfish motives at heart. Lust, greed, pride, and revenge are just a few sins that are committed in the play. There are few instances within the play that show goodness and kindness. Hamlet has so many people around him trying to bring him down, but he had one friend that was loyal to him, and that was Horatio. The other key characters in the play were only out for their own good. However Horatio was looking out for Hamlet. Unfortunately, Horatio was the only one.

Hamlet trusts Horatio completely. It is to Horatio that Hamlet writes upon his return to Denmark, and Horatio to whom he confides his thoughts before the duel: “the readiness is / all. Since no man has aught of what he leaves, what / is't to leave betimes” (V. ii. 223-225)? Hamlet has not placed this much confidence in anyone else; it is only to Horatio that he reveals his true feelings.

The theme of Revenge has been utilized in numerous works of art throughout history, including books, plays, movies, etc. Revenge is the result of one’s desire for vengeance, however, revenge is known to be implied under high emotions of anger thus not with reason concluding with a horrible outcome. Shakespeare’s play ‘Hamlet’ is no doubt a play about a tragedy caused by revenge; Prince Hamlet’s retribution for his father, King Hamlet’s murder and Laertes vengeance for his father, Polonius’ murder. The theme of revenge in Hamlet is portrayed through various literary techniques such as foreshadowing and irony.