The Fatal Opposition Of Hamlet And Laertes

In the exchange between Laertes and Ophelia, one learns a great deal about Hamlet, as well. Laertes explains to his sister that she must consider Hamlet's rank and position and know that he is not free to choose a bride for himself (1.3.19-26). He also cautions her not put any faith in "Hamlet, and the trifling of his favor / [and to] Hold it a fashion and a toy in blood, / A violet in the youth of primy nature" (1.3.5-7). He means that Hamlet follows a passing whim where she is concerned, and that he does not truly love her. In other words, Laertes impresses upon Ophelia that Hamlet merely feels toward her the passion that is present in the springtime of youth. It is clear that Laertes believes he is telling his sister the truth about her situation with Hamlet because if he thought Hamlet would marry her Laertes would most likely encourage a relationship between them. Hamlet and Laertes are friends and if Hamlet married Laertes' sister he would at some point enjoy the advantages of a brother-in-law of the King.

“I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers/ could not with all their quantity of love/ make up my sum” (5.1.285-286). Hamlet tells Ophelia that he never did love her, but in all honesty he does still love her. Hamlet is truly insane. When he is talking with Ophelia he is truly mean to her and treats

Throughout the entire play, Hamlet’s love for Ophelia is questioned. What Hamlet is really doing is trying to throw off the other characters and make it seem like he does not love Ophelia, even though he really does. Hamlet did not want Ophelia to become involved in case Claudius decided to get revenge on Hamlet. Hamlet shows his love for Ophelia when he confesses to her that he loves her, when he tells her to go to a nunnery to protect her, when he sends her the letter, and when he finds out that she has died. Although many could argue that Hamlet never loved Ophelia, he was just trying to throw everyone else off. There is a great deal of evidence proving that his love was

Laertes acts much like his father in taking a position of authority over Ophelia. He feels free to tell Ophelia what she has to do with her love life and expects she will oblige his demand. Like his father, he too tells her to break off her relationship with Hamlet. However, his reasoning is not selfish; he is worrying about her virginity, her reputation, and the

Although Hamlet and Laertes despised one another, they both loved Ophelia. Hamlet was infatuated with Ophelia, which was obvious during his constant anguish over her(in her rejection of him, and in her death, Hamlet suffered greatly). Laertes showed a strong brotherly love for Ophelia which was made evident in his advice to her. Laertes further displayed his love for Ophelia during her funeral when he fought with Hamlet.

In the play, Hamlet , Shakespeare uses a cast of characters that have many roles. Of this cast, Shakespeare uses two characters, Laertes and Horatio, as foils for Hamlet’s character. Through similarities and differences these characters, accentuate Hamlet’s pretense of being crazy, emphasize how Hamlet is an improper son by standards of the time and cause him to be a tragic hero.

Vows, to the blackest devils! Conscience and grace, to the profoundest pit! I dare damnation.’ (Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5). He has no real emotion toward the death of his father, but his actions to avenge his death, immediately would beg to differ that he had none. The difference between he and Hamlet is Laertes’ focus was not the emotional loss of his father, but, rather on his strength and personal pride. He needed to be a man of action, rather than a man of emotions. Hamlet, on the other hand, is sorrowful for his loss and takes time to think about what has taken place before he plots and plans to act out his revenge. Laertes and Hamlet are very protective over Ophelia, however, Hamlet’s affections are more from the heart and Laertes is a protector. In this relationship, Hamlet is seen as the user and Laertes’s is seen as the one who is keeping her safe and away from the one who is seeking to use her, Hamlet. When she dies, the love they both had for her was quite evident, even though they clashed over her, for different reasons: one, a heart admirer and the other as a good friend and big

Throughout the play, Hamlet and Ophelia have a very strong love connection. They loved each other and wanted to eventually get married. Hamlet and Ophelia hit some bumps in the road in their relationship but they always secretly wanted to be together. In Act 1, Scene 3, It was hard for Ophelia to comprehend when Polonius told her that he thought Hamlet's love for her wasn’t real, but she didn’t know what to believe. When Hamlet could no longer see Ophelia he began to get mad a frustrated, to add on also that he was going crazy over his own father's death.

A more noteworthy comparison between Hamlet and Laertes would be each man’s intense relationship with Ophelia, the former’s love interest and the latter’s sister. Both men are passionately preoccupied with Ophelia’s actions, mainly those pertaining to her sexuality, but in different ways. Prior to the events in the play Hamlet actively pursues a romance with Ophelia, but during his staged madness he violently criticizes her for acting at all interested in his advances. As the play progresses Hamlet flips back and forth between sneering at Ophelia and declaring his love for her, but in either case he shows an obvious devotion to the girl. Laertes holds the same amount of devotion, but towards protecting her from Hamlet and anything else that may compromise her virtue. When he is told of her descent into

No two individuals are alike, regardless of similar upbringing. It is reasonable to assume that even twins brought up in exactly the same environment, sharing the same daily activities, and living practically the same life, will act differently when faced with the same situation. Each individual evolves with his or her own uniqueness, style, and way of life. The audience witnesses this phenomenon in Shakespeare's Hamlet. Lord Hamlet and Laertes experienced similar childhoods, and shared similar family attributes. They were both born into royalty and throughout their lives were treated as such. Hamlet and Laertes were reared with the same forms of schooling, and were taught to abide by the same ethics and morals. Although Hamlet and Laertes

In the play Hamlet, Hamlet and Laertes are characterized as foils, or opposites, of one another. Hamlet is the protagonist of the play, and the play centers around his every move. Meanwhile, Laertes is absent for much of the play and spends the majority of his time in France. In fact, he actually does not return until late in the play due to the death of his father, Polonius. Additionally, they are different in their ways of revenge. Hamlet constantly prolongs his revenge due to various arising circumstances. On the other hand, Laertes is quick to seek revenge, and this is exhibited through his response to the death of his father. The last difference is the mental sanity of the two characters. Throughout the play, Hamlet is driven into madness over the death of his father, while Laertes is always at least somewhat rational in his thoughts and actions. In thesis, Hamlet and Laertes differ in the following ways: stage presence, methods of revenge, and mental sanity.

Laertes cares deeply for Ophelia and warns her to stay away from Hamlet. Laertes does this because he is unsure if Hamlet’s love for Ophelia is genuine. Hamlet has an undying love for Ophelia, but this is unclear until the end of the play to both the characters in the play and the readers. When Hamlet sees that Ophelia has passed on, he confesses his love for her, “forty-thousand brothers could not with all their quantity of love make up my sum” (Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 243-245). Hamlet and Laertes both have an extremely short fuse, which causes them to make foolish and unwise decisions.

In William Shakespeare's tragedy “Hamlet”, Fortinbras, Laertes, and Hamlet find themselves in very similar situations. They all had love and respect for their father’s and felt the need to avenge their unjustified deaths. However, there are differences between them. The character of Fortinbras was the only one to accomplish his goal and become king of Denmark in the end. Shakespeare’s comment through Fortinbras as a man of action, allowed the audience to see that he acts rather than thinks.

As we all know Laertes is a foil character to Hamlet, but what is a foil character? A foil character is someone who contrasts with another character and you will find out how. Although some minor similarities, the differences between Hamlet and Laertes are noteworthy and they deserve accurate analysis. Hamlet could best be described as a thinker. Hamlet speaks seven soliloquies, which allows us to truly see Hamlet’s characterization. He has an inability to act and that’s one of his tragic flaws. Hamlet’s first soliloquy is best described as troubled (Act 1, Scene 2). He contemplates suicide and hates his life after his father died and his mom remarried Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius. When Hamlet hears of his father’s death he does not lead an army or even a mob. He is careful not to act rashly. At times Hamlet is indecisive and hesitant, but at other times he is prone to rash and impulsive acts of violence (Mabillard). Hamlet, unlike Laertes, is very emotional over his father’s death. Hamlet had many opportunities to kill Claudius, but instead let his feelings get the best of him. A big part of Hamlet is his love for Ophelia, which is one of the minor similarities of Hamlet and Laertes. I think he truly does love her and the actual recognition of his love for Ophelia is shown when Hamlet realizes that she is dead. Hamlet says I loved Ophelia; forty thousand brothers could not, with all their quantity of love, Make up my sum (Act 5, Scene 1). Hamlet's father has only recently died

Throughout Hamlet, several characters die. For most, this happens through combat, such as the duel between Hamlet and Laerte, which kills them both. In the play, however, two characters die in quick, seemingly careless ways. The first, the fair Ophelia, is killed by her own madness in what seems to be suicide. The other, Gertrude, dies due to the carelessness of her husband, who accidentally poisons her. In both of these cases, their deaths, and the events that led to them, represent a difference in the treatment of genders in Hamlet. This gender inequality can be examined through a feminist criticism lens.