The Importance Of Religions In William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Throughout history, class distributions have constantly been a serious issue. Many compositions today display social disparity; however, to recognize it, one needs to look through the proper lens. Literary critical lenses help to understand a work from a different angle which leads to a further interpretation of the composition. There are many lenses and aspects in literature, and one of them is the Marxist Theory. Also known as the Conflict Theory, this idea asserts that class struggle is a powerful divider in society. Although it is a social idea, this concept also relates to literature. In his play Hamlet, William Shakespeare demonstrates class struggles. Looking at this composition through the lens of the Marxist Theory, one uncovers that the dominant ones suppress and exploits the others seeking to display their superiority.

        It may appear that anything could be twisted into a typological pattern. Such interpretations appear to suffer from the structuralist faults of skating too lightly over actual texts, ignoring details that cannot be forced into a preconceived mold, and robbing narratives of their concrete shapes through abstraction. I would stress that there is more to Shakespeare than typology, but I would also insist that typology is often an important part of his drama. To make this claim plausible, however, requires more detailed attention to the text of his plays. In what follows, I will call attention to the textual and dramatic details that justify a typological reading of

The speech of Hamlet “O that this too sullied flesh would melt, … But break, my heart, for I must hold my tongue.” (1.2.129-159) is where we can see Hamlet’s sadness towards his mother, Gertrude and his uncle Claudius and feels disappointed about their decision of getting married. Hamlet is seen to be too upset after his father’s death. It’s not even a month has passed and he gets to hear another news about his mother Gertrude and uncle, Claudius getting married. In the beginning of Act 1 Scene 2, King Claudius gives a speech to his courtiers, telling them about his recent marriage to Gertrude, mother of Hamlet and his brother’s widow. Claudius says that he mourns his brother but has chosen to balance Denmark’s mourning with delight of his marriage. He also mentions in his speech that young Fortinbras has written to him, rashly demanding the surrender of the lands King Hamlet won from Fortinbras’s father, and dispatches Cornelius and Voltimand with a message for the King of Norway, Fortinbras’s elderly uncle.

Texts reflect their context and paradigms but transcendental texts that explore aspects of humanity can resonate through time and remain relevant and accessible to audiences. William Shakespeare’s introspective play, Hamlet, explores the complexity of the human condition by reflecting ideologies such as justice, loyalty and morality. Although these deeply human ideas ensure the plays resonance, they are somewhat secondary to the depths of Hamlet’s human struggle. These thematic concerns reflect how flaws in the values of society descend into corruption. Through an exploration of the characterization, Shakespeare invites a re-evaluation of the values that shape human nature. The textual integrity of Hamlet makes it of distinctive

In 1600 Europe had abandoned the ideas and teachings of Catholic Christianity and began having a Protestant view on the world. When Protestants changed their worldview they rejected the idea of purgatory, causing a key foundation of their new religion. The Protestant Worldview and reaction of it can be reflected in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. In this time of religious and spiritual changes many people are very confused which can be closely related to Prince Hamlet’s immense amount of anxiety and “madness” that causes tension, due to the lack of knowledge and the ghost of his father.

Hamlet himself also embodies the conflict between the two civilizations, and he exemplifies how this conflict adds depth to the plot and character’s motivations. Professor Cantor states that Hamlet “combines all the best aspects of Renaissance life” and how there are “many ways the classical ideas [can] be reconciled with Christianity.” According to him, Hamlet is both a scholar and a soldier, a poet and a prisoner. This multi faceted individual combines the Christian with the classic man. Hamlet does exhibit signs of classic culture when he chooses the path of revenge for his father’s ghost instead of turning the other cheek, yet he also follows many Christian rules as he plots his revenge. Does the combination of both sets of traditions help

Life is full of choices. As humans, we are given the opportunity to make our own decisions and, ultimately, pave our own path. Just as we are able to decide on a movie to watch or a restaurant to eat at, we are also given the power to choose our actions. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the characters are also given the ability to choose their actions. Some of their actions are driven by reasoning and logical thoughts, and others are fueled by pure passion. Through the play, Shakespeare shows both passion and reason while portraying the importance of balancing these two emotions.

Hamlet’s first soliloquy comes in act one scene two, as Hamlet reflects on the current state of events. The chief focus of this soliloquy is essentially the rottenness of the king, queen and the world in general. In this passage the reader is introduced to Hamlet pseudo-obsession with death and suicide, which later will become a chief point of indecision. In this particular speech, however, Hamlet is fairly confident. He wishes that his “too too sullied flesh would melt”

When we’re first introduced to Hamlet in Act 1 Scene 2 we learn two things about his current temperament, he’s disgusted with everything in the earth and he wants to “resolve into a dew,” (1.2.130) or rather, evaporate out of the earth. Hamlet comments on the grotesque nature of man by using biblical language when he says, “O, that this too too sullied flesh would melt and resolve itself into a dew” (1.2.129-130). Recognizing the sinful body and nature of man, Hamlet wishes that his own body would just disappear into oblivion. The word flesh conjures a biblical context that he extends in the rest of the speech. This theme is continued when Hamlet wishes he could kill himself, but alas, God has made it a sin (1.2.131-132). This confirms that Hamlet desires death. However, we also learn that at the moment he

1. How much time has passed between Act I and Act II. How do you know?

thinking. “What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason, how infinite in

Shakespeare’s Hamlet is one of the most popular dramas in world literature, as it examines the passionate, but toxic ambitions of King Claudius. He murders his own brother, King Hamlet, to overtake the throne, power, and wife. As a result of King Claudius’ fratricide, he inherits the “primal eldest curse” of Cain and Abel, and the dispersion of his venom ends the lives of several major characters. Including, of course, Prince Hamlet, who gets drawn into a deep depression over his father’s death, who later visits him as an apparition. This essay will analyze Shakespeare’s symbolic use of poison, embodied by King Claudius and the unintended consequences of his wicked acts.

In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the Danish prince sets out to avenge his father’s assassination at the hands of his uncle Claudius, the new king. At first, Hamlet is fragile because of his father’s sudden death and the following marriage of his mother Gertrude and uncle Claudius. Originally contemplating suicide, Hamlet dissuades himself from doing so on the grounds of it being a sin. Shifting from an internal struggle to an external one after he meets his father’s spirit, he seeks to kill Claudius but cannot due to his religion again. Finally Hamlet thwarts Claudius’ plans to be assassinated in England and returns to Denmark. He finds peace in his Christian faith before dying in

Religion is the fighting force which all characters look to when planning actions. The play Hamlet, as stated by Omar Alsaif at King Saud University, has “A context of religious beliefs, and the consideration of religion is very important in understanding the characters’ motives”(“Religion in Hamlet” 1). This is seen throughout the play as all characters struggle with actions that may be against God. Religion proves to be the main driving force behind people’s actions during the play. In Act 1 the Ghost, later discovered as King Hamlet, appears to his son and exposes the new king as his murderer. King Hamlet asks his son to avenge his murder to which Hamlet answers, “Thy commandment all alone shall live, Within the book and volume of my brain, Unmix'd with baser matter: yes, by

The development of Polonius through his interactions with others serves as an aspect of Shakespeare’s Hamlet particularly suited for a Marxist analysis. While his pompous and long-winded ramblings have served as comic fodder for generations of readers, a Marxist reading reveals the insidious nature behind the text’s contempt for royal sycophancy. Polonius, who is of a lower-class status than the royal family, and who presumably lives during a feudal era which featured asymmetric distributions of wealth and power privileging the royalty and their allies, most probably regales figures of the royal family with circuitous servility to secure his survival as a member of a subordinate class. However, the text portrays Polonius’s incessantly pompous sycophantic tendencies as reflections of his, and in extension the noble class’s, inner character. Implicit in this portrayal is a classist ideology which ascribes inherent characteristics to lower classes, using these traits to justify the differential treatment of the classes.