The Right and Wrong Time in The Tragedy of Hamlet

Although Hamlet shows himself as indecisive and insecure, towards the end of the story he does show some act of courage; enough to finally go and kill King Claudius. At first, he finds himself procrastinating at the matter, because he comes up behind King Claudius while he’s praying. He originally planned on killing him right then and there, but wait! Hamlet stops and lets his inner coward win over yet again. After a series of deep thoughts, he does decide to kill his uncle, and realizes that he must go through with his plan quickly, before Hamlet himself is killed.

Hamlet feels the moment of death is important and has to come at the right time. Hamlet had one well known opportunity to kill Claudius, but his hesitation came in when he realized he was praying. According to Karl S Guthke hamlet did not kill Claudius while he was praying because if he was to have stabbed him in the back at that moment he would go straight to heaven no matter how sinful his life was. ( Guthke 91) Hamlet shows how important the moment of death is when he says “that he will wait until lust and sin come back, and when his soul would be at the door of hell.” (Kilgore)He is constantly putting it off, because he is not ready, because he has not done thinking about it. Hamlet says he will not kill him now, he wants to find a moment that when killed he will be sent to hell.(Shakespeare)

Hamlet also delays killing the King because he is unsure of the morality of carrying out such a task. This factor is important as Hamlet is a very idealistic and moralistic person. Revenge was prohibited by ecclesiastical law, but the duty of ‘personal honour' prevalent in Elizabethan times often won through. In the play, Hamlet debates

Throughout the play, Hamlet displays indecisiveness and a tendency to over think. Despite having every desire and intention to kill his uncle, Hamlet procrastinates to the point where he is loathing himself for taking so long. Had Hamlet take the first opportunity to kill Claudius, the play would be a great deal shorter. If I were placed in a similar situation, I believe that my fury caused by someone murdering my father would be enough motivation to avenge him as soon as humanely possible. Consequently, I see Hamlet as an individual who gets so hung up in executing every task perfectly that it

In act 1 scene 2 of “Hamlet” the character Hamlet speaks his first soliloquy which reveals his innermost thoughts and feelings to the audience. In this soliloquy Hamlet’s unstable state of mind is evident as well as his feelings of despair about his father’s death and his disgust of his mother’s remarriage to his uncle Claudius. Hamlet’s hatred for his uncle is shown through harsh comparisons between Claudius and his late father. This soliloquy takes place after Claudius has begun his reign as king and has addressed the court for the first time but before Hamlet hears about the apparition that Horatio and the guards have seen. Hamlet’s character and personality are shown in this soliloquy through the use of classical imagery, diction and

Hamlet is considered to be Shakespeare's most famous play. The play is about Prince Hamlet and his struggles with the new marriage of his mother, Gertrude, and his uncle and now stepfather, King Claudius about only two months after his father’s death. Hamlet has an encounter with his father, Old King Hamlet, in ghost form. His father accuses Claudius of killing him and tells Hamlet to avenge his death. Hamlet is infuriated by this news and then begins his thoughts on what to do to get revenge. Hamlet and Claudius are contrasting characters. They do share similarities, however, their profound differences are what divides them.Hamlet was portrayed as troubled, inactive, and impulsive at times. Hamlet is troubled by many things, but the main source of his problems come from the the death of his father. “Oh, that this too, too sullied flesh would melt, thaw, and resolve itself into a dew, or that the everlasting had not fixed his canon 'gainst self-slaughter” (Act 1, Scene 2). In this scene, Hamlet is contemplating suicide, which is caused by the death of his father and the new marriage of Gertrude and King Claudius. This scene shows the extent of how troubled Hamlet is. Even though Hamlet’s father asked him to avenge his death, Hamlet is very slow to act on this throughout the play. “Now might I do it pat. Now he is a-praying. And now I’ll do ’t. And so he goes to heaven. And so am I revenged.—That would be scanned. A villain kills my father, and, for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send to heaven” (Act 3, Scene 3). This scene shows King Claudius praying, while Hamlet is behind him drawing his sword but decides not to kill

In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the titular character struggles to engage in his desired plan of revenge. Hamlet shows throughout the play that he is inconsistent, indecisive, and unsure of himself, as well as his actions. The play focuses on Hamlet’s revenge; however, he continuously fails to happen at opportunistic moments. Throughout the play, Hamlet insists that he intends to avenge his father’s death through the murder of Claudius, but Hamlet fails to act on occasion because of his indecisive personality.

King Claudius expresses, “Welcome, dear Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Moreover that we much did long to see you, the need we have to use you did provoke our hasty sending.” (2.2.1-4) He addresses them in what is seemingly a sincere manner, proclaiming the supposed yearning he has had. However, these so-called sincere actions towards Hamlet’s childhood friends are just to convince them to take on the role of spying on Hamlet’s actions and reporting them back to Gertrude and Claudius. He continues to mask his true motives by saying, “To draw him on to pleasures and to gather...you may glean..to us unknown, afflicts him thus that, opened, lies within our remedy.” (2.2.15-19) King Claudius’ choice of words convey an inkling to the audience that he cares for Hamlet because of how he expresses his need to find out Hamlet’s condition, and fix it. This also presents Gertrude with the idea that Claudius has Hamlet’s best interests at heart. This, in King Claudius’ favor, solidifies his honorable, yet selfless stature with his contriving

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, a ghost tells Hamlet that his uncle, Claudius, is responsible for the death of his father. Hamlet is driven to reveal the truth of his father's death and seeks to avenge his murder to achieve justice. In his quest to right the wrongdoing, Hamlet delays acting toward justice for many reasons. The main factor for Hamlet's hesitation is attributed to his self-discipline. He lacks of ability to act on his emotions. Hamlet is an intelligent, moral, and reserved character. He restrains himself to act rationally and not on emotion. This hesitation is a tragic flaw for Hamlet, but in order to resolve the truth, it is necessary.

• This scene of dramatic irony showcases Hamlet`s hatred for Claudius. He does not kill Claudius when he is praying because he doesn’t want him to go to heaven. Hamlet wants to wait until Claudius commits a sin to kill him, so that he will go to hell.

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Claudius’s soliloquy in Act 3, Scene 3, demonstrates that he is a very ambitious, selfish and sorrow individual with a sense of guilt. Claudius is very ambitious to where his lust for power often drives his actions. His desire for power will often lead to horrible consequences. For instance, it was revealed in Claudius’s soliloquy that he did in fact murder King Hamlet, his own brother. There are no limits to what Claudius will surpass in order to achieve what he wants since killing his own brother was not crossing over the line and he saw King Hamlet as nothing but a barrier standing in his way of gaining power. For example, Claudius expresses that “My guilt is stronger than my intentions. And like a person with two opposite things to do at once, I stand paralyzed and neglect them both”, meaning that

Pray can I not,/Though inclination be as sharp as will./My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent,/And like a man double business bound,/I stand in pause where i shall first begin,/And both neglect (Act III, III, 36).” This soliloquy also, like Hamlet, reveals another side to Claudius that clearly exposes remorse for what he had done. However, he further states in the soliloquy “May one be pardoned and retain th’offence? (Act III, III, 55).” This quote communicates to the audience an important side to his personality that portrays his greed and selfishness. Without the influential technique of soliloquies the audience would be oblivious to the important information they provided about the characters, this in result would leave the play lacking of any emotional development and deeper meaning. This would therefore reduce the reader’s reaction to significant character events such as death and would affect the overall impact of the play.

Although Hamlet has thoughts on the moral consequences of revenge, which is the cause of the delay to gain vengeance for his father, he deceives others by his irritating actions. After threatening the queen in her bedroom, telling her that she is not leaving the room until he knows that she is innocent from his fathers’ death.

Following the King’s action in response to the play, Hamlet has the perfect opportunity to avenge his father’s death yet he chooses not to which is the first act of delaying his goal. King Claudius storms off into a room in the castle where he says,

“Always mystify torture, mislead, and surprise the audience as much as possible”. This is exactly what happened in William Shakespeare’s, dramatic production Hamlet. The play, which is set in the Kingdom of Denmark, recounts how Prince Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle Claudius for murdering his father old King Hamlet, succeeding to the throne and his own mother. These contentious themes attracted viewers everywhere, tantalizing them to observe the play. One scene in particular from the original text of the play where this proves factual is during act IV, scene IV, lines 31-65, in which Hamlet decides that the time for retribution is at hand