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Theme Of Death In Hamlet

Decent Essays

The afterlife plays a critical role, in key decisions made throughout the play Hamlet. This can be prominently seen in the character Hamlet, and the influence his dead father, has on him. As well as the influence that death itself holds over Hamlet, through ideas of suicide and the effect it will have over him, whether he will go to purgatory or heaven. Hamlet also suffers from a fear of the unknown, focused on by Shakespeare, through the themes of death, and what happens when we die. Through these ideas and themes found under the idea of death, Shakespeare creates a masterpiece in which death is both feared and adored, and the concept of the unknown has been ever present.

The first theme of death, found in Hamlet can be seen in Act 1, through Hamlet's famous soliloquy. “To be or not to be.” The connotations behind this rhetorical question, stated by Hamlet, are whether he should end his life, through a means of suicide. This theme showcases, Hamlet's personality, and his emotional behaviour as well as, showing the audience the hold that religion holds over the world at the time of Shakespeare's writing, and Hamlet himself. This is again seen through Hamlet's soliloquy in the line, “Thus Conscience makes cowards of us all.” This quote, towards the end of Hamlet’s soliloquy, is a result of Hamlet deciding against suicide due to the idea that he does not know what will happen to his soul, in the “Undiscovered land.” or rather, whether heaven and hell exist or are merely

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