William Shakespeare 's Hamlet Essay

William Shakespeare's Hamlet There were many factors which affected Shakespeare when he wrote Hamlet, one of which was the fashion at the time were all about revenge tragedies, the audience absolutely loved to watch violence. Shakespeare knew that, so most of his plays were in that category. When this play was written in 1601, Shakespeare's father died and also one of his generous patron and friend imprisoned due to the failure of a rebellion led by Lord Essex. Shakespeare himself had also taken part in the plot by authorizing a performance of Richard II on the eve of the events.

Hamlet is arguably the greatest dramatic character ever created. From the moment we meet the crestfallen Prince we are enraptured by his elegant intensity. Shrouded in his inky cloak, Hamlet is a man of radical contradictions -- he is reckless yet cautious, courteous yet uncivil, tender yet ferocious. He meets his father's death with consuming outrage and righteous indignation, yet shows no compunction when he himself is responsible for the deaths of the meddling Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and the pontificating lord chamberlain, Polonius. He uses the fragile and innocent Ophelia as an outlet for his disgust towards the Queen, and cannot comprehend that his own vicious words have caused her insanity. Hamlet is full of faults. But

How does the use of comic relief best contrast the tragedy of Hamlet? In great works of literature a comic relief is used as contrast to a serious scene to intensify the overall tragic nature of the play or to relieve tension. As illustrated in Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet, intense scenes are joined with character’s banter and vacuous actions as to add a comic relief. In Hamlet, Polonius acts as a comic relief by his dull and windy personality, Hamlet uses his intelligence and his negativity toward the king and queen to create humor, while on the other hand Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are a comic relief by their senseless actions and naïve natures. Polonius, Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are all used as a comic relief to

Hamlet is a suspenseful play that introduces the topic of tragedy. Throughout the play, Hamlet displays anger, uncertainty, and obsession with death. Although Hamlet is unaware of it, these emotions cause the mishaps that occur throughout the play. These emotions combined with his unawareness are the leading basis for the tragic hero’s flaws. These flaws lead Hamlet not to be a bad man, but a regular form of imperfection that comes along with being human.

Hamlet continues on and almost complains on the state of the world, calling it stale, flat, and unprofitable, showing how truly miserable he is. Hamlet considers suicide as a possible option of escape from his life in a painful world, but feels as though religion is preventing him from doing so. Hamlet then provides us with the roots for his pain and the reason for his contemplation of suicide. Hamlet is is troubled by his mothers marriage to Claudius, but especially how quickly the two were married after his father's death. He continues to express his dislike and hatred for Claudius calling him a satyr, while praising his father and saying how excellent of a king his father was. In one of the final lines of the soliloquy Hamlet comments on how the marriage is a bad omen for Denmark, "It is not, nor it cannot come to good," (I. ii. 163). For the first time we are introduced to the idea of suicide which will continue to present itself as the play develops.

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Laertes and Hamlet both lose a father by unnatural and sudden death. The unnatural death of the father is brought on by someone close to the son. When Laertes discovers that his father is dead, he is outraged. When Hamlet learns from the ghost of his father’s murder, he weeps, and promises action, though he delivers none. Both Laertes and Hamlet grieve deeply for their fathers, but Laertes acts upon this grief while Hamlet carefully plots his revenge and waits for the perfect moment to avenge King Hamlet. Laertes’ unplanned action causes his death by his own sword, while Hamlet’s apparent inaction finally gets him the revenge that Laertes has attempted. Though Laertes’ grief at his father’s death causes his

The concept of suicide is one that is greatly contemplated and discussed by Hamlet and other characters in William Shakespeare's play. It can be seen through two of Hamlet's soliloquies and his overall demeanor throughout the play. Hamlet has many issues that he must deal with such as the death of his father and the marriage of his uncle and mother. These two incidents led Hamlet to consider the extreme act of suicide to escape the fate that he had been bestowed. Although Hamlet did not commit suicide, in the end the path that he took inevitably led to his suicidal intentions and his eventual downfall. The contemplation of suicide threatens Hamlet and various characters in the play leading to the

Hamlet is categorized as one of the greatest plays ever written. In the play the main character Prince Hamlet has a very complicated character. As the play goes along Hamlet displays a wide range of emotions through his actions and his words. With doing this, it creates controversy amongst the critics and readers of the play. They find it difficult to come to a conclusion of whether Hamlet 's “madness” is sincere or if he is simply a fake. However there is evidence in order to support one side of this debate. The answer simply lies in the actor 's performance. In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, it is clearly evident Prince Hamlet is feigning madness in an effort to outsmart his enemies and avenge his father’s murder.

William Shakespeare’s famously philosophical play Hamlet epitomizes the revenge tragedy; the play’s characters are forced to act vengefully only to result in a bloody, dismal

Far too often we see men and women with noble causes lose their motive because of their emotional behavior. Their emotions cause them to lose track. We see no finer example of a man with a noble cause whose emotions cause him to lose sight of his noble cause: the character of Laertes in the play Hamlet. Laertes has a vendetta against Hamlet for killing his father. Although Laertes meant well in avenging his father’s death, his emotional behavior overtook him in the process. If we look at other characters in the play, we find a similar struggle between a noble goal and one’s emotions. Hamlet fights the same battle as Laertes does; however, Hamlet is better able to control his emotions. To maintain a noble goal without faltering,

Hamlet and the Question of Depression: Is it Existential Philosophy or Mental Disorder? Two contrasting views emerge in discussion about the character of Hamlet in Shakespeare’s tragic play about a young son who seeks out to avenge his father’s most foul and unnatural murder. The first view is that Hamlet is just a deep thinker and concerned about the nature of humanity and the fate stemming from his impending mortality. The entire play is a dance to death. But what is the takeaway?

“The usual reading of Shakespeare’s play attributes Hamlet’s depression to his father’s death and his mother’s too-prompt remarriage. (Greenfeld 352).” Everything that is happening in Hamlet’s life causes his mind to deteriorate. His family life is crumbling apart, and life as he once knew it is changed for the worst, and it causes him to be depressed. As suicide is a major sign of depression, Hamlet has mental illness

This essay will discuss several literary criticisms of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. After skimming through several articles, I ended up with four peer-reviewed journal articles, each a different critical perspectives of the play: feminist, psychoanalytical/freudian, moral, and new historicism. My previous studies of Hamlet, as well as my rereading of the play this semester, has collectively given me a general knowledge of the text. My familiarity of the play made it easier for me to decipher the academic journals and see the connections each critic made with the play.

as these lines relate back to the development of Ophelia’s character, as well as play an important role in the plot of the play, and a major conflict that is portrayed.

Hamlet is full of death. The whole plot revolves around the death of King Hamlet, and death is what drives the play forward. Hamlet is surrounded by death and struggles with dealing with it. Before the tragic ending, Hamlet loses his father to murder and his love to crazed suicide. Hamlet also murders the father of his love, Polonius. Shakespeare uses Hamlet’s questioning of his own mortality and fear of death to connect with the human problem: that if we all die, what is the point of living?