Shakespeare's Legacy In Hamlet

375 Words1 Page

The idea of legacy means that someone has passed on knowledge to future generations after they have passed away. Old King Hamlet was loved by his people and was seen as a brave king as he had slain King Fortinbras of Norway in battle as he reclaimed land for Denmark. Yet even though he was a very remarkable man, after his death his wife re-married right away, seeming as if she never cared for him at all. Perhaps his legacy carried on in his son, Prince Hamlet, nevertheless, most of his people, including his own wife and brother, seemed to have forgotten his courageous sacrifices. The concept of legacy is mentioned throughout the play, particularly near the end in which Hamlet is dying from a poisoned sword. In his last dying moments, Hamlet

Show More
Related

  • Exploring Mortality in Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1316 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is primal instinct for humans to say they understand what something means, even if they have never heard of it before. Take the word mortality, for example, news reporters and journalists are constantly saying it, but ask a viewer what it means and they will stumble. William Shakespeare however, understood mortality very well and was quite fond of using the word as a motif in many of his plays, especially so in Hamlet. By using direct references to disease and illness, an unweeded garden, and rotting and decay, Shakespeare’s Hamlet illustrates how death and corruption run rampant in the helpless state of Denmark while under the rule of Claudius.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Genius Of Hamlet

    767 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sometimes, revenge can be utterly nasty and repeated. A Serbian patriot once slayed an Austrian archduke to exact his revenge for Austria’s occupation of his land. Austria retaliated by starting World War I. After the war, the Allied powers took revenge by enforcing massive fines and taking away land from the defeated countries. One of them was Germany. This led to Hitler’s rise to power and took revenge against France by making them sign their surrender in the same train where Germany gave up in World War I. Following World War II, Germany was obligated to repair some of the damage done by paying war reparations to the Allies and Jewish people after the war. When countries recur to revenge, history reiterates, more often than not, it means war. On a smaller scale, in Hamlet, the prince of Denmark begins an inner war that provokes quite significant inner struggles as well as an outer war with Claudius to avenge his father’s death. William Shakespeare masterfully portrays Hamlet, whose experiences and emotions drive him to alternate between the realms of sanity and insanity to achieve his ambition. As the ancient proverb states, “desperate times call for desperate measures.” These “desperate times” include the murder of his father Hamlet Senior, King of the Danes, by his malicious uncle, Claudius, the seeming suicide of his love, Ophelia, his mother's quick remarriage to Claudius after his father's death.

    Read More

  • Hamlet and Isolation

    1348 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlets self responsibilities continue when he hears of how his father died. Hamlet said immediately after hearing from the dead king: “Haste me to know’t; that I, with wings as swift as meditation or thoughts of love, May sweep to my revenge.” (1.5 29-31) This revenge to Claudius is Hamlets revenge, as he says not revenge for his father. This causes isolation because Hamlet now is against the new king, while everyone else supports Claudius, so Hamlet finds himself alone. Hamlet finds that his father’s death is now his utter responsibility. Hamlet said after talking to the ghost; “I’ll wipe away all trivial fond records, All saws of books, all forms, all pressures past, That youth and observation copied there; And they commandment all alone shall live within the book and volume of my brain, unmix’d with baser matter.” (1.5 100-05) Hamlet seems to decide with determination that he will "wipe away" all of his memories of "youth", and all "past pressures" so that he could do what the ghost says. Now hamlet cannot be himself, for fear of himself being loyal, he has just dedicated his ...

    Read More

  • Hamlet's Journey Through the Grieving Process in Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1241 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lastly, Hamlet accepts that he will not be able to carry out the roots of being a king as he is dying. He says to Horatio, “I do prophesy th’ election lights/on Fortinbras; he has my dying voice” (5.2.380-381). Just as a person has a will testimony before they pass away, so to does Hamlet, as he desires Fortinbras to become King. One can see that Hamlet fulfills the last stage of the grief cycle, acceptance. Through the death of Hamlet’s father, Shakespeare shows how one tragedy can lead to many stages of grief as well as the downfall of the character.

    Read More

  • Hamlet: The Epitome of Timeless Literature

    828 Words  | 2 Pages

    “If all the plays ever suddenly disappeared and only Hamlet miraculously survived, all the theaters in the world would be saved. They could all put on Hamlet and be successful”- Vsevolod Meyerhold (a Russian director). Why is it that Hamlet alone could save the theaters? It could be the basic, underlying story: that the King kills his brother in order to obtain the throne forcing his son to seek revenge. This key factor can be interpreted differently depending on who is reading the play which leads to its timelessness and universality.

    Read More

  • Parent And Child Conflict In Hamlet

    605 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hamlet is the son of Queen Gertrude, this type of parent and child conflicts are somewhat common in some of Shakespeare’s plays. The events surrounding these characters must be taken into account as we watch the attitudes and personalities of Gertrude and Hamlet change as the play progresses. They have their own unique places in the story but do not always mesh well together when thrown into a conflict. Throughout the play hamlet struggles to keep his sanity. This is especially apparent after his father’s ghost visits him. The ghost tells him that his father was murdered by his uncle Claudius, who is the curre...

    Read More

  • Hamlet Essays: The Tragic Hero In Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1211 Words  | 3 Pages

    Defined by the Greek philosopher Aristotle, a tragic hero, in literature, is the main character in a story or piece of writing who has one flaw that brings them to their demise. In William Shakespeare 's play Hamlet, throughout the tragedy there is one character above all the others that fits the part of a tragic hero. The misfortunate protagonist, Prince Hamlet of Denmark who constantly shows the viewers his flaw of procrastination and which ultimately leads him and many other characters to their unfortunate and preventable death.

    Read More

  • Analysis of William Shakespeare's Hamlet

    436 Words  | 1 Pages

    To understand a play, you must first understand the fundamentals for the play: protagonist, antagonist, exposition, rising action, crisis, climax and resolution. I will examine Hamlet by William Shakespeare. This is a great example for the purpose of this paper it provides a clear and great examples.

    Read More

  • The Transformation of Hamlet

    933 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of the story, Hamlet’s character was struggling with the sudden marriage of his mother, Gertrude, to his uncle, Claudius, a month after his father is death.  For a young man, it’s hard to believe that he understood why his mother quickly married Claudius especially since, Claudius is his uncle. Later he learned that his father’s ghost was sighted. Intuitively, he knew there had to be some kind of “foul play.” At this point, Hamlet is a university student; his morals and way of thinking are defined by books and what was taught to him. This is seen when he speaks about the flaws of men, setting a bad reputation for all, and the man’s flaws causing their “downfall.”(a.1, sc.4, l.)

    Read More

  • Hamlet's Motive

    1677 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the exploration of Hamlet as a character removed from William Shakespeare himself, critics have often made numerous interpretations, based on their own findings through the unchanging words of Hamlet. As Bradby states: “Hamlet is a central figure of surpassing interest and genius, which has gripped the imagination of the learned and the unlearned in all ages and which will continue to fascinate so as the mind of man is haunted by the mystery of life and death” (Bradby 60).

    Read More

  • Hamlet, the Existentialist

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet appears to be a rather philosophical character. He is skeptical and expresses views that nowadays can be described as existential and relativist, but those terms did not exist in Shakespeare’s time. Existentialism analyzes existence and the way humans appear to exist in this world. It is concerned with the individual; finding oneself and finding a meaning to life by one’s own measures.That is exactly what Hamlet is going through. Presented with the jarring conflict of avenging his father’s death, Hamlet finds his meaning to life shortly before dying himself among others tangled in this mess. He was tasked by the ghost of his father to kill Claudius in an act of vengeance, which would be considered noble (though in this case, it is a regicide avenging a regicide; treason for treason). The ideals of society demand that he...

    Read More

  • Hamlet as a Tragic Figure

    866 Words  | 2 Pages

    for a person of lowly rank that loses his or her fortune or rank than

    Read More

  • Free Hamlet Essays: Hamlet's Numerous Problems

    1059 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet's problem is not exact; it cannot be pinpointed. In fact, Hamlet has numerous problems that contribute to his dilemma. The first of these problems is the appearance of King Hamlet's ghost to his son, Hamlet. Hamlet's morality adds a great deal to his delay in murdering the current king, Claudius. One of Hamlet's biggest drawbacks is that he tends to think things out too much. Hamlet does not act on instinct; however, he makes certain that every action is premeditated. Hamlet suffers a great deal from melancholy; this in turn causes him to constantly second guess himself. The Ghost is the main cause of Hamlet's melancholy. Also, Hamlet's melancholy helps to clear up certain aspects of the play. These are just a few of the problems that Hamlet encounters throughout his ordeal.

    Read More

  • Free Hamlet Essays: The Downfall of Hamlet

    695 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many reasons why Hamlet had his downfall. One being his decision to keeping the murder of his father a secret. Another one being the betrayals of his closest friends. Perhaps if Guildenstern or Rosencrantz had been there for Hamlet, to rely and place trust upon, he might not had to fell so alone. A little sympathy from his girlfriend Ophelia, and even his mother Gertrude would have been nice as well. Unfortunately Ophelia is held back from Hamlet, due to her father. Gertrude marries his uncle Claudius, who is responsible for his fathers death, and is looking to kill him next. And Guildenstern and Rosencrantz are ordered by Claudius to spy on Hamlet, and betray him as a friend.

    Read More

  • Hamlet: A Tragic Hero

    685 Words  | 2 Pages

    The tragedy of Hamlet, Shakespeare’s most popular and greatest tragedy, presents his genius as a playwright and includes many numbers of themes and literary techniques. In all tragedies, the main character, called a tragic hero, suffers and usually dies at the end. Prince Hamlet is a model example of a Shakespearean tragic hero. Every tragedy must have a tragic hero. A tragic hero must own many good traits, but has a flaw that ultimately leads to his downfall. If not for this tragic flaw, the hero would be able to survive at the end of the play. A tragic hero must have free will and also have the characteristics of being brave and noble. In addition, the audience must feel some sympathy for the tragic hero.

    Read More

More about Shakespeare's Legacy In Hamlet

Open Document