Chaos through reordering in Hamlet Trying to reorder one’s world can cause chaos for not only the individual but for others. In Hamlet written by William Shakespeare, a result of multiple characters trying to reorder their world through varying actions, interests, and plans chaos is wrought. Firstly, through the plans and actions of Claudius, as he murders old Hamlet to gain the throne from him, marrying Gertrude to complete his climb to kinghood. Until he tries reordering his world by the end trying to kill Hamlet through others. Next is through Polonius trying to bring his family higher into the king’s favor through spying and ordering his family to reach his own means. Finally, through Hamlet’s plotting and schemes to avenge his father …show more content…
It is later found that old Hamlet’s death happened as the ghost says “sleeping in my orchard, a serpent stung me.” (Act1, scn5 35-36) but is later found to be false as the ghost later explains that Claudius in trying to gain the throne killed old Hamlet. Though this act may not have caused chaos on a grand scale the effects of such an act can be seen in Hamlet as he becomes heart-stricken and throughout the play very morose and depressed. Next is another act that again affects Hamlet the most and this is through Claudius marrying Gertrude to further secure his seat of power. This again not only causes sadness but anger in Hamlet, with Hamlet latter killing of Polonius being attributed to his mindset which centers on his mother marrying Claudius. Lastly, Claudius leads to the eventual death of many other for his plan of trying to kill Hamlet. This is through Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and later through Laertes and the mistaken death of Gertrude. It is through trying to escort Hamlet to England that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are escaped from by Hamlet and head to England with letters leading to their deaths. Then through Laertes, Claudius prepares a plan with a sharpened blade that’s poisoned and Claudius prepares a cup for Hamlet, also poisoned. But the plan ended up having both Laertes and the
In William Shakespeare 's Hamlet, there are many characters that allow themselves to be manipulated and be consumed by their own emotions. The way that this type of irrational behavior occurs is when Claudius killed Hamlet Sr, this causes a chain reaction of unfortunate events. Gertrude and Claudius plan to immediately marry after the death of the king. On going with the repercussions of the event; Hamlet is later visited by the dead spirit of his father. This happening caused Hamlet to realize that he needed to avenge his dead father by killing Claudius and rightfully taking the throne back after the ghost of his father told him to do so. Along with all the supernatural things that occur Hamlet is faced with technicalities in the Kingdom of Denmark. His love for Ophelia is rebuffed do to Polonius and Laertes insisting to her that Hamlet only wants to be with her for her only for lust. Claudius hires people to spy on Hamlet and report his every move to him. Hamlet attempts to
Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a terrific model of what takes place when people prefer to fulfill others requests and plans for their spirits. The major players in Hamlet choose to follow what others request of them, and this leads to their detriment. Since they do not stay true to themselves, they are responsible for their own brutal deaths. From Ophelia to Hamlet, every character became a slave to someone else’s desires and wishes. This ensures they lose all control over their future and places them on the direct path to self-destruction.
Deceit, misleading information, and spying on others can lead to their demise, intentionally or accidentally. The misleading and deceitful instances in the play are indirectly responsible for Hamlets’ death. Claudius misleads Hamlet when he shipped him off to England under the guise of a restful retreat and when he realizes that the new king has lied to not only him, but the people of Denmark about the death of the former king. Hamlets’ deceit comes from his mother, believing that she has betrayed his father’s love by not mourning for long enough after his death, and by marrying Claudius. Spying also causes problems for Hamlet down the line since it leads to the killing of Polonius, and the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.
Hamlet as Victim of a Corrupt World Troubled by royal treason, ruthless scheming, and a ghost, Denmark is on the verge of destruction. Directly following King Hamlet's death, the widowed Queen Gertrude remarried Claudius, the King's brother. Prince Hamlet sees the union of his mother and uncle as a "hasty and incestuous" act (Charles Boyce, 232). He then finds out that Claudius is responsible for his father's treacherous murder. His father's ghost asks Hamlet to avenge his death, and Hamlet agrees.
In William Shakespeare 's play, Hamlet, after Hamlet’s father is murdered with poison by his brother Claudius, the contagion of vengeful actions begins to plague the people in the kingdom. Hamlet Sr. and his death are symbolic of the kingdom as a whole. Once he is poisoned the evil deeds of King Claudius begin to spread throughout Elsinore. Hamlet puts on an antic disposition and decides to seek retribution after speaking with his father’s ghost, and uncovering the truth about his death. The tainting of Hamlet’s mind and his need to seek revenge against his uncle ultimately leads to Hamlet’s insanity and demise towards the resolution of the play. Everyone in the kingdom becomes delusional and angry, and Shakespeare uses
William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet follows the revenge Hamlet takes on his uncle Claudius to avenge Hamlet Sr.’s death. Hamlet Sr. appears as a ghost to Hamlet and asks him to avenge his death, which was caused by Claudius, Hamlet Sr.’s brother. Claudius killed his brother and married his wife, Gertrude and became king. The king’s advisor Polonius is also slain in the play and his son Laertes wants to avenge his death also. Hamlet and Laertes have many similarities and some differences in the play. Bravery is what ultimately ties Hamlet and Laertes together.
One single moment or event during the course of an individual’s life can effectively alter their priorities and transform their identity drastically. In The play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, Shakespeare introduces the readers to the protagonist Hamlet who is draped in anger and emotions and has a new-found mission in life. Initially, Hamlet is portrayed as an individual in mourning over his father's death and his mother's haste in remarrying to her brother-in-law and Hamlet's uncle, Claudius. However, Hamlet’s character and personality were drastically altered after meeting the Ghost and discovering the true nature of his Father’s death. Hamlet is now a man with a lust for revenge and a willingness to do anything that will enable him to accomplish this goal. When burdened with the task of killing Claudius, Hamlet chooses to sacrifice all he holds dear by transforming his identity in a noble effort to avenge his father’s death.
"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." (Hamlet. 1.4, l.90) In every society a distinctive hierarchy or organization of power exists. In the Shakespearean world, life is kept constant through the maintenance of the Great Chain of Being or moral order. Any disruption in this chain is believed to cause chaos in society. In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Denmark is thrown into chaos by the reckless actions of several characters that fail to follow the moral order. Hamlet is instructed by the ghost of his beloved father to restore order to Denmark and seek revenge on Claudius, the present king of Denmark and murderer of his father. By identifying the various levels of disorder in Denmark an evaluation of the effectiveness of Hamlet's "antic disposition" as a plan to restore order will be made.
The “Concept of Order” suggests that everything in life has a specific position and plays a certain role in society, spouting utopist ideals. When something, for example, a person, breaks that pattern, the society becomes uncontrolled and causes a chain reaction of disorder leading to chaos. Until that order is once again restored, whether it is through death, heroic actions, or a mixture of both, the society will continue in a disorganized and turbulent manner. Shakespeare focuses on how a chaotic social order prevents the ability of humans to live in peace. In “Hamlet”, it is when both familial and political order is re-established, that social order is restored.
Claudius is the brother of Hamlet’s late father, and is now married to Hamlet’s mother. Claudius appears to be a sympathetic husband who only has Gertrude and Hamlet’s best interests at heart. He is actually the main conspirator against Hamlet. He arranges for Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and others, to spy on Hamlet. When he feels Hamlet is becoming too big of a problem, the ‘loving father and husband’ plans to have his stepson murdered upon arrival in England. Hamlet finds evidence of this, and returns to Elsinore. Claudius receives a letter from Hamlet, stating he will be returning, which causes Claudius to manipulate Laertes by pretending he cares for him. He also claims to mourn the death of Laerte’s father, Polonius, stating, “I loved your father”, in order to convince Laertes to agree to kill Hamlet (IV.vii,34). Claudius arranges for what appears to be a friendly duel between Hamlet and Laertes, but plots to use this match to end Hamlet. He poisons Laertes’s blade, and as a backup, poisons the cup of wine Hamlet is to drink from. Claudiu...
and the fear of his own death leads to his ruin. Claudius praying for forgiveness shows his guilt and that his “stronger guilt defeats [his] strong intent” (3.3.85). When Claudius realized that he is “still possessed of those effects for which [he] did the murder” (3.3.85) he knew that he could not be forgiven and all his prayers to be forgiven would not be answered because “words without thoughts never to heaven go” (3.4.87). The guilt Claudius felt eventually turned into Claudius planning the death of Hamlet to save himself. Claudius became aware that Hamlet knew of the murder and that Hamlet was coming home from England “set naked on [his] kingdom” (4.7.116). In fear of his own death he then plotted the plan with Laertes that ends up killing Laertes, Hamlet, and Claudius himself. Claudius also kills another character that he had no intentions of killing. That character is Gertrude. Claudius claimed to love Gertrude and that “she is so conjunctive to [his] heart and soul that, as the star moves but not in his sphere, [he] could not but by her” (4.7.115). Claudius killing Hamlet Sr. caused evil to breed and if the evil deed was never done Claudius would not have planned the death of Hamlet and Gertrude would not have had to drink from the poisoned cup that lead to her death. Overall if the guilt and Claudius’s fear of death was not present Claudius would not have made such a hasty decision causing his plan to
Claudius, the wise man, is not so wise anymore. His short amount of time being King, 9 people died, including King Hamlet, Hamlet, Queen Gertrude, Laertes, Ophelia, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Polonius, and Claudius, him self, all because of his selfish ways. First he wanted to become King, and have a gorgeous wife, because he was envious of his brother. He wanted it all, but no one gets it that easy. As soon as anyone got in his way of his brilliant plan, he wanted to destroy them. Claudius did everything in his power to save his ass. Although poison was a metaphor in this play it is also clear that poison was literally being used as well. Unfortunately for Claudius though, saving his own ass killed everyone around him, including the ones he loved, therefore left him with nothing and now he is the one who is truly dead.
Throughout Shakespeare’s play, revenge intertwines to bring about the deaths of most of the main characters. Hamlet’s course of revenge initiates the first fatality when Polonius gets caught spying on him and Gertrude (III. iv. 24-25). By pursuing revenge, Hamlet killing Polonius paves the way for more lives to be lost. Claudius sees the murder as an opportunity to eliminate Hamlet, because Laertes’s obsession with revenge leaves him vulnerable. Laertes’s and Hamlet’s revenge lead to the deaths of Gertrude, Laertes, Claudius, and finally Hamlet (V. ii. 287-357). The revenge of each character ironically ended their own life. By acting upon revenge and having inimical intentions, the individuals brought fatalities that were unnecessary.
Up until this point the kingdom of Denmark believed that old Hamlet had died of natural causes. As it was custom, prince Hamlet sought to avenge his father’s death. This leads Hamlet, the main character into a state of internal conflict as he agonises over what action and when to take it as to avenge his father’s death. Shakespeare’s play presents the reader with various forms of conflict which plague his characters. He explores these conflicts through the use of soliloquies, recurring motifs, structure and mirror plotting.
With his thinking mind Hamlet does not become a typical vengeful character. Unlike most erratic behavior of individuals seeking revenge out of rage, Hamlet considers the consequences of his actions. What would the people think of their prince if he were to murder the king? What kind of effect would it have on his beloved mother? Hamlet considers questions of this type which in effect hasten his descision. After all, once his mother is dead and her feelings out of the picture , Hamlet is quick and aggressive in forcing poison into Claudius' mouth. Once Hamlet is certain that Claudius is the killer it is only after he himself is and and his empire falling that he can finally act.