Compare And Contrast Lion King And Hamlet

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Between Disney’s The Lion King and William Shakespeare’s Hamlet exists a great deal of similarity but also some differences. The two stories have very similar story lines. In each of the stories the king is killed by his brother. The brother takes over the throne from the deceased king, and it is up to the king’s son to take revenge on his father’s murder and retake the throne. However, each story has its own unique differences. Shakespeare’s Hamlet is one of his most famous works. In the play, Hamlet, king of Denmark, is murdered by his brother, Claudius. Claudius then takes the thrown and marries King Hamlet’s widow, Gertrude. The king’s son, also named Hamlet, is challenged by the ghost of his father to avenge his death and bring Claudius …show more content…

Mufasa and King Hamlet are both kings of a thriving kingdom. In addition, each of the characters seems to be in their prime when he is murdered. In like manner, Simba and Hamlet are very similar characters. They are both sons of nobility, and they each has his father taken away from him. Furthermore, after their fathers die, each of the characters struggles with reality. Similarly, Scar and Claudius are both comparable to each other. Each one of them seems to be portrayed as a dark character. They are seen to be very sneaky, and most of their work is done in the shadows. Both of the characters are jealous of their successful brothers, which leads to their premeditated murder of them both. Furthermore, Zazu can also be made equivalent to Shakespeare’s character, Polonius. They are both unrelated to their respective kings, and they are each the king’s advisor or right hand man. At the beginning of The Lion King, Zazu is sent by Sarabi to watch over Simba and Nala, which is a scene very related to Hamlet, which has Polonius hiding behind the curtain to watch Hamlet and Ophelia. There are also several minor character comparisons such as Ophelia to Nala, Gertrude to Sarabi, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to Timon and Pumba. The cast of these two works seems to be thoroughly

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