William Shakespeare, perhaps the greatest playwright of all time, authored a number of works consisting of sonnets, comedies, and tragedies. In his brilliant career, Shakespeare created literary works of art. What makes Shakespeare unlike any other writer of his time, or thereafter, is his ability to organize a realistic plot, manage themes, and develop characters within his works. As well, Shakespeare¡¯s ability to provoke feeling and reaction to his writing is also what sets him apart from other common writers.
Of his works, Hamlet is without question the most famous play in the English language. Probably written in 1601 or 1602, the tragedy is a milestone in Shakespeare's dramatic development; the playwright achieved artistic maturity in this work through his brilliant depiction of the hero's struggle with two opposing forces: moral integrity and the need to avenge his father's murder. Although four hundred years has passed, this tragedy has been sparkling with a peculiar beauty of its own. In Hamlet, Shakespeare wrote an incomparable profound tragedy of human spirit from a very common myth and vested the hero Hamlet with deep thoughts and emotions that many people possess. No wonder the famous writer Belinsky exclaimed: ¡°Hamlet ¡ is really great and profound: this is life, this is human being, this is you, this is me, this is everyone of us.¡±
Hamlet was the young prince of Denmark. His uncle Claudius murdered the old King Hamlet, married the Queen and then became the new king. Early in the play the details of the murder become known to Hamlet, he vows to carry out his revenge, and eventually he does so, bringing the action to a close. But unlike common people who take revenge at the time of knowing the murder, he delayed to take action. Hamlet does not kill Claudius in church, while he has the best chance of doing so up until that point; He is known in the kingdom as a brilliant fencer, and shows his skill in the match with Laertes, after which he is able to cut the king and take the glass of poison from Horatio's hand, all that while dying of deadly poison. What then is the reason for his delay of action? This question has been the field for many literary critics' battles. No doubts, Hamlet had his own reason. And this should be connected with his character.
Hamlet's character shows much discouragement, earnestness, and sensitivity towards his new...
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...owever, in Hamlet, the use of the soliloquy offers the audience a gateway into the minds of the characters, and in this case the various reasons why Hamlet delays in exacting revenge. This is why Shakespeare¡¯s plays have been attracting people for hundreds of years. As to Hamlet, In today's society and its values, Hamlet continues to be a tool in the contribution to ideals of value and morality. This story of a man and his downfalls should be considered a definite asset to the improvement of society, and a lesson learned in compassion for others. The best lessons are learned through mistakes.
Bibliography
1. Hamlet, edited by David Bevington, Bantam Bcoks, New York, Toronto, London, Sydney, Auckland. 1989.
2. Bevington, David ed. The Comlete Works pf Shakespears. Dallas, Oakland, Palo Alto, Tucker, Kondon. Scott, Foresman and Company, Srd Edition, 1980.
3. Calderwood, Janes L. and Toliver, Harold E. ed. Essays in Shakespearean Criticism. Engliewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Prentice-Hall, Inc. 1970.
4. David Philips. Notes on Hamlet, Ginn& Company Ltd. London. 1969.
Shakespeare, William, Stephen Greenblatt, Walter Cohen, Jean E. Howard, Katharine Eisaman Maus, and Andrew Gurr. The Norton Shakespeare. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 1997. Print.
Dutton, R., & Howard, J.E. (2003). A Companion to Shakespeare’s Works.(p. 9) Maiden, MA: Blackwell Pub.
Clark, W. G. and Wright, W. Aldis , ed. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Vol. 1. New York: Nelson-Doubleday
William Shakespeare is seen to many as one of the great writers in history. More specifically, the characters in his plays are reviewed and criticized and have been so for nearly four centuries. The character that many have revered Shakespeare for is perhaps the greatest such character ever in literature, Hamlet from Shakespeare's Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. The commentary and response to this legend of literature is of wide array and opinion, though most, such as Pennington, believe him to be a truly magnificent character: "Hamlet is perhaps the cleverest hero ever written, the subject of the first European tragedy, a form of genius. A type Shakespeare despaired of writing thereafter, having perceived that the heroes of tragedies must be sublime idiots" (185). However, despite his clear gifts and aura, Hamlet was a doomed character from the beginning: Hamlet is dominated by an emotion that is inexpressible. It is thus a feeling he cannot understand, he cannot objectify it, and it therefore remains open to poison life and to obstruct action" (Eliot 25). Thus, Hamlet, while possessing the traits of no other men of his time, a true Renaissance man, was doomed from the beginning of the play partly by forces he could not control, and also partly by his own character. It leads to a slow but definite ending to one of literature's great characters, one that he could not control. In the end, Hamlet was out of place in his environment, he was simply not meant to be.
Cohen, Walter, J.E. Howard, K. Eisaman Maus. The Norton Shakespeare. Vol. 2 Stephen Greenblatt, General Editor. New York, London. 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-92991-1
The tragedy of Hamlet is complex, leading the audience to more questions than resolutions. While several elements lead to Hamlet striking the King dead, the purpose for Hamlet to strike is the murder of the Queen. The blood of the Queen staining King Claudius’s already blood stained hands and the sudden feeling of self preservation were the elements that leads Hamlet to become impulsive with his actions. With rage and self preservation being the incentive for Hamlet to slaughter the King, it stands to reason that Hamlet broke his oath of revenge for his father’s death. Hamlet, in the end, lets his words get away from him when he promises himself to his father’s ghost, leading to the failure to keep his promises.
In conclusion, Hamlet is undeniably the crown of indulgence into contemporary behaviors and insight into human complexities. Shakespeare’s exquisite use of theme, entertainment and characterization not only develops the intricate plot and body of the play, but also invites the audience into a realm of knowledge and understanding. Ultimately, the pursuit of knowledge is the greatest asset known to humankind. Its infinite possibilities excite the imagination and for that reason, one should value contemporary literary works. But it is important to respect and study the foundation of these pieces, for they base their content off of the classics.
Shakespeare consists of classic tales, as some would say. He uses such a beautiful language and a strong depiction of his characters, atmosphere, background and even the overall message he tries to send through his productions. Specifically, Hamlet is a very important play because it covers a broad range of themes that we encounter today in the 20th century ranging from love, betrayal, politics, war, death, insanity, espionage and so on. Shakespeare’s work was a form of art and you can get a lot out of his
Shakespeare was a man who never was able to see the full impact of his plays on the world. They were very popular when he was alive, but that was a time when plays were watched and not read as they are today. When reading his plays it is evident that everything in the play was intentional with double and even triple meanings built into single lines. His play Hamlet is full of these punch lines that Shakespeare is now famous for. Hamlet is a tragedy that is almost void of all action. What it really is, is a play about words. For the first few acts of the play nothing really takes place, it is all words and contemplation with no action. Shakespeare uses all of these words to build up the characters in his play. In the story of Hamlet, King Hamlet
Hamlet is a well-written tragedy because of the use of Reversal and Recognition, the bringing about of pity and fear to cause catharsis, and a strong story structure. Just as Batman falls in The Dark Knight, many characters, that start out as appreciated, fall in Hamlet.
Heilman, Robert B. “The Role We Give Shakespeare.” Essays on Shakespeare. Ed. Gerald Chapman. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965.
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, title character in the play of the same name, has been criticized for centuries due to his delay in killing his uncle Claudius and the consequences that occurred as a result. But as one critic once pointed out, “No delay, no play” (Jenkins 137). The entire plot of Hamlet is based on the events that occur due to Hamlet’s waffling as to whether or not he should, and when he should, avenge his father’s murder. Hamlet, who appears to be a Christian man, would be committing a murder regardless of the reasons. This is not something that most would take lightly or rush in to under any circumstances. This discussion will defend Hamlet’s continuous delays by analyzing certain situations in the play which affect his decision to wait to kill Claudius.
Hamlet’s Procrastination and Cowardice In William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Hamlet is a loyal prince who vows to avenge his father’s murder. When Hamlet discovers the painful truth about his father’s death, he is left with feelings of hatred and resentment in his heart towards the murderer, Claudius. Although Hamlet is a very noble and sophisticated man, he struggles with the issue of avenging his father’s death. He swears his revenge will be quick, however, this is not the case. Since Hamlet is more into philosophizing than action, he thinks about his intention to kill Claudius. The more he thinks about his intention, the less he is able to execute it. The tragic flaw that Hamlet possesses is his inability to act. He vows that he is going to kill Claudius but backs out of it several times before the deed is actually done. Hamlet’s first sign of procrastination and lack of action begins to show through his character at the very beginning of the play. The ghost informs him about Claudius’ evil doings. Hamlet is prompt by replying: “Haste me to know’t; that I, with wings as swift As meditation or the thoughts of love, May sweep to my revenge.'; (Shakespeare, p. 67) This passage shows how Hamlet decides to avenge his father’s death. In fact, he declares that he will be committed to nothing else but the revenge against Claudius:
Hamlet's delay came from a conflict between action and awareness that made him see both sides of every issue. Hamlet realized that to avenge his father’s death, he must kill Claudius, but at the same time he knew that there would be consequences for this action. For example, in Act III, scene III, Hamlet had the opportunity to kill Claudius, but he believed that Claudius was praying. If Hamlet had killed Claudius when he was praying for forgiveness, Hamlet believed Claudius would have gone to heaven. Thinking this, Hamlet decided to wait until the king was doing something bad, so that Claudius would go to hell.