The Theme Of Appearance And Reality In Shakespeare's Hamlet

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Hamlet is a revenge play. At this time, Shakespeare wrote Hamlet, this was a very common genre. It had certain conventions: a villain commits a murder; the son of the murdered man insists revenge; he carries out his duty and pledge, but in so doing destroys himself. In Hamlet, the entire action of the play is centered on the task assigned by the ghost to Hamlet to avenge his father’s murder But Hamlet has to answer four questions: Is the ghost real? Is revenge good or evil? Is Claudius guilty? These questions, complicates Hamlet’s decision and his reflective, intellectual nature and the revenge obligations of Laertes and Fortinbras that parallel the main plot.
Hamlet is tasked with avenging his father’s horrible and unnatural murder. However, …show more content…

The king appears to be at prayer, and Hamlet decides not to kill his uncle while he is in the state of grace. Hamlet wants his revenge to be not just for the punishment his life on earth but for eternity. Furthermore, if he does kill him in his state of purity, " do this same villain send to heaven. O, this is hire and salary, not revenge" (Hamlet 3.3.76-78), for Claudius’s dreadful offense. The reality is that Claudius cannot repent, as he is unwilling to give up his crown or his queen. When Laertes declares that – "the king is to blame", (Hamlet 5.2. 274) reality and appearance finally meet. On a social level, Hamlet is depressed and melancholy because he believes he can see the evil reality behind the appearance of good in Denmark. The state should be fair, but it is rotten. Men should be noble, made in the image of God, but to Hamlet, life is dust. Women essentially pure and innocent are unfaithful and infected and Love supposedly faithful and honest, is dishonest and …show more content…

Ghosts were considered real, and were taken seriously. They could not initiate conversation, and came from an external world. This ghost is dressed in military armor and looks like Hamlet’s father, but it could well be a devil impersonating the dead king. An abnormal set of circumstances has led to the disturbance of the chain of being and infection sets in. Jenkins states that, "the universe, ordered by God, consists of different hierarchies: the angels were closes to God, and were followed by men, beasts, objects, and the devils in the underworld."(Jenkins. H 1982:154) Although Hamlet does not yet know that his father has been murdered by his uncle, there are already ominous signs that all is not well. Claudius has hastily and incestuously remarried, a ghost walks the night and Denmark is being corrupted by revelry and drunkenness. These signs are witnessed and announced by Francisco who is "sick at heart". (Hamlet 1.1. 9) A strong feeling of wrongness is present. Horatio acknowledges that the ghost’s appearance signifies "some strange eruption to our state" (Hamlet 1.1 69). The onset of disease is suggested. When the chain of being is broken, disorder is the result. (Shakespeare 2008:

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