Hamlet Term Paper
Faith Moore
Hour 4
Mr. Kinsella Suicide has always been a “taboo” topic in society; the thought of just abruptly ending one’s life leaves a wide open space for moral interpretations. This moral discussion is not new though, it’s been around ever since there have been people walking this earth. Discussions on whether it can ever be justified, or in religious connotations what happens to the person’s soul, are they automatically damned to hell? These discussions existed in Shakespeare’s time, making the fact that Hamlet has such a huge theme of suicide running through its text an almost nerve-shaking moral dilemma. Can suicide ever be portrayed in a good light without being glorified, or must it forever lurk in the moral shadows?
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Most people do not realize that the most quoted line in all of Shakespeare, “To be or not to be, that is the question,” is actually referring to Hamlet contemplating whether it is better to stay alive or to take his own life. In today’s English, he is, in the simplest of terms, asking himself if it’s better to put up with the crap life throws at you, or to just throw in the towel and end it all. Also at the same time Hamlet is giving this soliloquy, Claudius and Polonius are listening on to determine what has caused Hamlet’s madness, or almost stupidity. This soliloquy is almost Hamlet’s way of saying, “I’m not stupid, but I know myself quite well.” Because Claudius almost views Hamlet’s madness as he is stupidly oblivious to what is happening around him since Hamlet is so separate from everything. Hamlet is not stupid or mad, he knows himself and what he is doing, so much so that he ends up at this contemplation of suicide. Of all the sorrows he has seen and how everything seems to be a mess, he ultimately decides that that suicide is not what he will turn to, not because he is content with the cards he has been delt, but because he is scared of what comes after death. He describes it as, “Who would fardels bear, to grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that the dread of something after death” (Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 77-79). Since he is unsure …show more content…
Gertrude says she didn’t, but everyone else said she did, hence why the church wants to refuse her a proper burial. Even the gravedigger who is making Ophelia’s grave questions whether or not it was suicide, “Is she to be buried in Christian burial when she willfully seeks her own salvation” (Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 1-2)? Gertrude comes to fight for Ophelia’s case by saying, “There, on the pendant boughs her coronet weeds, clambering to hang, an envious sliver broke… Pulled the poor wretch from her melodious lay to muddy death” (Act 4, Scene 7, Lines 169-180). Saying that when she fell from the branch, her clothes held her up in the water and she just did not understand the danger she was in, so when her clothes became to damp, they drowned her without her knowledge, leaving her to dream for eternity. Though other believe she was insane and let herself drown on purpose, but the reasoning for that is unclear. Could it have come from Hamlet’s crushing demands put on her in the ‘nunnery’ scene, or from the stress of the situation between her father and brother? No one is really quite sure of the reasoning for her death if it was suicide, or if it even was suicide. The only thing that can be somewhat concrete is the fact that she was clearly insane before her death. Spelled out clearly by Claudius, “Oh, this is the poison of deep grief. It springs. All from her father’s death, and now behold” (Act 4, Scene
To continue on the subject of suicide, I will bring in some information from my last source, “Shakespeare’s Hamlet 1.2.35-38,” by Kathryn Walls. (Gather information from source and relate to the book).
Suicidal tendencies play a huge role in Hamlet by forming character relationships, adding suspense to the plot and storyline. “Ah, I wish my dirty flesh could melt away into a vapor, or that God had not made a law against suicide. Oh God, God! How tired, stale, and pointless life is to me” (Hamlet 1.2.130-134). This quote by Hamlet Junior in act 1 really embodies the
One of the most famous Shakespearean lines-"To be or not to be, that is the question” is found in Hamlet, spoken by the title character himself. While this is the most obvious reference that Hamlet makes to this own philosophy, Hamlet makes frequent proclamations about his stifled life throughout the play. Hamlet views his life in a negative manner, to the point where he finds himself contemplating whether or not to end his own life. Hamlet does not value his life, which causes him to become flustered with himself and his lack of action. Therefore, demonstrating that Hamlet does not value his life as one should.
Hamlet is self centered and irrational throughout most of the play. He goes through various stages of suicidal thoughts that all revolve around a multitude of selfish reasons because he can not deal with his problems. His outbursts, mood swings, and constantly changing character have led to a multitude of reasons for his decisions to not kill himself. Think of this, it is much easier to die for a cause than to live for a cause, and yet all Hamlet wants to do is take the easy way out. There are three major soliloquies that Hamlet has that prove as major turning points of his emotions. Hamlet’s suicidal thoughts ring loud and clear for most of the play, however they do change constantly and play key pieces that provide well written and thought provoking soliques.
To reference, Hamlet perceives death as an endless sleep that ends all suffering: “To die:—to sleep/no more; and, by a sleep to say we end/the heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks/that flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation/devoutly to be wished” (3.1.68-72) Considering this, it is evident that Hamlet is experiencing extreme sadness and vast depression. From the death of his father to the death of his beloved Ophelia, Hamlet has no other way of coping with these recent events. Hamlet faces sorrow in a way like none other, whereas the deaths of others makes him consider his own life. Relatively, death serves as a prime influence on our protagonist’s life, and thus, is a continuous preoccupation throughout the play. In addition to Hamlet, Ophelia experiences immense suffering as well. Ophelia expresses her misery as “I, of ladies most deject and wretched/that sucked the honey of his music vows/now see that noble and most sovereign reason,out of time and harsh” (3.1.169-171) while regarding the alteration of Hamlet’s personality. With no one to reach out to for guidance or assistance, Ophelia internalizes her melancholy. Furthermore, Ophelia is deemed as irrational by her father Polonius and his companions for admiring Hamlet. This builds agony and grief inside of Ophelia’s heart, wherefore she correspondingly commits
We’re all going to die right? Then why is it that we fear death so much? In William Shakespeare’s well-known tragic play, Hamlet, the reader views Hamlet’s attitude towards death evolve. Shakespeare proves that Hamlet’s attitude towards death develops throughout the play; he starts off desiring death, then is fearful of death, and finally is confident about death.
Throughout the play, grief takes center stage in many of thecharacter’s lives, but they all choose to react in a different fashion. Grief takes many distinct shapes and forms and until people learn how to overcome it, it will remain an integral part of life. One way to escape grief is to commit suicide, as Ophelia apparently does. Thegravedigger proclaims, “Is she to be buried in Christian burial that willfully seeks her own salvation” (Act V Scene I Lines 1-2). The gravedigger is wondering why a woman who has taken her own life deserves such a fancy funeral. When the Queen informs Laertes and Claudius of Ophelia’s death, she says, “...she[Ophelia] chanted snatches of old tunes” (Act IV Scene VII Line 195). Ophelia did not know how to express her grief, other than in song. In Act IV, she sings of Polonius, “He is dead and gone, lady, he is dead and gone” (Scene V Lines 31-32).
The basis of one 's mortality and the complications of life and death are talked about from the opening of Hamlet. In the mist of his father 's death, Hamlet is having a hard time not thinking about and considering the meaning of life and how life ends. Many questions emerge as the story progresses. There was so many question that Hamlet contemplated. He was constantly worrying that is he revenged on his fathers’ death then what would happen. He would ask himself questions like, what happens when and how you die? Do kings go to heaven? If I kill, will I go to heaven?
The word suicide was not even introduced to the English language until after Shakespeare died. There was a reoccurrence of suicidal characters throughout the play writer’s works. If a person killed themselves in those times their loved ones would not be seen as victims of the suicide, but would often try to cover up the suicide and pay people off who saw the body. This is important to the play when the gravediggers are discussing if Ophelia’s burial should be acquiesced. Comparing the way the gravediggers talk about Ophelia’s controversial death and the way people talk about suicide today, you can see many differences, but at the same time not much has changed. Suicide awareness is a massive issue today and has an immense about of attention which differs from Shakespearian times. Still the mindset of suicide being a wrong and selfish act is very apparent.
Hamlet asked a the question whether living through his troubles was worth it. In William Shakespeare 's Hamlet soliloquy, Hamlet opened the text with a question: “to be, or not to be?” (Shakespeare). I believe that Hamlet was asking whether it would be better to kill himself or to continue along with the problems he had. Hamlet was dealing with the murder of his father that may have been committed by his stepfather. His views showed to be in favor of committing suicide and that it would be a quick and easy way to end all his problems. As Hamlet wonders his thoughts about suicide, he came upon the
Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” Soliloquy in act 3, scene 1, reveals that Hamlet is a thoughtful and calculating character attempting to be cautious. Hamlet is looking at the prospect of killing himself from all viewpoints. In Hamlet’s soliloquy shakespeare strikes home with a pivotal human conc...
Shakespeare shows the ideology of death internalizing within Hamlet first with Hamlet’s emotions following the death of Old Hamlet. In the scene in which Hamlet is introduced, Hamlet is portrayed as an embodiment of death, dressed in “suits of a solemn black”(1.2.81) and has “dejected havior of the visage”(1.2.84). Hamlet’s physical representation as death signifies his lack of desire to continue living himself, being detached and discontent with the world around him. Hamlet, in his first soliloquy, opens by stating, “Sullied flesh would melt/Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew,/ Or that the Everlasting had not fixed/His canon ‘gainst Self Slaughter!”(1.2.133-135). This is significant, as it shows Hamlet’s full willingness to commit suicide and end Hamlet’s internal pain, if not for suicide being a sin under religion. The reason for Hamlet’s desire for death and his dis...
In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, suicide is treated differently on the aspects of religion, morals, and philosophical views. Suicide is the act of deliberately killing yourself in contrary to your own best interests. In today’s society suicide is highly looked down upon. But Shakespeare used suicide and violence in almost all of his most popular plays. Many of his tragedies used the element of suicide, some accomplished, others merely contemplated. Shakespeare used suicide as a dramatic device. A character’s suicide could promote a wide range of emotions: horror, condemnation to pity, and even respect. Some of his suicides could even take titles like the noble soldier, the violated woman, and star-crossed lovers. In Othello, Othello see suicide as the only escape from the pangs and misery of life. In The Rape of Lucrece, Lucrece kills herself after being raped because she cannot live with her shame. And in Romeo and Juliet, the two lovers could not find happiness if life, so death was perceived as a way that they could be united with each other. Shakespeare was dealing with a very controversial subject: Was it right to end life in order to escape the cruel and unjust world? In the time of the Renaissance, many things had an impact on suicide such as religion, morals, and aesthetic views.
Hamlet soul becomes corrupt since the beginning with the sudden marriage of his mother to his uncle, the man who killed his father. His depression is much deeper then what everyone believed. Hamlet tries to explain it to his mother and Claudius that his grief is deeper and is much more then the appearance of someone who mourns. His mother seems cold rather then understanding she tells him to get rid of the black clothes and move on, “Thou kno’st’tis common. All that lives must die passing through nature to eternity.” (1.2.74-75) Claudius too is insensitive and says he over doing it and advises him to stop his “un manly grief.” (1.2.98) This lead to the physical and mental corruption Hamlet faces. He contemplates suicide. Suicides along with murder are against Hamlets religious beliefs and are the wor...
William Shakespeare's Hamlet is, at heart, a play about suicide. Though it is surrounded by a fairly standard revenge plot, the play's core is an intense psychodrama about a prince gone mad from the pressures of his station and his unrequited love for Ophelia. He longs for the ultimate release of killing himself - but why? In this respect, Hamlet is equivocal - he gives several different motives depending on the situation. But we learn to trust his soliloquies - his thoughts - more than his actions. In Hamlet's own speeches lie the indications for the methods we should use for its interpretation.