Hamlet’s deadly grieving producing a fatal end
It is an innate human quality to fear death and what is to come; it is the fear of suffering and anguish. People typically grieve over the loss of a friend or loved one. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Hamlet’s obsessive thoughts about the deaths of others lead to his timely demise. The deaths of his father, Ophelia, and Polonius have different impacts on Hamlet’s state of mind. His father’s death invokes revengeful thoughts of killing the King. Ophelia’s death skews Hamlet’s vision of death. The death of Polonius shows the repercussions of Hamlet’s aggressive impulse. Clearly, Hamlet is fascinated by death throughout the play. Although this is deeply rooted in his character, his obsessive thoughts are a product of continuous grieving.
In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Hamlet learns from a ghost of his father’s brutal murder. Hamlet weeps and plans to take action but doesn’t deliver. Instead he plots his revenge and waits for the perfect moment to avenge King Hamlet. The ghost of Hamlet’s father influences Hamlet to seek revenge who would otherwise contemplate the subject to death,
GHOST: Revenge his foul murder and most unnatural murder.
HAMLET: Murder?
GHOST: Murder is most foul, as in the best it is, /
But this is most foul, strange and unnatural.
HAMLET: Haste me to know’t; that I, with wings as swift /
As meditation or the thoughts of love, may sweep to my revenge (I, v, 25-31).
Notably, the ghost tells Hamlet to enact his revenge in the opening scenes of the play; he seems hesitant, as if he questions death for the first time. Hamlet wants to make sure that Claudius did in fact kill his father, so he sets up a play to re-enact the crime scene and to Hamlet’s content, Claudius disp...
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...death of him. Hamlet’s obsession and numerous contemplations about death sets himself in the undesired direction of suffering with the deaths of his father, Ophelia and Polonius, all whom he believed were undeserving. His will to continuously get himself into situations that inflict a great deal of emotional stress is astonishing, and his change in attitude about his indecisiveness about murder is not beneficial, rather it kills him in the end. Having a healthy fear of death is normal --one must realize death is unavoidable, while constant thought about death creates unhealthy anxiety. An overdose on death-related thoughts will derange the mind of the fear of basic fear of pain or suffering. The result of fearing death too much is over-amplifying stress in a normal situation. Staying at a level of awareness of death is healthy and can help one stay alive longer.
In act 3, Hamlet questions the unbearable pain of life and views death through the metaphor of sleep. "To be or not to be: that is the question: / whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer / the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles / and, by opposing end them. To die, to sleep / no more" (3.1.64-68), details which bring up new thoughts about what happens in the after life. Thus, Hamlet contemplates suicide, but his lacking knowledge about what awaits him in the afterworld causes him to question what death will bring. For example he states, "The undiscovered country, from whose bourn / no traveler returns, puzzles the will / and makes us rather bear those ills we have / than fly to others that we know not of" (3.1.87-90), again revealing his growing concern with "Truth" and his need for certainty. Once again, death appears in act 4 with the suicide of Ophelia, the demand for Hamlet's execution and the gravedigger scene. All of these situations tie back with how death is all around Hamlet and feeds his obsession with it. Finally in act 5, Hamlet meets his own death, as his obsession to know leads to the death of himself.
In William shakespeare’s book Hamlet, Hamlet himself was acting strange because of his obsession for revenge for his father’s death. At the beginning of Hamlet, Hamlet’s father made an appearance after his unfortunate death. Horatio and the two watchmen, Francisco and Bernardo, they were frightened of what they have witnessed that night. Next day, they went to the chamber of Prince Hamlet to tell him that they have witnessed of appearance of a ghost whom they identified as the prince’s father. Then Hamlet went watch with them on that night. The ghost appeared quickly, Hamlet was surprised and confused on why his father was there. Hamlet followed his father’s ghost until there’s nowhere to go for him.The ghost talked to him And told him that his death wasn’t an accident but it was a murder. Just when he learned who murdered his father, it was the someone he suspected and it was Claudius, his Uncle. Despite all of the hatred toward his uncle, this made him even want more revenge for his father than before. That night, Hamlet made Horatio and the two watchmen pledge under his sword
He realizes that he does not know the result of afterlife and this aspect stops him from committing suicide. His view on afterlife and its uncertanity is examined in Hamlet’s soliloquy, “To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub; / For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, / When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,” (III.i. 66-67). The dreams that he specifies can be interpreted as the pain that someone could suffer in the afterlife. There is no assurance that his pain will stop once he is dead. The unpredictability of afterlife with the help of his reflections and the consequences of suicide resulted in the decision not to kill himself. Another example when Hamlet’s thoughts consist of death occurs near the end of the play. It specifically happens when Hamlet visits the graveyard and discovers his jester’s skull. The soliloquy reveals the theme of death and its consequences it has on an individual. In this memorable soliloquy, Hamlet
During the first act, Prince Hamlet meets the ghost of his father, King Hamlet. His father's ghost tells Hamlet that Claudius poured poison in his ear while he slept. The spirit also explains that he wishes for Hamlet to avenge his death, but not to punish Queen Gertrude for marrying Claudius. He tells Hamlet that she will have to answer to her conscience, and eventually God for her incestuous actions (absoluteshakespeare.com 1 of 4). It was believed during these times that when a person died, especially in such a tragic fashion, that their spirit lingered about while suffering in Purgatory. This could cause a normally virtuous person's spirit to become filled with malevolence and begin to meddle in living men's affairs (en.wikipedia.org 4 of 9). This belief caused Prince Hamlet to want to investigate his father's spirit's claims to ensure that they were indeed true. In order to do this, Prince Hamlet feigns madness in order to remain hidden from members of the court's suspicions while he plots his revenge on King Claudius (www.sparknotes.com 1 of 3). He also takes advantage of a group of actors who come to Elsinore Castle to perform by rewriting a play to recreate the scene of his father's murder. He does this with the hope of flushing a confession out of Claudius' guilty conscience. When Claudius sees the play, he stands up and leaves the room (en.wikipedia.org 5 of 9). After many more events, Claudius' guilt becomes more obvious. Claudius then begins to change his focus towards killing Hamlet, as he is beginning to become aware of the Prince's plans to kill him. Claudius then arranges a fencing match between Hamlet and Polonius' son Laertes and has Laertes poison the blade of one of his swords to be used in the match (Hamlet).
From past experiences in ones life, whether it be the death of a long aged gold fish to a deceased elder, one knows the pain and suffering that goes on afterwards. For one to finally move on and continue life without a tear in their eyes may take a while, yet having that immense step means to put the emotions aside and live life. Hamlet's father was murdered, and he soon sees his mother move on so quickly and marries his uncle, to continue being the queen. Hamlet's love for his father does not fade away within a two month span like his mother; he refuses to accept the fact that his father was killed, instead of a natural death. Because of this, Hamlet does not know what to do with his life. He mentions "O, that this too too sallied flesh would melt,/ Or that the Everlasting had not fixed/ His canon `against self-slaughter" (129-132). Immediately does Hamlet questions the existence of his own life, as he feels the need to melt and disappear, ultimately referring to suicide. The problem we face...
To begin with, Hamlet starts off his speech asking, “Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer/ The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune/ Or to take arms against a sea of troubles/ And by opposing end them” (Shakespeare 3.1.57-60). He wonders if he would be more noble if he took his own life and end his sorrows than if he continued to endure him. This question shows the pain and grief that Hamlet has experienced since the death of his father. According to Ophelia, later in Act 3 Scene 1, she reveals that Hamlet was once the obvious successor to the throne since he was charismatic and admired by the people. Clearly, in this part of the play, he is suicidal, and he is uncertain about many of the big decisions in his life. This extreme change in Hamlet’s behaviors makes the audience worry about Hamlet’s mental health. Is his feigned madness transforming into true insanity? However, his comparison to death and sleep suggests that Hamlet is in a state of reflection and learning. Hamlet’s analogy between death and sleep is the musings of an ordinary man who wonders what happens to a soul once its body dies. Just as no one knows what dreams they will experience when they lay in bed, no knows what they will experience when their body is finally laid in a grave.
After a death, we find ways of overcoming grief in this painful world. Some people binge eat their way out while others find the easy way out, which is suicide.In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays mortality in the image of death and suicide.Shakespeare develops hamlet as a man who is sensitive and uncontrolled by his actions. Hamlet faces challenges that mess with his subconscious making him feel vulnerable to making decisions that will affect his life.We can say that Hamlet was very indecisive of living or not. He showed many signs of suicidal thoughts. Many can argue and say that Hamlet was depressed. Coming back home from school to attend his father's funeral in Denmark made him discover many things, such as, his mother Gertrude remarried to Hamlet's uncle Claudius who is the dead king's brother. To Hamlet he finds it loathsome for his
Hamlet is distressed due to the fact of his fathers ghost telling him of the horrid death that he suffered and wanting him to make things right. Hamlet questions the ghost and wonders if all this information could be true. He wonders if the ghost is just really an evil ghost that is lying to him. Rising action is all the events that lead the play to the climax. In acts two and three the events are helping the readers anticipate what will happen. Claudius has chosen two of Hamlet’s school friends to spy on him to see why he is acting so strange. Meanwhile Hamlet plots with the players to re enact the death for Claudius. Because of the reaction of the king the story of the ghost was confirmed.
In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the protagonist, Hamlet is obsessed with the idea of death, and during the course of the play he contemplates death from numerous perspectives. He ponders the physical aspects of death, as seen with Yoricks's skull, his father's ghost, as well as the dead bodies in the cemetery. Hamlet also contemplates the spiritual aspects of the afterlife with his various soliloquies. Emotionally Hamlet is attached to death with the passing of his father and his lover Ophelia. Death surrounds Hamlet, and forces him to consider death from various points of view.
Hamlet’s exploration of mortality is most notable in his Act 3, Scene 1 soliloquy. He asks what is the point of life, if we exist only to suffer “The heartache and the thousand natural shocks/ That flesh is heir to” (Lines 63- 64)? Why do we force ourselves to endure this when we could just end it all? It is fear, a paralysing fear of the unknown; “For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,/ When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,/ Must give us pause” (Lines 67 - 69).
Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a tragic play about murder, betrayal, revenge, madness, and moral corruption. It touches upon philosophical ideas such as existentialism and relativism. Prince Hamlet frequently questions the meaning of life and the degrading of morals as he agonizes over his father’s murder, his mother’s incestuous infidelity, and what he should or shouldn’t do about it. At first, he is just depressed; still mourning the loss of his father as his mother marries his uncle. After he learns about the treachery of his uncle and the adultery of his mother, his already negative countenance declines further. He struggles with the task of killing Claudius, feeling burdened about having been asked to find a solution to a situation that was forced upon him.Death is something he struggles with as an abstract idea and as relative to himself. He is able to reconcile with the idea of death and reality eventually.
William Shakespeare's “Hamlet” is one of the most tragic plays ever written. It is about a young prince trying to keep his word to his dead father by avenging his death. Hamlet procrastinates when avenging his father’s death, which is his tragic flaw. Hamlet appears to be a coward as well as depressed. He finds himself questioning his own ambitious motives such as revenge and hatred toward his murderous uncle. Hamlet tells Horatio, his friend that he is going to fake madness as he loses his determination. It is Hamlet’s hubris that makes me begin to believe he is mad. Hamlet does at one point have doubt concerning the honesty of the ghost. His various reasons for delay in seeking revenge is that he wants to make sure his uncle Claudius is one hundred percent guilty and at the same time does not want to hurt his mother. He has too much Oedipus complex, love for his mother.
Hamlet’s psychological influence demonstrates his dread of both death and life. In Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, “To be or not to be” (3.1.64), he refers the “be” to life and further asks “whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” (3.1.65.66). By this, Hamlet is asking himself the question of whether to live or die.
Being the primary character, there is a greater focus on Hamlet’s pursuit of revenge, since throughout the play his mind and actions plagued by both uncertainty and angry notions towards his mother’s infidelity rather than the “murder most foul”. Unlike both Laertes and Fortinbras, Hamlet's desire for revenge is not implanted by his own will but rather by his father’s ghost; through his encounter the ghost pleads his son’s loyalty by promising the murder Claudius. Initially Hamlet's interaction with the Ghost was one of curiosity and glee which opposes his prior melanch...
In his tragedy Hamlet, William Shakespeare explores and analyzes the concept of mortality and the inevitability of death through the development of Hamlet’s understanding and ideology regarding the purpose for living. Through Hamlet’s obsessive fascination in understanding the purpose for living and whether death is the answer, Shakespeare analyzes and interprets the meaning of different elements of mortality and death: The pain death causes to others, the fading of evidence of existence through death, and the reason for living. While due to the inevitable and unsolvable mystery of the uncertainty of death, as no being will ever empirically experience death and be able to tell the tale, Shakespeare offers an answer to the reason for living through an analysis of Hamlet’s development in understanding death.