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Hamlet as a machiavellian prince
Character of Horatio in Hamlet
Character of Horatio in Hamlet
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Analysis of Hamlet by William Shakespeare
The play begins on the outer ramparts of Elsinore castle. It is late and Francisco, a guard, is on duty waiting for Bernardo to relieve him from his watch. Francisco is nervous because the previous two nights he and Bernardo have seen a figure who appears to be the ghost of the recently deceased king wandering around.
Bernardo approaches, accompanied by Horatio (Hamlet's only friend and confident). Even though Horatio dismisses the idea of a ghost, the guards start to retell the previous nights' encounters. As the guards begin, the ghost appears before them- much to Horatio's surprise.
The guards urge Horatio to speak with the ghost. Because Horatio is a student, they feel he should be able to communicate with the ghost, and their previous attempts to talk with it have failed. Horatio's attempts also fail. The scene ends with Horatio stating that he will go and inform his friend Hamlet of these incredible events.Text: Act I, Scene i
Act I, Scene ii:
This scene opens in contrast to the first scene. The first scene takes place on the dark, cold isolated ramparts; this scene begins in a brightly lit court, with the new king, Claudius, celebrating his recent wedding to his new wife, Gertrude.
Everyone in the court appears happy and joyful, except one character who is sitting off to the side. He is dressed in black, the colour of mourning, and does not like what he sees. The lone figure is Hamlet, the main character of the play. He is wearing black because it has been only two months since his father, Hamlet senior the ghost on the battlements, died and he still is mourning his father's death.
To further upset Hamlet, Claudius' new bride is Hamlet's mother, Gertrude. Hamlet is upset because his mother married Claudius so soon after becoming a widow. To add to all the injustices Hamlet is feeling at this time, Claudius is also related to Hamlet. Hamlet's uncle is now his step-father and Gertrude's brother-in-law is now her husband.
Claudius conducts several pieces of business during the beginning of this scene. He first tries to take measures to prevent a war with Norway, then discusses Laertes' request to leave court and go back to school. Claudius agrees with Polonius, Laertes' father, that Laertes' plan of going back to school is a good one. He gives Laertes permission to go.
This familial scene brings Claudius' mind to Hamlet.
Inside the castle during the funeral, Claudius, the man who exemplifies evil, is focused on several times by the camera. The first picture of him is from a short distance, minimizing his presence. As the funeral proceeds, however, three closeups make him appear more evil for there is no sorrow in his face, only a scheming, hawklike look as he watches every movement of Gertrude and Hamlet. The closeups also bring him from a distant observer to one that is in control, having taken the place of King by ruline over his dead brother.
Claudius is smug at the onset of the play because he appears to have gotten away
After talking with the ghost, Hamlet, comes back to Horatio and Marcellus and tries to explain to them never to let anyone know what has happened. Both are very scared but agree to the prince’s, but both are still looking to find out what happened between the ghost and him. Further on in the evening Hamlet takes Horatio to the side and explains to him that no matter how odd he acted that Horatio say nothing. (And therefore as a stranger-you most need help you Act1 sc5 line 187-202) He basically explained to Horatio that he was going to be acting much differently than normal, and he told him not to ask questions. This here proves he knew what he was going to have to do. It shows that he was willing to get his revenge by any way possible.
Hamlet starts with the King dead and Hamlet is already in a miserable mood. The first step that pushes him over the border into madness is his meeting with the ghost and even Horatio can see it as
makes the metaphysics of the play dark. The ghost says nothing despite the valiant efforts on the parts of Horatio, Marcellus, and Bernardo. Suspense is created when the audience is ignorant as to the purpose of the ghost. Later in the play the ghost is utilized to allow Hamlet and the audience knowledge of the vile murder of the king by Claudius, the kings own brother. When the ghost finally speaks, he tells Hamlet,
What Horatio says is valid because he may have known the king better than the rest of the men there as he is friends with his son, Hamlet. The same clothes and facial expressions that the ghost displays is
Later in Act 1 (Scene 5) Hamlet tells Horatio that he’ll put “an antic disposition on”. This is the appearance that we see through Act 2 but the question remains does Hamlet really carry out what he is saying or does he deliberate and start at some later point; is he already mad at the start of the play or much more later than we are told. Which is similar to his execution of his plan to kill Claudius “with wings with swift as meditation”. Frankly, Hamlet does not always do what he says he will do. Therefore we make a reach and say that what he says and what he does is only part of the façade Shakespeare is presenting to the audience. In following this line of thinking you would reach the conclusion that Hamlet could have been mad as soon as the ghost had finished speaking to him by himself. So Shakespeare could have provided the character of Horatio with a fooling understatement, “Which might deprive you of your sovereignty of reason, And draw you into madness?”. Even though this is isn’t what appears this is reality. This would provide a valid explanation as to why after Hamlet has talked to the ghost only he is able to hear the Ghost. This is seen through Hamlet being the first person in each instance to reply to the ghost. It would suggest that Hamlet can hear him since the ghost is in Hamlet’s head. An alternative interpretation is that the way Marcellus and Horatio are treating Hamlet
Loyalty is a crucial quality to find in a good friend. Horatio’s loyalty allowed him to to understand what was going on in Hamlet’s mind and barely questioned the prince’s decisions. While everyone looked at Hamlet with confusion and believed his mental state was out of sorts, Horatio did not blink an eye towards Hamlet’s ludicrous language because he understood it was only an act. During the scene in which Hamlet wished to follow the ghost, Horatio was the only one who stopped him and warned him of all the possible bad outcomes if he followed. Horatio
Horatio's role in Hamlet is minor, however he serves two purposes central to the drama. Horatio provides the truth. It is through Horatio that the actions taken by Hamlet and other characters gain credibility. He is the outside observer to the madness. Hamlet could soliloquize to no end, but it is his conversations with Horatio that ground the play in reality. Horatio believes Hamlet and thus we have permission to believe. He sees the Ghost and so we can believe that Hamlet has seen the Ghost. If Horatio were not there, Hamlet's sanity would truly be in doubt.
When the encounter with the ghost occurs at the beginning of the play, Horatio’s original skepticism introduces doubt. When Horatio agrees that the spirit exists, the readers are allowed to believe that the ghost was not a figment of Hamlet’s imagination. At the first sighting of the ghost, Horatio, urging Hamlet to stay away from the ghost, says, “What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord.../And there assume some other horrible form/Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason/ And draw you into madness? Think of it./The very place puts toys of desperation/Without more motive, into every brain” (III.ii.75). Horatio is foreshadowing Hamlet’s descent into madness. Here, Horatio is...
In the act 1, sense 1, the appearance of ghost implicated that something would be happening in Denmark and created interest and caution to audience and Horatio. Ghost always represents horror and fear nowadays, and people think that ghost maybe has unfinished hope before death or revenge for somebody. In the Shakespeare world, ghost shows up in somewhere, where it’s not supposed to be. That means that there is someone else, especially in western culture. Horatio said, “has the ghost appeared again tonight” (1.1 21), and “it will not appear” (1.1 29). Horatio was educated, so he didn’t believe that. On the other hand, Bernardo and Marcellus believed the ghost was real and tried to prove it. Through the conversion and background between Horatio and officers, the plot creates the suspense and question to audience. Does the ghost really exist? Meanwhile, the audiences feel curious about the ghost.
While Claudius is praying, Hamlet has an opportunity to slay him but doesn’t because if he kills him in his prayers he will make him go to heaven instead of hell. Another minor reason for Hamlet’s revenge against his uncle is his affection towards his mother. As the play progresses, we are able to determine that Hamlet’s relationship with his mom is close to incest status. With this information, we are able to imply that Hamlet is jealous of his Uncle Claudius for marrying his mother.... ... middle of paper ...
If Hamlet were crazy like many scholars claim that he is; he would be the only one claiming to see the ghost, instead we have a host of witnesses who can testify to the ghost’s existence. Shortly after Hamlet’s first encounter with the ghost of his father, he asks his constituents Marcellus and Horatio his best friend to swear that they would refrain from making any remarks concerning what went on that night or anything strange that they see him do. Hamlet is thinking cognitively by forming a plan, his plan is to make sure that his uncle Claudius the current king of Denmark does not become suspicious of hamlet’s plot to murder him because if Claudius becomes aware that Hamlet is trying to kill him, Claudius will end his nephew’s life first. People that are mad cannot form cohesive thoughts like
The play starts off with a tense setting, as the guards have seen a ghost that looks like the old
...oes appear to be his father and Hamlet will of course listen to everything that Horatio has got to say therefore this adds to the waiting/suspense of what will happen next the Ghost will return.