Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, is simply described as a tragedy. In more of a complex sense, Hamlet depicts the tragic fall of a noble hero who has witnessed a mysterious world completely crumble before him. Hamlet’s journey can certainly be described as tragic, but there is still the question of what constitutes a tragic hero. In order to understand what defines a tragic hero, one must first look into tragedy altogether. My personal definition of tragedy, regarding stories and plays, would be a literary work in which the main character experiences sadness or sorrow in their life. This is a very vague and blanketed statement, but not too far off from other, much more informed, scholar’s definitions. In the Oxford dictionary, tragedy can be described as “an event causing great …show more content…
Well, Hamlet certainly has an unhappy ending, but there are still so many more key components that determine what tragedy is. A sad ending is not the only factor in composing a tragedy. This definition may seem straightforward, but is inherently intricate. Since tragedy has many different meanings and uses, it is simple to see how a character’s vulnerable and tragic journey is exploited in a tragedy. From these definitions, it is apparent that in order for a hero’s journey to be tragic, there must be a tragic flaw. Hamlet follows the tragic journey of an abandoned hero who is riddled with flaws, and one who seeks truth, justice, and revenge.
Throughout the play, there are many tragic flaws that Hamlet experiences. Shakespeare deeply dramatizes the different kinds of development that Hamlet goes through, and is able to make Hamlet’s flaws feel real and relatable to the average reader or audience
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, is a well known tragedy of the 19th century. This play has several examples of tragic heroes, tragic flaws, and other elements in a tragedy. A tragic play was one that had at least on tragic hero with a tragic flaw that ended in an inevitable catastrophe, which was usually the death of the tragic hero. This describes Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark perfectly.
The story is brilliant. A brooding young prince, scorned by those he loves, betrayed by his Uncle, and yet “too much in the Sun” to accept defeat. Revenge, sexual tension, bloodshed, and tears—Hamlet has it all. Hamlet is a relatable character to an audience on a multitude of levels. Whether one is coming into their own, accepting major changes in their lives, feeling betrayed by loved ones, or merely experiencing a lover’s quarrel, they can certainly relate to Hamlet. Above all, Hamlet exudes the one element inherent to all human beings—a strong sense of pride, perhaps excessively so.
...of Hamlet is hit with hardship after hardship he is affected to the absolute core. Hamlet’s perfectionist nature makes it even more difficult to wade through everything that is being throw his way - he wants every one of his actions to be executed flawlessly, and the inability for this to occur renders him static. Consequently, due to his inactivity, Hamlet becomes more frustrated with himself as he feels useless and unworthy. Though it is a dramatic example, I believe Hamlet has a relatable quality to most everyone. The desire to succeed and hold the unattainable characteristic of perfection is something we have all yearned for at one point or another. Hamlet’s soliloquies give us insight into universal human nature, as well as the startling reality of how one can be negatively affected by being so hard on oneself. We have all felt Hamlet’s struggles to some degree.
Hamlet. The son of a king. A man who could have had it all, but instead he chose the much more painful route of revenge and a life of bloodshed. The downfall of Hamlet is comparable to trying to hide a lie one has told. The deeper we try to cover the lie, the worse it gets and harder it becomes to do the right thing. The deeper the reader explores into Hamlets life, the messier and messier it becomes. With a mind full of suicidal thoughts and insanity with no effort to contain it can only lead one thing, and Hamlets downfall is the ultimate example. Pain, suffering, and extreme
Aristotle wrote “A tragedy is the imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having magnitude, complete in itself; in appropriate and pleasurable language;... in a dramatic rather than narrative form; with incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish a catharsis of these emotions.” (Poetics). Shakespeare 's “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark,” is viewed by most as one of the greatest tragedies that was ever written. Hamlet, an ideal tragic hero in his right, as appealed to many people of different cultures since it was written all those years ago. Hamlet has all of the makings to be a real man and that is what brings us into his world so easily, but like every human being on Earth, he has a hamartia. John Green
Foremost, is the character of Hamlet: the causes and effects of his actions, or lack thereof. Hamlet is a very thoughtful person by nature, and often spends more time thinking than acting. However, Hamlet does realize that "...conscience does make cowards of us all, And thus the native hue of resolution/ Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought"(III.i.84-85). Although Hamlet recognizes the fact that too much reflection could end poorly, he does it nonetheless. Every situation he is faced with he insists upon planning it out first, and rarely actually acting upon these plans. Additionally, since Hamlet is considered to be a tragedy, there must be a tragic hero. All tragic heroes have some kind of flaw or blemish, which, according to the article "Characters", "Hamlet's weakness may be that he 'thinks too much' and cannot make up his mind. The resulting inactions leads to his death" ("Characters"). Because Hamlet spends so much time pondering his surroundings, he sometimes misses the chance to act on them. This inability to accomplish anything slowly pulls Hamlet to a point where no amount of thought or action could possibly help him. However, at one point in the play Hamlet comes very near to followin...
In the play Hamlet, Hamlet is described as daring, brave, loyal, and intelligent. However, he is always consumed by his own thoughts, this being his tragic flaw. There are numerous times Hamlet does not act when he should, like his inability to act on his father's murder, his mother's marriage, and his uncle's assuming of the throne.
Beginning with the Greeks, tragedy has been an essential form of entertainment. Although it has changed slightly over time due to different religious and social values, it is still written and performed to this day. Perhaps the most well known tragedy of all time is Shakespeare's Hamlet. Hamlet is perhaps the epitome of all tragedy. Not only does the tragic hero Hamlet meet his demise, but all the main characters in the play at some point due to some flaw in their character, or some fatal decision, also meet the same fate. It is because of their character flaw and/or their fatal decision at some time during the play that their death can be justified.
Upon examining Shakespeare's characters in this play, Hamlet proves to be a very complex character, and functions as the key element to the development of the play. Throughout the play we see the many different aspects of Hamlet's personality by observing his actions and responses to certain situations. Hamlet takes on the role of a strong character, but through his internal weaknesses we witness his destruction.
Hamlet’s mourning about the death of his father and the remarriage of his mother drives him to madness. This is the main characters inner tragedy that Shakespeare expresses in the play. First he considers suicide but the ghost of King Hamlet sends him on a different path, directing him to revenge his death. Shakespeare uses Hamlet to articulate his thoughts about life, death and revenge. Being a moral character he must decide if revenge is the right thing to do. Shakespeare relays many scenarios of reasoning to the audience about mankind His hero sets the wrongs on mankind right again.
Webster’s dictionary defines tragedy as, “a serious drama typically describing a conflict between the protagonist and a superior force (such as destiny) and having a sorrowful or disastrous conclusion that excites pity or terror.” A tragic hero, therefore, is the character who experiences such a conflict and suffers catastrophically as a result of his choices and related actions. The character of Hamlet, therefore, is a clear representation of Shakespeare’s tragic hero.
Hamlet starts of what may be considered a tragic hero but his fear and overthinking led to being influenced by the corruption around him he was neither strong nor had characteristics that position him above the average person. In every situation he got into he reacted like a normal person rather then a hero. All his actions were flawed because of his problem with those around him allowing the evilness of others to grow inside of him changing him completely. His death was inevitable it was accumulation of his mistakes.
In 350 B.C.E., a great philosopher wrote out what he thought was the definition of a tragedy. As translated by S.H. Butcher, Aristotle wrote; “Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament, the several kinds being found in separate parts of the play; in the form of action, not of narrative; with incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish its catharsis of such emotions. . . . Every Tragedy, therefore, must have six parts, which parts determine its quality—namely, Plot, Characters, Thought, Diction, Spectacle, Melody. (http://www.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/poetics.html)” Later in history, William Shakespeare wrote tragedies that epitomized Aristotle’s outline of a tragedy. Shakespeare’s Hamlet is one such tragedy.
The tragedy of Hamlet, Shakespeare’s most popular and greatest tragedy, presents his genius as a playwright and includes many numbers of themes and literary techniques. In all tragedies, the main character, called a tragic hero, suffers and usually dies at the end. Prince Hamlet is a model example of a Shakespearean tragic hero. Every tragedy must have a tragic hero. A tragic hero must own many good traits, but has a flaw that ultimately leads to his downfall. If not for this tragic flaw, the hero would be able to survive at the end of the play. A tragic hero must have free will and also have the characteristics of being brave and noble. In addition, the audience must feel some sympathy for the tragic hero.
Hamlet is the best known tragedy in literature today. Here, Shakespeare exposes Hamlet’s flaws as a heroic character. The tragedy in this play is the result of the main character’s unrealistic ideals and his inability to overcome his weakness of indecisiveness. This fatal attribute led to the death of several people which included his mother and the King of Denmark. Although he is described as being a brave and intelligent person, his tendency to procrastinate prevented him from acting on his father’s murder, his mother’s marriage, and his uncle’s ascension to the throne.