Hamlet The Character Of Hamlet

722 Words2 Pages

Chime Dolkar
English 1201

Shakespeare’s title character Hamlet is the protagonist of the play. He is brave and extremely analytical and indecisive. When the Ghost of Hamlet tells Prince Hamlet that his uncle Claudius is the murderer, hamlet becomes obsessed with providing his uncle’s guilt before trying to act. He tries to investigate and then only take any decision. Hence he has a very significant character of hamlet.
Hamlet is a pious character who thinks that suicide is a sin. Since his mother married his uncle after the death of his father, he is angry with her and he feels like committing suicide as he says, “Ah, I wish my dirty flesh could melt away into a vapor, or that God had not made a law against suicide.” (I, ii, 129-132). However, his religious beliefs stop him from doing so. Hamlet believed that suicide was ethically wrong. He is contemplating the thought of suicide and wishing that God had not made suicide a sin. He believes in god and thinks about the consequences of the actions as he says “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," (III, i, 58-61). While he hates the conditions of his life and wishes he could end it, he concludes that he would rather continue living in “an unweeded garden” than live in hell as a consequence of suicide (I, ii, 135). By making the decision to stay alive and fight Claudius' corruption, Hamlet demonstrates existential qualities.
When the ghost beckons Hamlet to follow it out into the night, his companions urge him not to follow. Though he is unaware whether his father’s apparition is truly the king’s spirit or an evil demon, he doesn’t care of his ...

... middle of paper ...

...ng prayer, he would dishonor his father by sending Claudius to heaven. He says, “A villain kills my father, and, for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send To heaven. Oh, this is hire and salary, not revenge. He took my father grossly, full of bread, With all his crimes broad blown, as flush as May.” (III, iii, 77-82). Hamlets strong religious believe allows indecisiveness to be seen in his character. He thinks too much therefore he is delayed in fulfilling the promise he made to his father. This is showing a weakness in Hamlet.
Hamlet has features that make him significant character. He is very logical who analyses too much that delayed him from completing his revenge. Along with being logical he is also very brave yet indecisiveness. He is a character full of too much thought and not enough action; however, in the end he is able to overcome this flaw.

More about Hamlet The Character Of Hamlet

Open Document