King Lear and Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, are two plays that reveal similar thematic elements, yet possess fundamentally different plot structures. Driven by the suffering and rage of two complementary characters, both plays suggest injustice through ‘good’, but ultimately flawed characters. This shared overarching theme is, however, conveyed differently within each of the works, as one employs two mainly disparate plot threads, while the other relies more heavily on the interaction between the two central plots. Yet the ultimate purpose of this dualism remains the same within both King Lear and Hamlet, in that Shakespeare’s use of the double plot illuminates the tragic elements within both plays, emphasizing core injustices through the interwinding parallelisms of two distinct groups.
In King Lear, this parallel structure reflects the tragic nature of the plot primarily in the symmetries between Lear and Gloucester. By describing a simultaneous betrayal, of Lear by Goneril and Regan, and of Gloucester by Edmund, Shakespeare not only establishes a strong sense of cruelty in the breaking of familial bonds, but also strengthens the play’s overall themes through repetition. This repetition is, however, not without key differences, which offer two distinct perspectives that lead to a cohesive whole. For instance, when juxtaposing Lear’s belief that “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child” (1.4.302-3) with Gloucester’s “O my follies! Then Edgar was abused. Kind gods, forgive me that, and prosper him.” (3.7.111-112), it is immediately apparent that, although their betrayals are quite similar, their responses differ sharply. While Lear is quick to point an accusatory finger at the injustices around him, ...
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...s way, by showing the disparity in their characters, along with their similar fate, Shakespeare creates a more universal tragedy, suggesting that myriad flaws may lead to the same eventuality.
From this perspective, the role of the double plot within King Lear and Hamlet is primarily that of a foil, serving to illustrate truths in both plays within the clashes and dualities that a secondary plot introduces. Within King Lear, this parallel plot structure is employed to present similar sufferings through two unique lenses, while in Hamlet, the conflicts and intermingling between Hamlet and Laertes serves to convey tragedy through irony, in their reciprocal deaths and similar motivations. As such, the double plot is an integral element of both plays, as it allows for the reinforcement of central themes through the similarities and differences of two different groups.
It tainted his familial bonds and gave him a sense of determination to escape society’s value of him. The notion of bastardy drives this aspect of the plot and is the single most important idea when looking into the phenomenon of cruelty between Edmund and Gloucester in King Lear. Edmund’s story is tragic because there is no resolution for his biggest grievance apart from a larger paradigm shift, marking a change in society’s value of the bastard. It is safe to say that Edmund and Gloucester’s relationship was plagued by powers greater than themselves. Shakespeare elevates their relationship to start a dialogue about family and societal values—creating a deeply layered and tragic
“Hamlet is one of the world’s most famous tragedies. It describes the destruction of a royal family that results from Prince Hamlet’s revenge. By a dramatic and detailed presentation, Shakespeare reveals two main ideas of this play-one is “tragic hero”, and another is “civil strife”. In reality, the play “Hamlet” has been made to movies and even cartoons which convey these concepts in different ways.
Shakespeare’s tragedy, King Lear, portrays many important misconceptions which result in a long sequence of tragic events. The foundation of the story revolves around two characters, King Lear and Gloucester, and concentrates on their common flaw, the inability to read truth in other characters. For example, the king condemns his own daughter after he clearly misreads the truth behind her “dower,”(1.1.107) or honesty. Later, Gloucester passes judgment on his son Edgar based on a letter in which he “shall not need spectacles”(1.2.35) to read. While these two characters continue to misread people’s words, advisors around them repeatedly give hints to their misinterpretations, which pave the road for possible reconciliation. The realization of their mistakes, however, occurs after tragedy is inevitable.
The complexity and effect of father-son relationships seems to be a theme that Shakespeare loved to explore in his writings. In Hamlet, the subject is used as a mechanism to identify the similarities between three very different characters: Fortinbras, Laertes, and Hamlet. They have each lost their fathers to violent deaths, which leads them to seek vengeance. As different as they may seem, they all share the common desire to avenge their father’s deaths. The method they each approach this is what differentiates each of their characters, and allows the audience to discern their individual characteristics. Fortinbras, Laertes, and Hamlet’s intense loyalty to their fathers drives them to individual extreme measures of revenge, exemplifying Shakespeare’s masterful use of describing the human psyche during Elizabethan times.
The play within a play has been used for a long time in stories ; scholars have traced it’s use back to the Arabic, Persian and Indian storytelling traditions (Bonnie Irwin, 1995). It can also be identified in Homer’s Odyssey but the first time it was probably used for drama, was in Thomas Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy. By reusing this emerging literary organ, Shakespeare is sure of his success with the presentation of his work and demonstrates to what degree drama is powerful so as to make ones self see the truth in ones acts. It is with it that Hamlet manages to surface Claudius’ guilt and to be sure that the ghost’s truthfulness. Additionally, he uses all the conventions and themes of a revenge tragedy that where extremely popular in the Elizabethan and Jacobean era and present in The Spanish Tragedy. But Shakespeare moves well beyond the usual revenge tragedy form in this play. Hamlet became a play were the themes are complicates and the psychology of its models is deepened. This is done by Hamlet’s complex characterization were he is in conflict between the Roman values of blood-right and martial valor, and Christian values of humility a...
The impression made by a character in a play is one of its most complex and debatable components, for each individual, from the director to the audience, forms an idea based on their own interpretation of the work. Each character can be read differently, with each perception having its own implications beyond the text. The analysis of alternate perspectives of Hamlet can provide insight into possible hidden motivations and underlying plot elements invisible in the original text.
In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the theme of revenge is very palpable as the reader examines the characters of Hamlet himself, as well as Laertes, son of Polonius, and Fortinbras, prince of Norway and son of the late King Fortinbras. Each of these young characters felt the need to avenge the deaths of their fathers who they felt were untimely killed at the bloody hands of their murderers. However, the way each chose to go about this varies greatly and gives insight into their characters and how they progress throughout the play.
Mark Rose, in “Reforming the Role,” highlights the “double plot” structure within Hamlet and another tragedy:
In Hamlet Shakespeare is able to use revenge in an extremely skillful way that gives us such deep insight into the characters. It is an excellent play that truly shows the complexity of humans. You can see in Hamlet how the characters are willing to sacrifice t...
During the first act of William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, Shakespeare uses metaphors, imagery, and allusion in Hamlet’s first soliloquy to express his internal thoughts on the corruption of the state and family. Hamlet’s internal ideas are significant to the tragedy as they are the driving and opposing forces for his avenging duties; in this case providing a driving cause for revenge, but also a second-thought due to moral issues.
Shakespeare’s Hamlet very much rests on major themes of death, revenge, action, and deception. Shakespeare uses a series of soliloquies in the play in order to convey these messages and present characters, Hamlet in particular, in a way that is in depth, contemplative, and known to the audience while hidden from the remaining characters. The soliloquies seen in Hamlet provide structure and depth to the play as a whole, creating and exemplifying dynamics between characters and action, and the way in which characters respond to differing situations, often bring an existential element of the conflict between two realities (life and afterlife). The audience also sees Hamlet’s own character come through very strongly in these soliloquies, and we see his internal struggles and turmoil with notions of life versus death, taking action, and seeking vengeance against his father’s murder. It is in these soliloquies that the audience sees into the inner thoughts of Hamlet and his reactions to the world around him. While not all soliloquies in Hamlet are Hamlet’s, for example Claudius’s, the combination acts as an outlet for understanding the motivations and thought processes behind the events that take place throughout the course of the play. For example, we see Hamlet and Claudius placed in opposition to each other and we discover their intentions thorugh their soliloquies. They act as a function to propel characters to action, and reflect back on that action (or lack there of) as a means of furthering the depth and development of each character as the play progresses. Even though a particular soliloquy is only spoken by one character, what they reveal in these inner reflections are reflective of the nature of the cast of characters as a wh...
Like all Shakespearean tragedies, Hamlet’s ending is no different in end-result. Hamlet’s separation from society and his self-imposed confusion caused by over-thinking results in the unnecessary deaths of most of the major characters. In turn, Hamlet’s pre-occupation with factors inessential to his mission of revenge slows down his action. It is this internal struggle that illustrates the intensity and complexity of Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy, something that is often looked at from a psychological perspective.
Hamlet is one of the most often-performed and studied plays in the English language. The story might have been merely a melodramatic play about murder and revenge, butWilliam Shakespeare imbued his drama with a sensitivity and reflectivity that still fascinates audiences four hundred years after it was first performed. Hamlet is no ordinary young man, raging at the death of his father and the hasty marriage of his mother and his uncle. Hamlet is cursed with an introspective nature; he cannot decide whether to turn his anger outward or in on himself. The audience sees a young man who would be happiest back at his university, contemplating remote philosophical matters of life and death. Instead, Hamlet is forced to engage death on a visceral level, as an unwelcome and unfathomable figure in his life. He cannot ignore thoughts of death, nor can he grieve and get on with his life, as most people do. He is a melancholy man, and he can see only darkness in his future—if, indeed, he is to have a future at all. Throughout the play, and particularly in his two most famous soliloquies, Hamlet struggles with the competing compulsions to avenge his father’s death or to embrace his own. Hamlet is a man caught in a moral dilemma, and his inability to reach a resolution condemns himself and nearly everyone close to him.
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.
Shakespeare followed Aristotle’s guidelines to a perfect tragedy to the letter. Each and every one of the points is represented in Hamlet as well as his other tragedies. Through his rich use of language and plot, Aristotle’s guidelines were revived and will live immortally through Shakepeare’s works.