Claudius Purely Flawed And Wholly Evil In Shakespeare's Hamlet

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Claudius Purely Flawed and Wholly Evil
In Hamlet, Prince of Denmark written by William Shakespeare many different types of conflict appear between a multitude of characters and nations. There are many layers of contention in which people battle each other, their circumstances and most tragically themselves. The most significant and fundamental of all the different types of conflicts within Hamlet, Prince of Denmark are those which occur within each of the characters. This most prominent and underlying struggle is in greater evidence in the title character Hamlet 's internal tug-of-war. All of Hamlets conflicts stem from the heinous acts committed by his uncle Claudius, who is not only flawed but truly evil. Hamlet justly despises his uncle …show more content…

(51-55)
In public Claudius seems to be an amazing King, one who uses forethought and insight to rule his newfound kingdom. But Claudius, in private, is a very different person. The Ghost refers to him in Act I, Scene V, as "that incestuous, that adulterate beast" (42), and we soon realize that his crime is what is "...rotten in the state of Denmark"(90) which is described by Marcellus in Act I, Scene V. Claudius and his corrupt court represent the worst in human nature: lust, greed, corruption, and excess.
Claudius can also be sensitive and gentle. He is genuinely sorry for Polonius ' death, and he truly loves Gertrude. He must kill Hamlet, but he refuses to do so with his own hand for Gertrude 's sake. He also sincerely likes Ophelia, and treats her with the kindness that she should receive from her great love, Hamlet. But even those whom Claudius cares for cannot come before his ambition and desires. He will use the grieving Laertes to whatever ends necessary, and he denies Rosencrantz and Guildenstern the knowledge of the contents of the letter to England -- knowledge that would have saved their lives, or at least made them proceed with caution. And Claudius does not stop Gertrude from drinking the poison in the goblet during the duel between Hamlet and Laertes because it will implicate him in the

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