Death In Hamlet Essay

1881 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Hamlet and the theme of death

Death as Mediation between Hamlet and a Weary Life Death is perhaps the greatest mystery of the world, which no person can solve because no person has lived through death and returned to report about it. Throughout Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet believes that he can dictate death; when, where he will die and by what means. In the end death conquers all, as evident in the play- everyone dies. Hamlet’s depression drives him away from life, and causes him to form a personified relationship with death. This relationship is also observed in Alan Seeger’s “I Have a Rendezvous with Death” where the soldier from World War 1, narrator, describes death as a person who “shall take [his] hand/And lead [him] into [death’s] dark land” (Seeger 7-8). Hamlet …show more content…

He sees death as a refuge, shelter or protection from danger (Dictionary.com), because such “outrageous fortune[s]”, “a sea of troubles”, or the “calamity of so long life” (3.1.58-69) cannot be found in death. Hamlet feels that life is a burden and in death, suicide, this burden can be lifted off his shoulders. Thus, death will relieve his ongoing depression. Claudius and Gertrude prevent Hamlet from returning to Wittenberg, thus trapping him in Denmark and so his only escape would be to kill himself. Hamlet fears “the dread of something after death/The undiscover’d country, from whose bourn/ No traveller returns” (3.1.78-80), and this fear is what prevents him from committing suicide. Hamlet longs for death to relieve the agony of his weary life. The soldier in contrast, to Hamlet, wishes to die “Pillowed in silk and scented down […] in blissful sleep” (Seeger17-18); the soldier wishes to die in peace. Which alludes to the fact that the soldier has made peace with his fate whereas Hamlet has not. Hamlet’s theatre production is a distraction from this reality. He preoccupies himself with “catch[ing] the conscience of the king” (2.2.592). Hamlet uses the players to force a reaction of guilt from Claudius for the murder of King Hamlet. He succeeds which causes a brief feeling of satisfaction that he has tormented Claudius. Hamlet is avoiding reality (he cannot avenge his father’s death because it is …show more content…

However when Claudius sends Hamlet to England, Hamlet meets one of Fortinbras’ soldiers. Hamlet learns of Fortinbras plans and finds him a chivalrous man. Influenced by Fortinbras courage and sense of duty Hamlet realizes that his “honour’s at the stake […] have a father kill’d, a mother stain’d […] while to my shame I see” (4.4.56-59). Hamlet must defend his honour whatever the cost may be, even if he were to pay with his life. He still wishes for his death but not to seek refuge from pain, rather to protect his honour and dignity. This shows an attitude change because now he has a reason to avenge his father’s murder (Kubresli). Hamlet sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths, and returns to Denmark. He realizes that death is unavoidable, and now he embraces it for honour not relief of pain. This is a critical turning point in Hamlet’s perception of

Show More
Related

  • Analysis of the Tone of the To Be or Not to Be Soliloquy in Hamlet

    644 Words  | 2 Pages

    To begin with, Hamlet starts off his speech asking, “Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer/ The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune/ Or to take arms against a sea of troubles/ And by opposing end them” (Shakespeare 3.1.57-60). He wonders if he would be more noble if he took his own life and end his sorrows than if he continued to endure him. This question shows the pain and grief that Hamlet has experienced since the death of his father. According to Ophelia, later in Act 3 Scene 1, she reveals that Hamlet was once the obvious successor to the throne since he was charismatic and admired by the people. Clearly, in this part of the play, he is suicidal, and he is uncertain about many of the big decisions in his life. This extreme change in Hamlet’s behaviors makes the audience worry about Hamlet’s mental health. Is his feigned madness transforming into true insanity? However, his comparison to death and sleep suggests that Hamlet is in a state of reflection and learning. Hamlet’s analogy between death and sleep is the musings of an ordinary man who wonders what happens to a soul once its body dies. Just as no one knows what dreams they will experience when they lay in bed, no knows what they will experience when their body is finally laid in a grave.

    Read More

  • Life And Death In Brave New World Essay

    1009 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the beginning of the play Hamlet's view of death is mournful but, as the play continues he begins to think of death as this incredibly terrifying concept, this is clear when he states “To die,to sleep-- to sleep, perchance to dream […] But that the dread of something after death, The undiscovered country of whose bourn” (Shakespeare III i

    Read More

  • Mortality in "Hamlet"

    579 Words  | 2 Pages

    “So shall you hear of carnal, bloody, and unnatural acts, of accidental judgements, casual slaughters, of deaths put on by cunning and forced cause”, (Hamlet, Act V, Scene 2, Lines 381-384). Horatio, best friend of Prince Hamlet, says this in the final lines of the play. He says this after Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, Hamlet, Claudius, King of Denmark, and Laertes, son of Polonius all die in the battle between Hamlet and Laertes. Hamlet, King of Denmark, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, former friends of Hamlet, Polonius, councillor to the King, and Ophelia, daughter of Polonius are also dead. Death is a very important theme in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

    Read More

  • Hamlets Obsession with Death

    1081 Words  | 3 Pages

    In act 3, Hamlet questions the unbearable pain of life and views death through the metaphor of sleep. "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 / and, by opposing end them. To die, to sleep / no more" (3.1.64-68), details which bring up new thoughts about what happens in the after life. Thus, Hamlet contemplates suicide, but his lacking knowledge about what awaits him in the afterworld causes him to question what death will bring. For example he states, "The undiscovered country, from whose bourn / no traveler returns, puzzles the will / and makes us rather bear those ills we have / than fly to others that we know not of" (3.1.87-90), again revealing his growing concern with "Truth" and his need for certainty. Once again, death appears in act 4 with the suicide of Ophelia, the demand for Hamlet's execution and the gravedigger scene. All of these situations tie back with how death is all around Hamlet and feeds his obsession with it. Finally in act 5, Hamlet meets his own death, as his obsession to know leads to the death of himself.

    Read More

  • Hamlet's View on Death in Hamlet by William Shakespeare

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hamlet's View on Death in Hamlet by William Shakespeare Hamlet is scared because he does not know what happens after you die. He is not afraid to die, but he will not kill himself because he is afraid that he will go to hell. In Act 3, scene 3, Hamlet shows his belief in the Bible by not killing his father while he is in prayer. He says, HAMLET “A villain kills my father; and for that. I, his sole son, send this same villain.

    Read More

  • Hamlet Alienation Analysis

    1367 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet is questioning if it worth living in such misery or not because he is encumbered with trying to avenge his father’s death every day. At this setting, Hamlet is self-destructive and risks alienation from his religion as he begins to think of suicide. If he were to kill Claudius, he would violate a central religious principle against murdering another human being. Although it is easy to dislike King Claudius for his actions, we wait and hope that he confesses his crimes but he never does (Stockton & Shakespeare, 2000, p. 09). Both suicide and murder would make Hamlet feel guilt by violating his religious quota, thus representing alienation at the level of his religious consciousness (Knights, 1966, p. 14). Hamlet has the duty to avenge his father by killing the murderer, the king, risking being alienated at a religious level.

    Read More

  • Hamlet: The Bewildering Human Condition

    1242 Words  | 3 Pages

    Death threads its way through the entirety of Hamlet, from the opening scene’s confrontation with a dead man’s ghost to the blood bath of the final scene, which occurs as a result of the disruption of the natural order of Denmark. Hamlet is a man with suicidal tendencies which goes against his Christian beliefs as he is focused on the past rather than the future, which causes him to fall into the trap of inaction on his path of revenge. Hamlet’s moral dilemma stems from the ghost’s appearance as “a spirit of health or a goblin damned”, making Hamlet decide whether it brings with...

    Read More

  • An Analysis of Mortality in Hamlet by William Shakespeare

    2189 Words  | 5 Pages

    Shakespeare shows the ideology of death internalizing within Hamlet first with Hamlet’s emotions following the death of Old Hamlet. In the scene in which Hamlet is introduced, Hamlet is portrayed as an embodiment of death, dressed in “suits of a solemn black”(1.2.81) and has “dejected havior of the visage”(1.2.84). Hamlet’s physical representation as death signifies his lack of desire to continue living himself, being detached and discontent with the world around him. Hamlet, in his first soliloquy, opens by stating, “Sullied flesh would melt/Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew,/ Or that the Everlasting had not fixed/His canon ‘gainst Self Slaughter!”(1.2.133-135). This is significant, as it shows Hamlet’s full willingness to commit suicide and end Hamlet’s internal pain, if not for suicide being a sin under religion. The reason for Hamlet’s desire for death and his dis...

    Read More

  • Hamlet, the Existentialist

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet appears to be a rather philosophical character. He is skeptical and expresses views that nowadays can be described as existential and relativist, but those terms did not exist in Shakespeare’s time. Existentialism analyzes existence and the way humans appear to exist in this world. It is concerned with the individual; finding oneself and finding a meaning to life by one’s own measures.That is exactly what Hamlet is going through. Presented with the jarring conflict of avenging his father’s death, Hamlet finds his meaning to life shortly before dying himself among others tangled in this mess. He was tasked by the ghost of his father to kill Claudius in an act of vengeance, which would be considered noble (though in this case, it is a regicide avenging a regicide; treason for treason). The ideals of society demand that he...

    Read More

  • Death And Suicide In Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1006 Words  | 3 Pages

    After a death, we find ways of overcoming grief in this painful world. Some people binge eat their way out while others find the easy way out, which is suicide.In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays mortality in the image of death and suicide.Shakespeare develops hamlet as a man who is sensitive and uncontrolled by his actions. Hamlet faces challenges that mess with his subconscious making him feel vulnerable to making decisions that will affect his life.We can say that Hamlet was very indecisive of living or not. He showed many signs of suicidal thoughts. Many can argue and say that Hamlet was depressed. Coming back home from school to attend his father's funeral in Denmark made him discover many things, such as, his mother Gertrude remarried to Hamlet's uncle Claudius who is the dead king's brother. To Hamlet he finds it loathsome for his

    Read More

  • The Theme of Death in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the protagonist, Hamlet is obsessed with the idea of death, and during the course of the play he contemplates death from numerous perspectives. He ponders the physical aspects of death, as seen with Yoricks's skull, his father's ghost, as well as the dead bodies in the cemetery. Hamlet also contemplates the spiritual aspects of the afterlife with his various soliloquies. Emotionally Hamlet is attached to death with the passing of his father and his lover Ophelia. Death surrounds Hamlet, and forces him to consider death from various points of view.

    Read More

  • Social and Psychological Influences on Hamlet

    772 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hamlet’s psychological influence demonstrates his dread of both death and life.  In Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, “To be or not to be” (3.1.64), he refers the “be” to life and further asks “whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” (3.1.65.66).  By this, Hamlet is asking himself the question of whether to live or die.

    Read More

  • Suicide in Hamlet

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, suicide is treated differently on the aspects of religion, morals, and philosophical views. Suicide is the act of deliberately killing yourself in contrary to your own best interests. In today’s society suicide is highly looked down upon. But Shakespeare used suicide and violence in almost all of his most popular plays. Many of his tragedies used the element of suicide, some accomplished, others merely contemplated. Shakespeare used suicide as a dramatic device. A character’s suicide could promote a wide range of emotions: horror, condemnation to pity, and even respect. Some of his suicides could even take titles like the noble soldier, the violated woman, and star-crossed lovers. In Othello, Othello see suicide as the only escape from the pangs and misery of life. In The Rape of Lucrece, Lucrece kills herself after being raped because she cannot live with her shame. And in Romeo and Juliet, the two lovers could not find happiness if life, so death was perceived as a way that they could be united with each other. Shakespeare was dealing with a very controversial subject: Was it right to end life in order to escape the cruel and unjust world? In the time of the Renaissance, many things had an impact on suicide such as religion, morals, and aesthetic views.

    Read More

  • Death In Hamlet Research Paper

    658 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Hamlet had a considerable influence in the nineteenth century…”(Kinney). Most can agree, however, that for most of the play nothing really happens. Until act three, no one we have been introduced to has died. Even though death is only a prodigious part of the play in acts four and five, the theme of death is woven throughout the entirety of the play. In Hamlet, the theme of death resembles a ripple in the water.

    Read More

  • Condemned: Hamlet’s Moral Dilemma

    1663 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

More about Death In Hamlet Essay

Open Document