Hamlet Ambiguity

The tragic play Hamlet by William Shakespeare deals with ambiguity, a major conflict that exists in the play. The doubtful characters are constantly questioning the occurring events, especially the protagonist Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, who is very reflective and thoughtful, and who attended the University of Wittenberg, studying New Humanism-the root of his indecisiveness and impulsivity. The humanistic approach is associated with the Classical Greek and Roman ideology, which admires an individual who is passionate and aggressive, a character such as Fortinbras, Hamlet’s ideal opposite. The ‘New’ is the Christian ideology believing in a passive, non-active, human being who leaves everything up to providence. Hamlets struggles to unify both ideologies, which are evident, and result in obsessive and hasty behavior further enhancing his position as a tragic hero. Hamlet is conflicted with the Greek and Roman classic ideas of an aggression versus the modern Christian ideas of passive behavior, leading him to be less resistant and to put his fate in God’s hands.

The University of Wittenberg plays a significant role in Hamlet because of its association with Protestantism and it’s teachings of New Humanism. Hamlet the play forms an interest in higher education, which is visible through the characters. They talk about their ideas at great length, the older characters are given thoughtful and reflective speeches, and the younger ones are also very intelligent themselves. Hamlet, Horatio, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern attended the University. Both Hamlet and Horatio studied philosophy. The University of Wittenberg is linked to the classics, the Greek and Roman Studies. Shakespeare specifically mentions what University Hamlet went to be...

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... the play due to his passion and strength, although by the end of the play it is the audience that sees Hamlet as the true hero. In the play Hamlet, passive over powers aggressive.

Thus, Hamlet is about the abundance of questions that are not only asked by the characters within the play, but also by the audience due to the lack of clarity. Hamlets education at Wittenberg leads him to constant doubt and indecisiveness resulting in his misery. Therefore, he acts impulsively and hasty, which are qualities of the Greek and Roman aggressive hero. By the end of the play, Hamlet sees a series of events taken place while he is on the boat to England, and discovers the design of God. He begins to put his fate into Gods hands, and establishes his non-active nature which are traits of the Christian passive hero. Hamlet’s answer to “To be, or not to be,” is to “Let it be”.