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Relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude
Gertrudes role in hamlet
Shakespeare's influence on modern culture
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Hamlet and Gertrude’s Relationship
Hamlet’s relationship with his mother Gertrude is one of mostly rage, hatred, and possibly jealousy that could have been from loving her in a romantic sense. Hamlet finds out that Gertrude marries his father’s brother soon after his father’s death and goes in a fury. He yells at her and he calls her an incestuous beast. Whether or not this is from hatred for Claudius, Gertrude, or even out of jealousy are all cases that can be very well argued. The fluctuating emotions that Hamlet shows throughout is what makes the play so easy to relate to as a human and also what makes the possibility of there being multiple interpretations on how he really feels. Gertrude is also a strange character in that it seems as
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Her husband just died and she didn’t go through a morning process that every human being goes through after losing someone close to them, especially a spouse. Instead of this, she goes right ahead and marries her now dead husband’s brother, Claudius. Something definitely isn’t right in her head. From this there are a few things we can conclude. Possibility one is that she had a love affair with Claudius for quite some time and now was finally her chance to make a move and get married to him giving him the status of King.
Hamlet’s philosophy on life is also much different than Gertrude’s. Hamlet doesn’t care at all for his mortal life and is in search of life’s most elusive answers. Gertrude on the other hand, only cares for her mortal life. She enjoys the many pleasures that comes with being a beautiful, prominent queen and takes full advantage of it. She takes pride in her personal possessions and also is very sexual while Hamlet care more about the greater things in life. One person argues than, “It was her sexuality that turned Hamlet so violently against her in the first place.
Ay, that incestuous, that adulterate
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He starts with a bitter hatred for her incestuous actions with Claudius but he sees that she really still does care for him after her showing sympathy for him after his vicious argument. It seems as though Hamlet realizes that his mother knew her mistake and felt bad for her after she seems to be so sad by him being upset with her. All of this anger he had could also be proof that they actually had a really good relationship together and that he simply felt betrayed by the one person that he would least likely expect it from. This may be the most accurate view of their true relationship due to him not just leaving after his father died and attending the University of Wittenburg. Instead, he chose to listen to his mother and stay in boring Denmark where he lived his whole life. His talks of wanting to give his father the credit he deserved by getting revenge on those who treated him wrong is also why he may have felt the need to yell at his mother for what she did wrong. From the interactions that Hamlet and Gertrude have throughout Shakespeare’s Hamlet, it can be concluded that they had a strong relationship that was temporarily harmed by Gertrude’s incestuous actions but later mended due to Gertrude still caring for her dear
After the death of Old Hamlet and Gertrude’s remarriage to Claudius, Hamlet feels extremely angry and bitter. “How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable / Seem to me all the uses of this world!” (1.2.133-134). Due to the death of his father, he is already in a state of despair and the lack of sympathy that his mother has towards his sorrow does not aid him in recovering from this stage of grief. “Good Hamlet, cast thy knighted colour off, / And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark” (1.2.68-69). Hamlet is struggling to accept the fashion in which Gertrude is responding to the death of Old Hamlet; she seems quite content with her new life with Claudius, which is a difficult concept for him to accept as after the d...
Gertrude’s blindness to the whole situation is sickening. How she marries the brother of her former husband right after he kills him and never knows the truth is beyond me. She never cared about how her son felt before or after she married Claudius. She didn’t even wait very long after her husband died to get married again ( I; ii; 180-181. "Thrift, thrift, Horatio. The funeral baked meats did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables".). Therefore she is either a very slow, naïve woman or a very evil, coldhearted one. For someone to side with a person even after their own son has told them that the person they’re with has murdered their former lover is absolute lunacy ( III; iv; 29-30. "A bloody deed- almost as bad, good mother, as kill a king, and marry his brother".). Not knowing the truth in the first place is one thing, but turning your back on your own flesh and blood is another. Therefore without his mother on his side, Hamlet has lost all the family in his life that could have helped him get through his terrible time and he sinks lower than ever before.
There are many ways that Hamlet and his mother express their feelings for each other. In the beginning, they show tenderness and overwhelming love towards each other. It is Gertrude’s actions that bring out the anger in Hamlet. He cannot understand how his mother could be so disrespectful by remarrying so quickly. Although he honors his mother, he cannot do this upon learning of her engagement.
In the beginning of Hamlet, the Prince behaves as any normal person would following the death of a loved one. Not only is this a loved one, but an extra special someone; it is his loving father whom he adored. Hamlet is grief stricken, depressed, and even angry that his mother remarried so soon after his father’s death. Having witnessed how his father had treated his mother with great love and respect, Hamlet cannot understand how his mother could shorten the grieving period so greatly to marry someone like Uncle Claudius. He is incapable of rationalizing her deeds and he is obsessed by her actions.
Hamlet possesses an uncomfortable obsession with his mother’s sexuality. For this reason, Hamlet’s soliloquies provide most of the audience’s information about Gertrude’s sexual activities. In his first soliloquy, Hamlet refers to the relationship between Gertrude and Claudius when he exclaims, “Within a month…She married. O, most wicked speed, to post / With such dexterity to incestuous sheets!” (I, ii, 153-157). In saying this, Hamlet displays how hastily Gertrude has abandoned the late King Hamlet, Hamlet’s father, such that she has already married Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle. In addition, Hamlet acknowledges that Gertrude and Claudius have quickly developed a very sexual relationship. Despite the very recent death of her husband, Gertrude is unable to control her sexual desires, and she remarries less than two months after King Hamlet’s funeral.
Hamlet takes control of the conversation from the very beginning of the scene although it is Gertrude who was meant to be rebuking him and doing much of the talking. Hamlet succeeds in shaming her until the point when she begs him to stop. Hamlet having the upper hand in the conversation, asks his mother to change her ways, which she agrees to and asks for his advice, showing that she has submitted herself to her son. Hamlet does not really show much respect for his mother while reproving her and forcing her to sit down but he does love her. Some critics believe that his love shows sexual connotation and that is a reason why he gets so upset at her remarriage. There is a point in this scene when Gertrude thinks her life is in danger of Hamlet and gets frightened, which shows us that she considers him to be mad and harmful. After this scene she becomes aware that Hamlet isn't mad and starts trusting him as opposed to Claudius. This is exactly how Shakespeare has presented women throughout the play: they are easy to convince, very meek and become submissive to the men (as we can see Ophelia and her response to her father and brother). They are depicted as weak and inferior in comparison to the male figures, who control their lives. After the closet scene Gertrude keeps faith to her son and lies to her husband Claudius for Hamlet saying he killed Polonius in his madness:
Because Hamlet never told her the truth, she also ends up being a victim of Claudius. She was simply a woman who lost her husband and leaned on another man who she thought she could trust, a man who seemed to understand and who could support her. Hamlet never once thinks of his mother's feelings, he repeatedly acts out against her, even comparing Claudius to his father and saying mean things about their marriage.
Oddly, it appears that Gertrude possess more significance to Hamlet than one first anticipates. Her swift call to matrimony leads Hamlet into a spiraling quarry of depression and grieving. This mirrors the Oedipus complex. Gertrude sexually commits herself to Claudius causing Hamlet to feel a sense of jealousy and disappointment. In retaliation, he expresses his repressed desire of love through his unruly comments. He even goes as far as to say that the love is incestuous. Furthermore, in Act 3 scene 4, Hamlet confronts his mother directly in a closet. Addressing concern over her sexual actions, he exclaims “In the rank sweat of an enseamèd bed, / Stewed in corruption, honeying and making love / Over the nasty sty” (III.iv.104-106). Not only does this quote show that Hamlet disapproves his mother’s marriage, but also that he believes Claudius is a wicked criminal. Aligning with the Oedipus complex, Hamlet strangely obsesses over his mother’s love life while viewing his uncle in
Shakespeare’s Hamlet shows a unique mother and son relationship between Gertrude and Hamlet. Stemming from the death of King Hamlet, Hamlet’s depiction of his mother signals a heinous relationship amongst the two. Hamlets and Gertrude relationship looks complicated, but Gertrude still considers Hamlet as her son. After the marriage of Gertrude and Claudius, her affection towards Hamlet is not encountered, excluding for when she questioned his dark demeanor, “Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted colour off, And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark” (I, II, 68-69). Initially in the plot, Hamlet realizes that his mother is completely oblivious and naïve to her relationship with King Hamlet. Her questioning Hamlet’s character indicates that she
Shakespeare’s Hamlet, shows strong prejudice against woman especially with such characters of Ophelia and Gertrude. Shakespeare created an interesting character with Gertrude; he created a character that sits in the middle of all the conflict and appears to not partake in much of it. However Gertrude does seem intent in defusing it at every possible chance she receives. Gertrude is a central figure in the play. She appears a great deal but doesn’t say much – implying mystery and creating an interesting uncertainty in the audience. Hamlet spends a lot of time dwelling on her marriage to Claudius and Shakespeare leaves many questions unanswered with Gertrude such as did she have an affair with Claudius behind old hamlets back? Why does she drink the poisoned wine that is intended for her son? Does she know it is poisoned? Gertrude is the mother of Hamlet and although they do not have a typical mother son relationship she does love him. Queen Gertrude is often interpreted by many as an adulterate, incestuous woman. Catherine Belsey states that typical interpretations of Hamlet maintain: ‘Gertrude a slut; and Shakespeare a patriarchal bard’ (Belsey,1997:34). Gertrude’s actions throughout the play could be read to show her to be a very passive character, far from a strong independent woman. This is shown with her obedience to Claudius, three times during the play, Gertrude is told to leave and each times she complies without hesitation. In Act 1, scene 2 Claudius says to Gertrude, ‘Madam, come’ (122). Then again, Act 3, scene 1, Claudius says to her, ‘Sweet Gertrude, leave us .’ (28), she complies with ; ‘I shall obey you’ (37). And finally, in Act 4, scene 1, Claudius say, ‘O Gertrude, come away!’ (28). This obedience that Gertrude ...
Throughout this process, his relationship with his uncle Claudius and mother Gertrude worsen. Hamlet and Claudius’ tainted relationship successively intensifies through their planned plots to kill one another. The relationship between Hamlet and his mother Gertrude worsen due to her shameful acts, and her disregard towards her son in his times of need. If it had not been for this corruption between the family, Denmark would’ve continued to be ruled by an honourable and truthful family. Instead, the kingdom of Denmark became rife with dishonesty, eventually leading to the death of Hamlet and Claudius, the ultimate
Gertrude influenced Hamlet significantly throughout the course of the play. Hamlet was very angered by his mother's remarriage. A few months after his father's death, Gertrude married Claudius, Hamlet's uncle. He was driven mad when his father's ghost appeared to him and revealed that Claudius was responsible for the death of Old Hamlet. Hamlet even termed the marriage as incest. Hamlet's fury is displayed when he throws his mother on the bed and says, "Frailty, thy name is woman" (Act #. Scene #. Line #). This shows his extent of anger because he makes a generalization that all women are weak. As a result of his mother's actions, Hamlet strives to seek revenge against Claudius for the death of his father. In order to marry Gertrude, Claudius kills his brother. Therefore, Gertrude is the driving factor for the whole setup of the play.
To begin, Gertrude is presented in differing manners throughout Hamlet the play versus Hamlet (2000) the film. In Shakespeare’s play, she originally is cast as a woman who has power due to her husband, but sits as a trophy wife. Craving power, safety, and comfort, she depends on men for her position and control. Seeming to have poor judgment, she never expresses self-reflection throughout the play and just seems to be a bit oblivious to everything, ultimately resulting in her death as an unaware victim of a game she ensnared herself
In many of his plays, especially tragedies, William Shakespeare examines the relationships people have with one another. Of these relationships, he is particularly interested in those between family members, above all, those between parents and their children. In his play Hamlet, Shakespeare examines Prince Hamlet's relationships with his dead father, mother and step-father. His relationship with Gertrude, one of the only two women in the play, provides Hamlet with a deep sense of anger and pain. Hamlet feels that Gertrude has betrayed his father by marrying with his brother. Throughout the play, he is consumed with avenging his father's death and all the mistreatment the former King had suffered and still suffers after his life is over. Gertrude adds to the dead King's tarnished memory by not mourning and instead rejoicing in her new marriage. Hamlet is thus extremely angry with Gertrude and expresses this anger towards her directly and indirectly through his words, both to himself and to other characters.
The relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude is strained at first. From the beginning of the play to act III, Hamlet is bitter with his mother. He feels this way because it has been less than four months since the death of his biological father, yet she is already remarried to Claudius. He feels his father is being betrayed from her lack of mourning. She tells her son to "cast thy nighted color off" (I.ii.68) and "all that lives must die" (I.ii.72). Clearly, she isn't grieving over her late husband's death and instead puts forth an optimistic attitude to her new husband and life. Gertrude's concern with Hamlet's odd behaviour after his encounter with Ophelia in act II scene i also shows the strain in their relationship. For example, she agrees with Claudius' words that "of Hamlet's transformation" (II.ii.5) and suggests Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to spy and find out the underlying cause of her son's problems. In addition to that, she consents Polonius to hide behind the tapestry in act III scene iv without Hamlet knowing. These two decisions suggest their inability to communicate. Instead, spying is required for Gertrude to find out about her son's inner mentality. The mother and ...