Hamlet Fortinbras Foil

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Some of the most influential people in life are the ones that are only there for a short period or even a moment. This is shown in the play, Hamlet, by the character Fortinbras. Fortinbras is only mentioned in Acts one through four and does not even make a physical appearance until the fifth act. Despite the lack of appearance, Fortinbras has a big reputation and functions as a foil of young Hamlet. He is everything that Hamlet isn't. Fortinbras affects many attributes of the play and shapes the overall theme off it, creating the story it is today.
During the play, both Fortinbras’ and Hamlet’s fathers are killed and are under the rule of another family member. Despite all this, Fortinbras is a man of action while Hamlet is not. This adds a sense of variety in the story, showing you what Hamlet could be. In Act 5 Scene 2 Hamlet says, “On Fortinbras: he has my dying voice; So tell him, with the occurrents, more and less,Which have solicited. The rest is silence.” This shows that Hamlet trusts Fortinbras to hold the throne, thus showing Hamlet’s thoughts that Fortinbras can carry out actions while he can not. Also, Fortinbras is very bold and hot-headed. He was going to get revenge and he was set on it, until someone told him not too. Unlike Fortinbras, Hamlet has to wait and think. …show more content…

Even though he is not there it hints that he is lurking around waiting to invade (Shakespeare). For example, Fortinbras army happens to be marching through Denmark for a minuscule part of Poland. This allows the readers to come to conclusions on there own, always remembering he is there. Then, in Act 5 Scene 2, Fortinbras shows up, showing that he was near, and takes the Danish throne which Hamlet gave him in his last words to Horatio. Even though he was only there for 1 scene , he accomplished a

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