Analyzing the Ghosts of Hamlet’s Father and Atsumori
How do authors create characters from the dead? A story with a ghost truly breaks a wall down when reading a story. The ghost character provides the reader with a new feeling of emotion that can completely reshape the storyline. To provide baseline characteristics of a ghost character I am comparing the ghost scene in the story Hamlet and ghost story Atsumori. I will be looking for how does a ghost being a character and portrayed in a certain way affect the storyline for example in Hamlet the ghost of his father may have driven him to insanity, how can the physical and social attributes of a ghost in a story affect a main character mental state, and comparing the ghosts’ motivations and how
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In Hamlet the ghost of Hamlet’s father comes to him with the idea that he should kill his uncle, “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder…..The serpent that did sting thy father’s life, Now wears his crown,” (Shakespeare 167). Hamlet’s father most likely already knew that Hamlet was upset with his mother and uncle’s new marriage and would be able to carry out the task of avenging his father at the downfall of his uncle. In the story of Atsumori Kumagi no Naozane is seeking salvation for killing the warrior Atsumori in combat. Atsumori comes to him and offers the salvation that he seeks, “No, Rensei is not my enemy. Pray for me again, oh pray for me again,” (Seami 505). The ghosts’ motivations in these cases are very different in the way that one is seeking revenge for a wrong death and the other has come to terms and offers salvation. The ghosts both want a conflict to be resolved but they require the assistance of the living. In the end Atsumori decides that Kumagi no Naozane is his friend and forgives him for killing him. But the end of Hamlet does not go exactly as Hamlet’s father would have hoped. Th ending of Hamlet does result in Claudius dying but not by Hamlet’s hand, so does Hamlet’s father get avenged or is he doomed to be imprisoned for the rest of his afterlife. The question being in the end were the ghosts’ motivations resolved and would the failure be due …show more content…
The ghost of Hamlet’s father caused Hamlet to start to rethink the views he had for his uncle. Hamlet was given major character development after this event and even contemplated becoming a murderer. The ghost scene in Hamlet is a deciding factor in how the story runs its course, this scene creates Hamlet the madman. By the storyline revolving around this key scene you cant help but wonder if anything would have happened the same if Hamlet had never found out what had happened to his father. Shakespeare used the dead to decide the future of the living. He truly demonstrated how much the dead can change everything. The same is true in Atsumori, the ghost of Atsumori forgiving Kumagi no Naozane will affect the rest of his life. Kumagi no Naozane can now live on not having to always feel the guilt of killing Atsumori. The way that these authors were able to allow the dead to cause such major character development and become major characters in these stories reminds us to take care of the dead just as much as we care for the
Hamlet is extremely proud of Old King and respects him.“He was a great human being. He was perfect in everything. I’ll never see the likes of him again” (I.ii.185-188). Hamlet loves his father and gives the greatest praise at the funeral. Grief driven by love tempts Hamlet to think his father’s goodness, and more, the loss of such a favorable figure. Hamlet believes that the ghost that is said to look like the dead king is indeed his father.”He waxes desperate with imagination”(I.ii.92). The Prince, who is deep in sadness and does not think sufficiently, is convinced that the spirit is the Old Hamlet, he is the only person that can physically communicate with the ghost. Hamlet for the second time talks to the apparition in his mother’s chamber, where Gertrude does not see any. What Horatio and other witnesses encounter at the gate at night proves the possibility of the existence of the ghost, Hamlet later in the play is considered to be truly mad on the account of his unusual ability to see and talk to the spirit, which is obviously conjured up by his mind. Rising actions in both the book and the play are implied at the beginning of the stories: Amir’s memory of 1975 and Old Hamlet’s death. The journey of redemption or revenge takes actions of concealing their true emotions and implementing devised
The Ghost of Hamlet’s father, was in way another brick of burden for Hamlet to carry, and did nothing but add confusion and anger to his already disturbed mind. After this I believe hamlets madness to grow, he his blinded by bitterness and anger towards his uncle so much that he loses sight compassion for life and love.
In Hamlet, William Shakespeare presents the main character Hamlet as a man who is fixated on death. Shakespeare uses this obsession to explore both Hamlet's desire for revenge and his need for assurance. In the process, Shakespeare directs Hamlet to reflect on basic principles such as justice and truth by offering many examples of Hamlet's compulsive behavior; as thoughts of death are never far from his mind. It is apparent that Hamlet is haunted by his father's death. When Hamlet encounters the ghost of his father, their conversation raises all kinds of unthinkable questions, for example murder by a brother, unfaithful mother, that triggers Hamlet's obsession. He feels compelled to determine the reliability of the ghost's statements so that he can determine how he must act. Ultimately, it is his obsession with death that leads to Hamlet avenging the death of his father by killing Claudius.
I personally disagree with the author W.W. Greg’s interpretation of Hamlet’s ghost, and believe that his assumption that Hamlet is simply hallucinating his father’s ghost is without merit. Many of W.W. Greg’s claims relate Hamlet to other plays that were written by Shakespeare, claiming that due to how Shakespeare portrayed ghosts in his previous works, it would follow that Hamlet also fits into the same mold as these past writings. W.W. Greg even states, “I should like to be told what Shakespeare's views were of ghosts in general ... I am forced to turn to Shakespeare's other plays for suggestions as to how he represented these phenomena” (Greg 395). W.W. Greg is simply claiming that trends in Shakespeare’s writings in the past logically must take the same form in the character of Hamlet’s ghost. This method of thinking simply does not hold up when examined critically, mainly due to the fact that there were multiple witnesses to the ghost, a...
In William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” there are many different events throughout the play that affect and shape the main character Hamlet. The biggest event being when Hamlet meets the ghost of his father, the king, who then proceeds to tell him that his uncle murdered him. This event will lead Hamlet to madness with sanity while plotting his revenge on his uncle which will ultimately end in his, his uncle and several other’s deaths at the end of the play.
All throughout the play Hamlet mourns the loss of his father, especially since his father is appearing to him as a ghostly figure telling him to avenge his death, and throughout the play it sets the stage and shows us how he is plotting to get back at the assassinator. Such an instance where the ghost appears to Hamlet is when Hamlet and his mother are in her bedchamber where the ghost will make his last appearance. Hamlet tells his mother to look where the ghost appears but she cannot see it because he is the only one who that has the ability to see him.
For example, upon Hamlet’s meeting with the ghost of King Hamlet, his objectives are revealed. The play then develops into a revenge story amongst the loyal family. During Hamlet’s encounter with his father’s spirit, he vows to, “wipe away all trivial fond records, all saws of books, all forms, all pressures past that youth and observation copied there, And thy commandment all alone shall live”(1. 5. 100-103). The ghost holds a strong influence in Hamlet’s choices. He preserves to only the ghost’s commandment by avenging him. Therefore, Hamlet morality changes after his meeting with the ghost as he plans to kill the King of Denmark despite the consequences. Additionally, the ghost has an influence in the choices Hamlet makes when enacting upon his revenge, especially in the way Hamlet chooses to kill Claudius. To explain, Hamlet comes across Claudius while praying after the play confirms he is guilty; however he does not kill the King. According to the play, killing one while praying in the process will automatically send them to heaven. To further explain, Hamlet realizes this as, “A villain kills my father, and, for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send to heaven…. He took my father grossly, full of bread, with all his crimes broad blown, as flush as May. And how his audit stands who knows save heaven?”(3.3.
Hamlet is still in mourning of his father’s death but feels that most of the people have moved on much quickly with the death of his father. And after a couple months his mother is remarried and a twist of turned events to find out that it is his uncle, Claudius which is his new step Father. Filled with anger he does not know how to digest this news. To top it off is visit buy the Ghost of Hamlet (hamlets father) to tell Prince Hamlet that his uncle Claudius is the murderer. And demand that he takes revenge upon him and kill Claudius. “To be or not to be,’ (3.1.56) true to himself or carry on bloody traditions of his war like father. But being visited by his father’s warlike spirit triggered him to be lunatic and he is lunatic because he was compared to the moon shining with the bloody borrow sheen of his warlike father (2.2.52). However, before he had even spoken to the Ghost of Hamlet he had been warned by Haratio...
... to make choices as to how they wanted to act out those scenes. Nevertheless, the ghost is an important part of the play that will always lead to questions in the readers mind. Does the ghost cause Hamlet to go mad or is that madness within that causes the ghost to be revealed? Is it the ghost who causes Hamlet to seek revenge or the unraveling truth of Claudius’s murder? These questions may change with every generation but as some questions get answered others come forth which leads audiences to always be captivated by Hamlet.
In the Shakespearean time period people believed in ghosts and reported them, so it makes sense that Shakespeare would write about a ghost appearing in the play. There is plenty of evidence in the play to prove that the ghost is real.
illuminates on the mystery surrounding the death of Hamlet’s father, the King of Denmark. Often in literature the presence of a ghost indicates something left unresolved. In this case, the death of Hamlets father is the unresolved event as well the revenge necessary to give the tormented soul repose. The ghost created mystery for the audience, spawns the chain of death and treachery in Denmark, causes characters to question the death of their former king, and
Ghosts are often characters that are a representation of revenge tragedy, especially in Shakespearean plays, such as Macbeth. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the ghost is very significant because it influences Hamlet negatively, which ultimately results in his tragedy. The ghost causes Hamlet to get revenge, realize his tragic flaw, and leads to his madness.
The story of Hamlet Senior's death is the ghost story aspect of the play. Hamlet Senior, the late king, was being tormented in hell throughout the daylight hours and during the night he was forced to walk the castle. He stated that he was "Doom'd for a certain term to walk the night, And for the day confin'd to fast in fires, Till the foul crimes done in my [being the late King's] days of nature Are burnt and purg'd away (50 lines 10-13). His release from this torture would not be permitted until his avenger is retaliated against by his son. Hamlet, Francisco and Bernardo all see the ghost of the late king, but the apparition will only speak to his son. The ghost brings an unnatural feel to the drama and leaves the reader/viewer wondering if it was real or all in Hamlet's mind.
William Shakespeare's “Hamlet” is one of the most tragic plays ever written. It is about a young prince trying to keep his word to his dead father by avenging his death. Hamlet procrastinates when avenging his father’s death, which is his tragic flaw. Hamlet appears to be a coward as well as depressed. He finds himself questioning his own ambitious motives such as revenge and hatred toward his murderous uncle. Hamlet tells Horatio, his friend that he is going to fake madness as he loses his determination. It is Hamlet’s hubris that makes me begin to believe he is mad. Hamlet does at one point have doubt concerning the honesty of the ghost. His various reasons for delay in seeking revenge is that he wants to make sure his uncle Claudius is one hundred percent guilty and at the same time does not want to hurt his mother. He has too much Oedipus complex, love for his mother.
In traditional and modern, ghost reflects death and fear, and it never change. In Hamlet, the ghost is a symbol of Hamlet’s father who is killed by Claudius. Its propose is to demand Hamlet to avenge its death. Although the ghost only appears three times in front of Hamlet, it is a specify role to develop the whole story and plot. Through Hamlet, the ghost is the motive to make Hamlet kill Claudius, and the ghost plays a critical role to influence Hamlet.