How Does Gertrude Have Power In Hamlet

Power: everyone desires to be in charge sometimes right? Well in Hamlet there are two individuals specifically who long to be the “head honcho.” Claudius kills his brother for goodness sake, and Hamlet just wants to make the people happy, and to seek revenge on Claudius. Hamlet just wants to be in control long enough to get rid of Claudius and everything else will fall into place. Hamlet and Claudius go back and forth throughout the play as to who will regain power in the end, they both will give up everything to get what they want: Hamlet wants revenge, and Claudius wants power, and in a way, they both succeed.

Claudius is one individual that revolves his life around power. Did he just marry Gertrude so he could have power? Claudius longs to be in control to

such an extent that he not only kills his brother, but marries his brother’s wife. How twisted is that? Claudius is very much the antagonist in Hamlet because he longs so much for the power of the kingdom. After Claudius takes the throne, he will do anything to keep it. He is afraid. As John Steinbeck says “Power does not corrupt. Feat corrupts… perhaps the fear of a loss of power.” Claudius is afraid of losing his power he will do anything, even kill his own “son”. Claudius hires Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to take Hamlet to England just so he can stay in power and get away with what awful crime he committed. King Claudius explains why he needs Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in Act 2, Scene 2: “The need we have to use you did provoke our hasty sending. Something have you heard of Hamlet’s transformation. What it should be, more than his father’s death, that thus hath put him so much from understanding of himself, I cannot dream of: I entreat you both, that you vouchsafe your rest here in our court some little times: so by your companies to draw hi9m on to pleasures, and to gather, whether aught, to us unknown, afflicts his thus, that opened, lies within our remedy.”
When Claudius plans to have Hamlet killed in England, it doesn’t work, so he gets Laertes on board to kill Hamlet, since Hamlet killed Laertes’ father.

Claudius will do absolutely anything to keep him in his position because he knows Hamlet wants to kill him. The only way for Claudius to get away with killing King Hamlet was to act torn up about the tragedy and to take over as king to make it look like he was doing his best to cover up his sin by becoming king. He was not even supposed to be king, Hamlet was next in line, but Claudius took over before Hamlet even had a chance to take over his father’s place. Claudius takes over Denmark because he desires control, so he does not give Hamlet a chance to take his rightful place as king.

Hamlet is another person who longs to be in a powerful position. The whole play is based on Hamlet trying to kill Claudius. He wants to get revenge for Claudius killing his father. He longs to be in control, and be king. Hamlet does a good job of acting because he starts acting like a lunatic to be in control of the whole situation of him planning to kill Claudius. If Hamlet can get everyone to think he is crazy, that will distract everyone, which will keep Hamlet in

control.
Power plays a huge role in Hamlet because there are many people who long to be in a powerful position, they just never have the chance. There are some people, such as Claudius, who should not be in a position of power because they are doing it for the wrong reasons. Hamlet also probably should not be king, because he would take advantage of his role, and try to kill Claudius and not be punished. Hamlet and Claudius go back and forth throughout the play in their desired position of powers. In the end, Claudius has been in power for quite some time now, and Hamlet finally gets his revenge on Claudius, before he dies.