Research Paper On Hamlet

Buffy Montgomery

World Literature

Deborah Germany

May 1, 2017

Hamlet

When Shakespeare penned down the famous play, Hamlet, in 1600, he had already established himself as a prolific writer in a type of fashionable drama referred to as revenge tragedy. Hamlet is a well scripted and captivating conventional tragedy whose main character is faced with an inevitable command to take vengeance against his enemy; but instead, the protagonist, Hamlet, delays and even act as if he has been taken mad before taking on the challenge (McCauley 1). This play has since been adapted for the screen not once or twice but several times with the 1948 adaptation by Laurence Olivier being of the most successful (Nelson

175). In spite of Olivier’s film winning

Thus, the idea that Hamlet is just about a play about a man who could not act is entirely simplistic and unreasonable as Hamlet’s inability to act was a well thought idea that went a long way in sustaining the play. Hamlet’s inability to decide on a course of action in the play is important in carrying forward the dramatic action of the play. Through creating a protagonist who could not readily take a course of action, the author challenges the beliefs and endorsements of his audience.

Claudius is seen acknowledging his sin in Act three of the play; “Oh, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven (Shakespeare 3. 3. 36).” The conventional beliefs and ideas of Shakespeare’s audience endorse and as a result expect Hamlet to unquestionably enact blood vengeance against his enemy (Udo and Fels 178). On the contrary, the author attempts didacticism by bringing in soul-searching moments and wanting the audience to re-evaluate the repercussions of blind revenge; something that is unusual to the genre. Hamlet could not martial his energies and spirit to enact vengeance for what can be considered a just cause and he is seen at crossroads as he refers to himself as a slave, “O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I! (Shakespeare 2. 2. 506).” Hamlet would have taken action and sought revenge immediately bringing to an end the play, but Shakespeare brings in the inability to take action and self-reflection to make the play interesting and ultimately carry forward the dramatic

His father’s ghost imposed on him two injunctions; to seek vengeance for his death and to cleanse royalty of incest. Hamlet chose to cleanse the royal family of sexual immorality. He plagued his mother with commentaries and made her shortcomings plain in a bid to keep her from falling into the trap of Claudius, “A bloody deed- almost as bad, good mother, as kill a Ling, and marry with his brother (Shakespeare 3. 4. 2418).” In the play, Claudius is seen commenting that Gertrude had begun to subsist by Hamlet’s looks implying that Hamlet had accomplished in keeping her away from his bed. He insists that his mother had offended his late father by having an affair with his uncle, “Mother, you have my father much offended (Shakespeare 3. 4. 2393).” The ability to keep her mother away from Claudius’s bed shows that Hamlet has the ability to take actions and make decisions and follow them with singleness until results are realized. He chose the less difficult paternal task and acted on it which contradicts the reader’s expectations thus creating suspense and curiosity (Eliot 98). Therefore, a conclusion that Hamlet is incapable of taking action is simplistic and overly naïve just because he could not enact revenge against his father’s