The Dramatic Significance in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

1884 Words4 Pages

The Dramatic Significance in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Ans. Hamlet is the most complex but also the most entertaining of all

Shakespeare's plays. It deals with the central character Hamlet a

young man who is of an intellectual thoughtful and philosophical

nature. The play is about how this young man is asked to do an action

that is beyond him. The ghost of his beloved father appears to him and

enjoins him the sacred task of avenging his murder. This is an action

that the morally good Hamlet finds difficult to do.

The opening scene in almost all of Shakespeare's plays includes minor

insignificant characters whose purpose is to set the tone of the play,

to introduce some of the main themes, and to prepare us for the

entrance of the protagonist. The scene with its darkness the bitterly

cold night the stillness and silence with the "not a mouse stirring"

sets an eerie tone which catches the attention of the audience.

The imagery of sickness and disease which runs though out the play is

introduced when Fransisco complains of being "sick at heart" thus the

theme order and disorder and the idea that "time is out joint" is

subtly introduced. The scene also provides a sense of mystery, tension

and fear which captures the audiences attention. We are not

immediately told who or what has been responsible for the tension, but

Marcellus only says "what, has this thing appeared again tonight?"

Horatio has been invited by the two guards men since he is a scholar

and a sceptic and therefore would provide a reasonable explanation for

"this dreaded sight" and "this apparition"the appearance of the ghost

is a warning of something "strange erupti...

... middle of paper ...

...s the land lost by his father to old Hamlet

and in Addition he also gains the throne of Denmark.

The play Hamlet is the longest of Shakespeare's plays. It is the

tragedy of a young man who is unable to be decisive. Hamlet dies

because of the fatal flaw in his character but at his death we are

left with an intense feeling of loss because Shakespeare has shown us

through the several scenes all the true greatness of this promising

young man. Hamlets love and loyalty towards his parents is great. The

sense of injustice and the great evil that was done to his father made

him almost unbalanced but what was unbearable to him was the betrayal

of his mother by marrying his wicked uncle. At the end of the play we

are left with a feeling of sadness and grief for a brilliance young

man who was treacherously killed by wickedness.

Open Document