Theme Of Poison And Disease In Hamlet

The Lone Germ

Every epidemic starts with a single bacterium, or a virus, or perhaps even a stream of poison poured into the ear of a king. It then spreads outward creating disease, death, and decay. Is it not amazing how something with such humble beginnings can eventually break apart entire countries? Indeed, and it is the images of poison and disease that William Shakespeare uses throughout his famous play Hamlet to tie together the theme of destruction. The play is set in the country of Denmark between the 14th and 15th century. The protagonist Hamlet is tasked by the ghost of Old Hamlet, his father and the former king, to kill his murderer Claudius who also hastily married Hamlet’s newly widowed mother. Hamlet feigns madness and tries

These lines serves to introduce the idea of sickness as well as build a sense of unease to darken the mood in preparation for the appearance of the ghost. Later, in a soliloquy, Hamlet reveals to us his anger, disgust, and sorrow towards Claudius and his mother for marrying too quickly especially so soon after the death of Old Hamlet. His speech is full of words that suggest disease and corruption especially when he says “tis an unweeded garden, that grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature” (1.2.145-36). Hamlet does not yet know that Claudius killed Old Hamlet, but he can sense that there is something wrong with Denmark, saying that it is descending into a state of decay. Shakespeare follows this up with having Marcellus say, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (1.4.90). It is an unambiguous use of the image of disease, and was spoken by a character who did not know for sure what had happened, but can tell that political as well as moral corruption is spreading throughout the country. We, the audience, learn in scene five that it started with Claudius pouring poison into Old Hamlet’s ear in order to gain power, and now we are observing the poison’s spread throughout

It is his selfish desire for the crown that drove him to tell lies while plotting the murder, and Hamlet knows this. Hamlet hates beauty and makeup because he believes that it is a lie—a cover for an impure soul. Seeing his mother as evidence, he assumes that all wives are unfaithful and he says to Ophelia, “If thou dost marry, I’ll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny” (3.1.135-37). Shakespeare uses plague in place of curse to further connect dishonesty to disease. Hamlet says that no matter how pure a wife is at first, she will not escape corruption, and laments that the simple act of making oneself beautiful can lead to awful situations. Another example of the image of disease in Act 3 can be found when Claudius is praying. He cries “O wretched state! O bosom black as death!” (3.4.67). The lies that he has told and the murder that he had committed has turned his heart dark. “Black as death” is likely a reference to the bubonic plague. This use of imagery shows that he is suffering from the murder as