Because of William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, I am more aware of my surroundings. Throughout Hamlet, the theme of surveillance reveals the true motives of characters. For instance, when Claudius and Gertrude are in Elsinore Castle’s Great Hall talking about Hamlet, Claudius pleads Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to “draw him on to pleasures, and to gather / So much as from occasion you may glean”(II.ii.15-16). The arrival of Guildenstern and Rosencrantz not only symbolizes the introduction to the theme of surveillance, but also highlights Claudius suspicion with Hamlet. Claudius’ true intentions are revealed, because he is worried that Hamlet may be uneasy with the sudden death of his father. Hamlet is unaware of what is going on behind his …show more content…
back and does not know he is under heavy watch. Such surveillance has made me more alert of my surroundings and more alert of people’s intentions. It is important to have an optimistic outlook on life, but that does not mean I should be naive. There are people in society who have evil intentions, and are not as nice as they may seem. Hamlet highlights this message with the prevalent theme of surveillance, because Claudius sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern out of guilt for the crime he committed. I have learned to be optimistic, but not naive. After reading Hamlet, instead of giving my undeniable trust to everyone around me, I am weary of people’s true intentions. An aspect of my world that would trouble Hamlet is the strength of women, because he constantly oppresses and insults the female gender. In Hamlet, Hamlet insults Gertrude on multiple occasions and belittles her for her gender. In particular, when Hamlet finishes arguing with Claudius and Gertrude, he soliloquizes, “Frailty, they name is woman” (I.ii.146). Hamlet refers not only to Gertrude when he says this, but also to women in general. His statement reveals that frailty and weakness are characteristics of all women. Furthermore, it demonstrates Hamlets misogyny, and suggests that during his time period, women were looked down upon as weak compared to men. Instead of existing as equals to men, women were suppressed and labeled weak. Currently in 2015, women have more of a voice and they are not looked down upon to the extent that they were during Shakespeare’s time. People such as Malala, Hilary Clinton, and Oprah Winfrey emulate feminism and empower women. In general, these three women all strive for gender equality and focus on making sure women have a voice. During Hamlets time, women and men were not even close to be considered equals, so the current voice and strength of women would trouble him. He could not make such bold statements about women, because they would simply be false. Women are definitely not frail and they have a powerful voice to speak up against injustice and discrimination. Hamlet showed me to seize the day, because indecisiveness leads to downfall.
In Hamlet, many characters are indecisive about the course of action they should take, and it ultimately leads to their death. Specifically, when Hamlet is seconds away from killing Claudius, he states, “Up sword, and know thou, a more horrid hent,/ When he is drunk asleep, or in his rage”(III.iii.88-89). Hamlet delays his revenge on his father’s murderer, and ultimately ends up missing his chance to reap the full benefit of killing Claudius. Instead of seizing the moment to get revenge, his indecisiveness causes him to lose the perfect chance to attack. Even though Hamlet ends up killing Claudius later in the play, he dies alongside him (V.ii.337). Delaying the murder ultimately causes Hamlet to die and be killed himself. If Hamlet had killed Claudius when he had an open opportunity, he would most likely still be alive, because Claudius would not have been around to plot his death. It is important that I learn this lesson, because I am very indecisive in my own life. Whether it is picking what to eat, or choosing what colleges to apply to, I am more comfortable with having another person pick for me. My indecisiveness is a flaw that Hamlet and I both share, and hopefully I will grow out of it unlike
Hamlet.
Paranoia can be identified by symptoms of mistrust, hypervigilance, difficulty with forgiveness, and a defensive attitude. While suffering from paranoia, people often become delusional and irrational. In William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays a vindictive prince whose pessimistic mindset causes a domino effect of death and distress in the country of Denmark, leaving the whole royal family slain and Hamlet’s mental state to blame.
Shakespeare’s iconic play Hamlet is about a crown prince named Hamlet who is distraught about the death of his father, King Hamlet. Hamlet is further driven deeper into his pit of despair by the quick remarriage of his mother, Gertrude, to his conniving uncle, Claudius. Not long after, Hamlet quickly learns the truth about his father’s death by the hands of Claudius from the ghost of King Hamlet. He is then determined to seek evidence to confirm that the words of the ghost were true and not simply a hallucination. This leads to Hamlet feigning insanity in order to spy on Claudius and uncover the truth. Therefore, espionage plays a pivotal role in the play as it drives the very plot of it. One way that spying heavily influences the story is the fact that it leads to the discovery of the truth about how events occurred. Another significant aspect that spying brings into the play is that it is used as a
Entrapment and deception are the dominant themes in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, they are evident throughout the play and show how key they are to the plot. Entrapment is best shown through the mouse trap play the entire scene is dedicated to trapping Claudius. Deception is shown in a variety of ways, most notably is Hamlet’s antic disposition. Throughout Hamlet, Ophelia is also used to deceive and manipulate others. Lastly, Laertes’ and Hamlet’s duel aims to trap Hamlet. Shakespeare’s use of these themes helps to highlight the impact of deception and entrapment within Hamlet.
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He cannot decide on anything in his life and this a result of his inability to know himself. Being inconclusive about a matter is an internal battle that can only be solved by the victim. It is a sickness that is inside a person and continues to affect them. Depressed people tend to be indecisive to avoid the burden of their decision. They know that once they make a choice, they will be committed to their decision. In addition to feeling burden, depressed people don’t want to feel regret. The University of Pennsylvania Press elaborates on this thought by saying, “Depressed patients anticipate making the wrong decision: whenever they consider one of the various possibilities they tend to regard it as wrong and they will regret making that choice” (29). Hamlet struggles to make a choice on whether or not to commit suicide, on when to get revenge, or when to take action. He cannot make these decisions because he is afraid of the results. As The University of Pennsylvania Press states, he does not want to make the wrong conclusion and regret it. As Hamlet stands looking at Claudius he decides to get revenge and says, “Now might I do it pat, now he is praying” but then changes his mind and states, “And so he goes to heaven / And so am I revenged.—That would be scanned” (Shakespeare III.iii.74-76). Hamlet first thinks he should kill Claudius, but quickly changes his mind, which shows his extreme indecisiveness. He
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet revolves around Hamlet’s quest to avenge his father’s murder. Claudius’ first speech as King at the beginning of Scene 2, Act 1 introduces the themes of hierarchy, incest and appearance versus reality and plays the crucial role of revealing Claudius’ character as part of the exposition. The audience is left skeptical after Horatio’s questioning of King Hamlet’s ghost in the first scene of the play. By placing Claudius’ pompous speech immediately after the frightening appearance of Hamlet’s ghost, Shakespeare contrasts the mournful atmosphere in Denmark to the fanfare at the palace and makes a statement about Claudius’ hypocrisy. Through diction, doubling and figurative language, Shakespeare reveals Claudius to be a self centered, hypocritical, manipulative and commanding politician.
William Shakespeare uses eavesdropping and spying to advance the plot and enlighten the theme of revenge in his renowned play, Hamlet. Eavesdropping and spying can be seen in many instances throughout the drama, but examining two particular cases shows how the trickery progresses the plot and promotes revenge. The first espionage example is Hamlet being spied on by Polonius as Polonius was attempting to discover the source for Hamlet’s madness. Hamlet’s anger resulting from these secretive acts advances the plot and the theme of revenge. The second situation in the play was Polonius listening in on Hamlet’s conversation with Gertrude in her chamber. He was killed as a result of his behavior, but his actions had everlasting effects, propelling
In Act 3 Scene 1 Claudius and members of the court gather to talk about what they have learnt from spying on Hamlet. The theme of surveillance in this scene helps to convey ideas about the power of the Monarchy, and the position of women in the 1600s through the character of Ophelia who eventually conforms to what is expected of her as a woman. The importance of surveillance throughout the entire play is emphasised
Hamlet is almost always performed as a tragedy, and Hamlet's "indecision" is universally accepted as the flaw. "If he had only made up his mind", people argue, "eight deaths could have been avoided." This, of course, is a very easy position for one to take, because we already know that Claudius is guilty. It would be a much more interesting piece if one could be left uncertain of the true facts. Due to the popularity of Hamlet, the fact that Claudius is guilty is taken for granted, and so it seems unfortunate that Hamlet cannot act sooner, but without this knowledge acting too quickly would be a mistake.
Choices made by Hamlet, which ultimately lead to his death, are all guided by his own free will. In mourning his father's death, Hamlet chooses to do so for what others consider to be an excessive amount of time. “But to persever/ In obstinate condolement is a course/ Of impious stubbornness”(I.ii.99-100), according to Claudius. During this period of mourning, Hamlet meets his father’s spirit and promises to avenge his father’s death. However, upon reflection, he questions the validity of the ghost’s message. At this point he carefully goes about choosing a plan of action that will inevitably show that “the king is to blame” (V.ii.340) In following his plan, Hamlet freely chooses to kill Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Ophelia, Laertes, Claudius and himself.
In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Hamlet the king of Denmark is murdered by his brother, Claudius, and as a ghost tells his son, Hamlet the prince of Denmark, to avenge him by killing his brother. The price Hamlet does agree to his late father’s wishes, and undertakes the responsibility of killing his uncle, Claudius. However even after swearing to his late father, and former king that he would avenge him; Hamlet for the bulk of the play takes almost no action against Claudius. Prince Hamlet in nature is a man of thought throughout the entirety of the play; even while playing mad that is obvious, and although this does seem to keep him alive, it is that same trait that also keeps him from fulfilling his father’s wish for vengeance
...tion he hesitates because he is not sure whether killing the king is the right thing to do (Sheridan Thomas).” Hamlet’s hesitative nature and uncertainty about killing Claudius support that fact the he lacks decisiveness.
Writing about Spying in the literature of the eighteenth century was very communing. Spying 's ideological transition within the cultural and literary imagination to keep the audience on the edge of their seat, thus, basic to get emotional satisfaction to the audience and keep their interest. In Hamlet, there is spying, deviant behavior, and betrayal throughout the play. King Claudius ' many spies keep their “eyes and ears” open, to report Hamlet every move. Additional, Hamlet is spying on his mother and King Claudius.
Hamlet's delay came from a conflict between action and awareness that made him see both sides of every issue. Hamlet realized that to avenge his father’s death, he must kill Claudius, but at the same time he knew that there would be consequences for this action. For example, in Act III, scene III, Hamlet had the opportunity to kill Claudius, but he believed that Claudius was praying. If Hamlet had killed Claudius when he was praying for forgiveness, Hamlet believed Claudius would have gone to heaven. Thinking this, Hamlet decided to wait until the king was doing something bad, so that Claudius would go to hell.
Hamlet seems incapable of deliberate action, and is only hurried into extremities on the spur of the occasion, when he has no time to reflect, as in the scene where he kills Polonius, and again, where he alters the letters which Rosencraus and Guildenstern are taking with them to England, purporting his death. At other times, when he is most bound to act, he remains puzzled, undecided, and skeptical, until the occasion is lost, and he finds some pretence to relapse into indolence and thoughtfulness again. For this reason he refuses to kill the King when he is at his prayers, and by a refinement in malice, which is in truth only an excuse for his own want of resolution, defers his revenge to a more fatal opportunity, when he will be engaged in some act "that has no relish of salvation in it."