More handpicked essays just for you.
How does shakespeare present the relationship between parents and children
Parental relationships during the time of Shakespeare
Parental relationships during the time of Shakespeare
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
While Polonius often appears insignificant, he actually plays a crucial role in the plot of Hamlet. Polonius is an advisor of the king and the father of Laertes and Ophelia and is elderly and demented man. As a character Polonius should address the question of whether he is a devoted father or a ruthless politician. Polonius eventually dies but since hamlet is a Shakespearian tragedy and in a Shakespearian tragedy most if not all characters die, but Polonius death is the first of many deaths to occur, and it is the cause of many of the other. There is some controversy on whether Polonius is responsible for his death, even though hamlet actually killed Polonius.
While Hamlet can be held responsible for Polonius’s death because he is the one who actually killed him, Polonius is still the cause of his own death because he tends to dote on his image and the way people perceive him, he tries too hard to get the king to think well of him, and he is always meddling in the business of others.
First, Polonius is the cause of his own death because he tries too hard to get the king to think well of him. Polonius is the advisor of the king but he seems to want to always want to be in the king’s good graces. In act two scene
…show more content…
Polonius wants people to see him as an overall good person, a good father and someone you wouldn’t think badly of. In act one scene three when Polonius says “You’ll tender me a fool” while talking to Ophelia about hamlet. Polonius feels as if Ophelia’s action will affect his reputation and shows little regard for her feelings. In act two: scene one Polonius sends Reynaldo to spy on Laertes to see if he’s out there misrepresenting him. Even though he Laertes is no longer in Denmark because Polonius believes he knows what young men want, think and feel. He has to be involved in everything that has anything to do with him to make sure people perceive him as a up standing
Hamlet is a play by Shakespeare that tells a story of desired revenge. King Hamlet dies and Hamlet comes home to find his mother interested in someone else and King Hamlet comes back as a ghost. One of the minor characters but has an important role is Polonius, an old wise counselor of the king. He is also the father of Ophelia and as most fathers he is loving and loves his daughter. Two film versions of the play that seem to display Polonius quite differently are Hamlet by Mel Gibson and David Tennant. Polonius is portrayed different in three areas of the films, his ability to listen, ability to focus, and his compassion.
The next member of the Polonius clan to die is his daughter Ophelia. Ophelia’s death is also tragic, because of her complete innocence in the situation. You can argue that Polonius deserved his fate because of his handling with Hamlet while he was mad. But Ophelia was entirely manipulated, and used by Hamlet and the king for their own selfish reasons, and games. An example of how Ophelia is used by Hamlet is seen in Act II, scene i, when Hamlet uses her to convince his family that he is truely mad. Ophelia explains to her father, how Hamlet has scared her, causing Polonius to draw the conclusion that Hamlet has an "antic disposition"(He is quickly losing his mind).
In Hamlet, The new king Claudius is able to gain respect from the kingdom. He even steals the love of Hamlet’s mother Gertrude. The old king’s councilor, Polonius, becomes Claudius’s councilor and his best friend. He helps Claudius keep an eye on Hamlet and tries to keep him from finding out anything about his father’s death. Polonius believes that if he helps Claudius that he can make life better for himself and for his daughter and son. But in the end, his actions get him slayed, drive his daughter to insanity, and eventually set...
In contrast to Laertes speculation of his father’s killer, Hamlet assumes the individual spying on his conversation with Gertrude is Claudius. “Nay, I know not. Is it the King?” (Act III Scene 4 line 28). Without thinking, Hamlet automatically thrusts out attempting to kill who he believed was Claudius and actually kills Polonius.
Polonius, the lord Chamberlain, a counsel to the king, is the first character to be killed. As the play opens up, Polonius is depicted as a rather good person, with noapparent flaws. However, as the play progresses, Polonius possess a flaw in his character, which becomes increasingly evident throughout the play; he is extremely nosy and scrutinizing. Many times during the play Polonius is either seen spying on other characters, or arranging for characters to be spied upon. The first such incident of this occurs when his son Laertes is going off to Paris. He instructs his servant Reynaldo to spy on his while in Paris. Polonius tells him:
This belief leads to the death of Polonius, and furthermore to the death of Hamlet. In the next scene, Hamlet's fate is sealed. Polonius, the "Wretched, rash, intruding fool", (81) was up to his old tricks, while Hamlet accidentally slays Polonius mistaking Polonius for Claudius. Later on, Laertes returns to avenge his father. "How came he dead?" (99) asked
Claudius is the antagonist in this play, in easier words, the villain. He is the brother of the now dead King of Denmark, Hamlet. Claudius murders his brother and does it in a way that it seems as though death had claimed him in a natural way. He is then quick to marry Queen Gertrude, as a favor to the state of Denmark. Claudius throughout the play is calculating, and will do anything to stay in power: including murdering the son of his current wife, his nephew, Hamlet. During the play, Hamlet becomes a threat to the crown and power in his possession. To overcome this, Claudius confides in Laertes that Hamlet was the cause of Polonius’s death. In an act of revenge Laertes plans his act “I will do ‘t. And for that purpose I’ll anoint my sword. I bought an unction of a mounteback, so mortal that, but a dip a knife in it, where it draws blood no cataplasm so rare, collected from all simples that have virtue under the moon, can save the thing from death that is but scratched withal. I’ll touch my point with this contagion, that if I gall him slightly it may be death” (4.7.139-148). This works wonderfully in Claudius’s favor. With Laertes plotting to avenge his father, Claudius won’t have to get his hands dirty again, and...
...ia goes mad because of her father’s murder, and consequently ends up drowning to her death. Laertes also comes back to Denmark from France to seek revenge for his father’s murder. It is arguable that had Hamlet not murdered Polonius, none of these events would have occurred, including the deaths of virtually all the characters as well as Hamlet.
...ot he was completely guilty for Polonius’s death, but as I studied his actions and mannerisms I came to the conclusion he was guilty of both. I was assured when his feelings of depression over his fathers continued and his only goal in life became power over the situation and avenging him. Being in control became somewhat of an obsession because he thought he could overcome any situation if that was the case, but it was just a simple minded way of trying to justify the situation. When you pretend to be something for so long it either unintentionally reflects off you automatically, you begin to forget whom you really are and what you stand for, or you end up liking the front you’ve created for yourself more than your true self; and I believe that is exactly what happened.
Although initially perceived as a devoted father and beneficial counsellor, Polonius’s true character is swiftly revealed as inherently unethical, establishing the adverse effects of his actions upon his own self. To begin, Polonius utilizes the hesitant Reynaldo as an informer to gather intelligence of his son’s affairs. His great desire for self-progression overcomes reasoning upon entrusting Reynaldo “[through] indirections [to] find directions out” (II, i, 66). Polonius’s ethical paralysis leads him towards familial betrayal in order to gain relevance in the eyes of the new king and such faithlessness reveals his lack of parental understanding and genuine concern. Thus, his general social and moral ineptitude is the key factor in his death
Polonius roles add a crucial dimension to the play's development of plot, the characterization of Hamlet, and the themes Shakespeare ultimately conveys. From his first appearances, Polonius seems to be playing the wise old man; he imparts much worldly wisdom to his children--Ophelia and Laertes. In his lecture to his daughter, he claims experience in the matters of love: "I do know / when the blood burns how prodigal the soul / Lends the tongue vows" (I.iii.115-17). This experience lends credit to Polonius' discount of the authenticity of Hamlet's intentions. It also adds credibility to his opinion of Ophelia as susceptible to fraudulent affections.
Following the performance of “The Mousetrap”, Hamlet is summoned to his mother's chamber. Upon arguing with Gertrude over the intentions of his play, and his reasons for wanting to distress the king so openly, Hamlet kills Polonius. “How now? A rat? Dead for a ducat, dead (III.iv.27-28)! Perhaps Hamlet did not know whom he was killing. “Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! / I took thee for thy better”(III.iv.38-39)! Perhaps Hamlet thought he was killing the king.
It is tempting to dismiss Polonius as a fool and, as Hamlet calls him a "prating knave", because of his pomposity and his tedious pedantry, but to do so would be unwise. He is indeed irritating, but he is not stupid. Foolish, perhaps, in his stubborn belief that he knows best what is the cause of Hamlet's madness, but it is an astute guess, given what he knows about the love affair between Ophelia and the prince, and the evidence of the letter which he shows to the King. He is not, however, always likeable and it is unclear as to whether his children love him, or just accord him healthy respect. There seems to be evidence that it is Laertes to whom Ophelia feels closer than to her father, as it is he whom she tells about Hamlet's affections and there is a terse note in Polonius's dialogue with his daughter, especially after the nunnery scene, when her evident distress is curtly dismissed by her father. Polonius is clearly unscrupulous about setting spies on his children, as we see when Reynaldo is sent to Paris to check Laertes' behaviour. It is also obvious that Polonius is well aware of Ophelia's relationship with Hamlet and that he has been reported to about it, so presumably his spies are at work in the court all the time. He is quick to suggest that Ophelia is used as a decoy to observe Hamlet's "madness" and as we have seen , seems unmoved by her distress when Hamlet renounces her.
Polonius is perhaps the most obviously corrupt character in Hamlet. His corruption has occurred long before the play begins; the progression is in the extent to which it is revealed to us. From this courteous, almost comically long-winded member of the court, emerges a personality that is first dominating (as he instructs Laertes: 'These few precepts in thy memory/ Look thou character.' [Act I, Sc. iii, 63]), clearly abusive towards Ophelia:
... the only way to honour his father Polonius is by killing Hamlet. In addition, as Claudius reads the letter from Hamlet to Laertes he says “'Tis Hamlet’s character. “Naked” And in a postscript here, he says “alone.” Can you advise me?” (IV, VII, 52-53). This shows that Claudius takes advantage of Hamlet’s return alone as an opportunity for Laertes to kill him. Through Claudius’s actions the readers observe how he deceives Laertes into killing Hamlet for his own benefit without getting blood on his hands. Furthermore, Claudius’ desperation to kill Hamlet leads to him losing sight of what is important, which is being the king of Denmark, what he originally wanted, instead the lies he told and the manipulation he spread is now taking over. To conclude, it is evident through the play that the words and actions of Claudius have only lead to the spread of deception.