Within William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, we find two young men put into similar painful situations filled with loss, corruption, confusion and anger. Both of these young men are initially put in this situation by one man’s actions of greed and lust for power. These two men whom I speak of are that of the stories main character, Hamlet the prince of Denmark, and Laertes the son of Polonius the adviser to King Claudius.
Throughout the progression of the play both of these young men lose their fathers in separate cases of murder. Laertes loses his father Polonius because he was murdered by Hamlet in his mother’s bed chambers as he was hiding In the curtain spying on Hamlet. Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet Sr, was murdered by his brother Claudius the current …show more content…
Laertes is momentarily in complete control of the kingdom evidenced by his commanding the guards to leave the room so that he can be alone with the king. The kingdom is at the moment in complete support of Laertes which is made apparent by the way that they storm the castle as an angry mod with Laertes at the head. Leartes is not worried about what his own, nor the kings, eternity hold if he kills the king. The one thing that Laertes is consumed with at this moment is exacting revenge for his father’s murder. A third and final aspect that I would like to point out that Hamlet and Laertes have in common is the love that both hold for Ophelia, and that each one, despite their love for her, lose her in the end. Hamlet and Laertes love differ in their own ways. Hamlet is romantically in Love With the “fair Ophelia” (III.i.) to the point where they are sending a good deal of their time together in that same capacity. Whereas Laertes is Ophelia’s older brother and cares for her in a more nurturing way. We can see his concern for her and Hamlets involvement when he says to her, “For Hamlet, and the trifling of his
Throughout the progression of the play both of these young men lose their fathers in separate cases of murder. Laertes loses his father Polonius because he was murdered by Hamlet in his mother’s bed chambers as he was hiding In the curtain spying on Hamlet. Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet Sr, was murdered by his brother Claudius the current …show more content…
Laertes is momentarily in complete control of the kingdom evidenced by his commanding the guards to leave the room so that he can be alone with the king. The kingdom is at the moment in complete support of Laertes which is made apparent by the way that they storm the castle as an angry mod with Laertes at the head. Leartes is not worried about what his own, nor the kings, eternity hold if he kills the king. The one thing that Laertes is consumed with at this moment is exacting revenge for his father’s murder. A third and final aspect that I would like to point out that Hamlet and Laertes have in common is the love that both hold for Ophelia, and that each one, despite their love for her, lose her in the end. Hamlet and Laertes love differ in their own ways. Hamlet is romantically in Love With the “fair Ophelia” (III.i.) to the point where they are sending a good deal of their time together in that same capacity. Whereas Laertes is Ophelia’s older brother and cares for her in a more nurturing way. We can see his concern for her and Hamlets involvement when he says to her, “For Hamlet, and the trifling of his