Referencing , It is almost as if “Hamlet is torn between doing what his father has commanded of him, and what he and all of society knows what is morally right ().” Immediately following Hamlet's conversation with the Ghost of his father he seems determined to fulfill his wishes in avenging his death, but his hesitation is later proven during Claudius’s repentance. While Claudius is kneeling and praying, Prince Hamlet is lurking behind him with a sword giving him the ability to carry out his revenge, However he hesitates while…
His reason being not to kill him as he says, “At game a-swearing, or about some act/That has no relish of salvation in ’t—/Then trip him, that his heels may kick at heaven,/And that his soul may be as damned and black/ As hell, whereto it goes.” (III. iii. 96-100) Hamlet is saying that he must wait for the moment when Claudius is committing a sin or else his soul will go to heaven. Not killing Claudius extends his plan even more.…
Claudius is off his guard and Hamlet has the upper hand and will be “revenged” (3.3.75) for his father’s death if he kills Claudius. Although this seems like the perfect opportunity, Hamlet chooses to not to go through with the deed as he believes that if Claudius dies while praying his soul will go to “heaven” (3.3.78). To Hamlet this would be like hiring Claudius to kill his father and then pay him “salary, not revenge” (3.3.79) by sending him to heaven. Hamlet comes to the conclusion that he would rather kill his uncle while “he is drunk asleep; or in his rage; or in th’ incestuous pleasure of his bed” (3.3.89-90) to ensure his soul goes to hell and fulfills his…
Westby Caspersen January 25, 2016 Hamlet Personal Essay “Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander returneth to dust; the dust is earth; of earth we make loam; and why of that loam whereto he was converted might they not stop a beer barrel? Imperious Caesar, dead and turned to clay, might stop a hole to keep wind away. O, that earth which kept the world in awe should patch a wall t’expel the winter’s flaw!”…
Having been dead for two months, the ghost of King Hamlet visits his son and reveals the truth behind his death. Following this, the ghost gives Hamlet instructions to avenge his death, saying: “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (I.v.29). Not only does Hamlet discover in this moment that his father was murdered, but the ghost instructs that he must also retaliate against King Claudius, the murderer. This point early in the play causes Hamlet to become consumed with the desire for revenge and therefore sets off a series of events that end in a sizable amount of collateral damage. Because of Hamlet’s paranoia and desire to kill King Claudius, he acts with irrationality.…
Deception in Hamlet Deception is an act to propagate beliefs of things that are not true. This act is the foundation for most plays written by William Shakespeare. In Hamlet, deception causes nothing but tragedy throughout the whole play. Most of the characters in the play Hamlet end up deceiving another character at least once.…
Revenge is not always the answer and can turn into a bunch of people getting hurt or killed if handled the wrong way. Destruction is the result of revenge in the wrong hands. In the play, Hamlet, we see one of the motifs, revenge, result in tragedy and death. In the beginning of the play Hamlet sees a ghost of his father who has passed away.…
Hamlet is tasked by the ghost of his father to avenge his death. Discuss at least two reasons Hamlet doesn’t kill Claudius when he has the opportunity and what this suggests about his character. Hamlet doesn’t kill Claudius because he realizes that Claudius is praying. The people felt that if you prayed, you were absolved of all sins. Hamlet thought that if he killed Claudius, he would go to heaven and be freed from his sins.…
Hamlet begins only thinking about getting vengeance for his father, but his conflict becomes personal when he seeks to right the wrongs he feels his mother committed. Hamlet begins his plot attempting to save his father´s soul, and save his country from the control of a murderous king. Hamlet seeks justice because he is fighting for someone who can´t help himself. The Old King´s ghost tells Hamlet to ¨Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder¨ (I.v.31), bring his ghost out of hell, and save Denmark, making Hamlet's initial motive just because killing Claudius will supposedly help people other than himself. Hamlet turns to revenge for himself; however, when he talks to his mother.…
According to Karen Kay "in following the ghost’s command to exact vengeance upon Claudius, it is not clear whether Hamlet would be dispensing divine justice, or, led by the Devil" (Kay 2010). Although this is made clear that he's not led by the devil when Claudius unintentionally proves he's guilty during The Murder of Gonzago. Despite Kay claiming that its not clear, she also makes another argument stating that "Hamlet’s ideas about heaven are flawed" (Kay 2010) because he doesn't kill Claudius while he's praying. While in the contrary he is very aware of the concept of heaven, he knows that if Claudius is truly resentful for his sins, there's a chance that he'd be forgiven and wouldn't go to hell. Hamlet can't tell if Claudius means his prayer because he's spying on him.…
There is one point in the book when Hamlet is standing behind Claudius who is on his knees. The reason he doesn’t kill him then is because he thinks he’s confessing his sins. He states that to kill him now would mean that he would go to heaven. He reasons that it wouldn’t be fair to his father who is forced to spend time in purgatory. He decides he’ll wait until Claudius has sinned and then kill him before he has the chance to confess again, thus sending him to hell.…
Hamlet was quick to understand that he was entitled to avenge his father’s death. This shows that many are frequently influenced by the voice in our head that tells us to do something even when we know we should not. Although Hamlet was convinced he must retaliate against his father’s death, he insisted on gaining proof before killing Claudius due to Horatio’s belief that the ghost was an evil spirit, “Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason / and draw you into madness? Think of it” (1.4.76-77). Hamlet did not want the people of Denmark to believe that he was so evil to be plotting to kill his stepdad with his proof coming from a dead soul.…
The idea of the play is to, “catch the conscience of the King” (Act.2, Scene.2, Line.634). Hamlet wants too see if Claudius, while watching the play, will show any facial expressions indicative of guilt, to prove that he killed Old King Hamlet. If it was not for his own father’s death, Hamlet would not have become so absorbed in discovering who the killer was. As Claudius is seeking forgiveness from Hamlet for his crime, the reader beings to further comprehend…
“Perhaps the single most debated question about Hamlet is ‘why does it take him so long to avenge his father’s murder?’” (Evelyn O’Connor 1). In Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the titular character delays murdering Claudius, thus allowing many of the events in the play to transpire. It is Hamlet who initially points out the delay, and it continues to be a major part of the play throughout. The question remains, however, as to why it takes him so long to kill Claudius.…
The Most Moral Choice He Had William Shakespeare’s tragedies are very popular; however, his most famous play in the genre is Hamlet. Shakespeare wrote Hamlet to illustrate sometimes the only choice a person has may not always be considered right. He proved to his audience that sometimes one must choose morality over immorality from the choices. Certainly, the unavoidable wrong choice will still leave consequences but in the end, the choice will provide more help.…