Analysis Of Hamlet: The Hero's Journey '

A critical lens is a perspective that the reader uses to examine a piece of literature. Different lenses look for unique details and aspects in the text, and help the reader find new information that may have never been discovered had the piece only been read through one single perspective. The archetypal lens is a critical viewpoint which allows the reader to identify places in a story which follow or deviate from universal patterns, also known as archetypes. Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, is a character who, as before mentioned, both follows and deviates from the archetype of the Hero’s Journey.
The Hero’s Journey is also sometimes referred to as a monomyth and this plot pattern was first studied and outlined by Joseph Campbell. The Hero’s Journey begins with a hero who is called away from the known world into the unfamiliar. The archetypal character must then face a series of challenges in order to achieve the ultimate goal, and then able to return to their familiar world.
The first step of the Hero’s Journey is the call to action. Hamlet receives his call to action when he is visited by the ghost of his deceased father who asks him to avenge his death. Though Hamlet’s call to action is undoubtedly clear, the circumstances are quite different than that of a typical hero archetype. Not often does the hero receive a visit from a …show more content…
Though Hamlet never directly refuses the call, it is clear that he is uncertain about going through with the task. In his soliloquy after speaking with the players, he admits to delaying his actions and blames himself for being “unpregnant of (his) cause” (II.ii.527). It is obvious that Hamlet doesn’t have the courage to actually go through with his father’s request. Although it is not a direct refusal of the call, it still fits the monomyth’s step of refusing the call because it shows Hamlet is “reluctant to leave the comfort and tasks of (his) everyday existence”