Compare And Contrast Hamlet And Macbeth

Shakespeare’s plays have entertained many people over the ages due to their relatability, and the elegant language that Shakespeare used in them. Many of his plays, such as Hamlet and Macbeth, have had multiple modern film adaptations that all present their own interesting take. The two plays both present their title characters as tragic heroes. Between the two protagonists, Macbeth would be more relatable to a modern theatre audience. Looking at modern day society, Macbeth has many relatable qualities, like that love causes him to make irrational decisions. He also reflects the concept of competition for success: the idea that when one rises another falls, something that has become especially evident in recent years. Another relatable feature …show more content…
In today’s society people such as politicians will say half-truths that many people will believe and put their trust in them. Another such example is the theory of evolution; some people do not agree that the “theory” of evolution is science because it has “theory” in its name. Such people see half-truths and believe them to be complete ones, and in response do not agree with science. Macbeth did something similar to this and it led to his demise. He was told not to fear as, “no man that 's born of woman / Shall e 'er have power upon thee” (Act V Scene III). He did not fully understand the “truth” that the witches had passed on to him, and yet he accepted it as a complete truth, and this is what eventually led to his …show more content…
Much of Hamlet depends on the idea that women had no/very little power during the time at which the play was done. This is apparent in the Queen Gertrude’s submission towards King Claudius’s decisions and even in Lord Polonius’s interactions with Ophelia. When Hamlet wants to go back to school in Wittenberg, King Claudius denies him this ability, and Queen Gertrude goes along with this, “I pray thee, stay with us; go not to Wittenberg” even though King Claudius’s decision makes no sense. Objectification of women initiates and propels this story and without it much of it cannot occur. In today’s society women are a lot more independent, and if this social construct was applied to the story, Hamlet would not have faced the issues he did, and the story itself may not have occurred. The proponent of this story’s initiation was the idea that a woman could not rule on her own, however in today’s society women are given a lot more independence, thereby making the story of Hamlet a lot less relevant. Due to this lack of relevancy in modern society, Macbeth would be a more relatable character to a modern theatre