Hamlet Literary Essay:
Claudius’ Influence on Hamlet’s Behaviour
To the average child, dominos may seem like a simple, yet entertaining game to take part in; yet, there is a great deal of metaphors and physics involved with this game. The game first involves setting up a row of dominos in any desired pattern. Then, this is followed by the player knocking over the first domino in the row, causing every other domino to collapse in one quick, motion. This is known as “the domino affect” which is defined as “a situation in which one event causes a series of similar events to happen one after another” (Merriam-Webster, 2015). This effect is established in Shakespeare’s famous tragedy, Hamlet, through Claudius’ first action of killing King Hamlet. …show more content…
Everyone in Denmark is under the impression that King Hamlet’s death was caused by a snake bite. However, when the Ghost of King Hamlet appears to Hamlet, he reveals: “the serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown...Upon my secure hour, thy uncle stole with juice of cursed hebonia in a vial and in the porches of mine ears did pour” (I.v.41-47, 68-70). Hamlet now realizes that his uncle is not only guilty of incest; but he is also a murderer. This new knowledge that Hamlet now possesses ultimately leads to his plan of revenge. Hamlet confirms that he will avenge his father’s death and “put antic disposition on” to gain an advantage over Claudius (II.v.191-192). In other words, Hamlet decides to feign insanity in hopes of disguising his vengeance upon his uncle. As a result, the majority of the characters are sent into frenzy in the following scenes as they try to figure out the reason behind Hamlet’s strange behaviour. It is this very moment in which the consequences of Claudius ‘murderous actions start to unveil; as Hamlet’s behaviour starts to spiral out of
Claudius’ Influence on Hamlet’s Behaviour
To the average child, dominos may seem like a simple, yet entertaining game to take part in; yet, there is a great deal of metaphors and physics involved with this game. The game first involves setting up a row of dominos in any desired pattern. Then, this is followed by the player knocking over the first domino in the row, causing every other domino to collapse in one quick, motion. This is known as “the domino affect” which is defined as “a situation in which one event causes a series of similar events to happen one after another” (Merriam-Webster, 2015). This effect is established in Shakespeare’s famous tragedy, Hamlet, through Claudius’ first action of killing King Hamlet. …show more content…
Everyone in Denmark is under the impression that King Hamlet’s death was caused by a snake bite. However, when the Ghost of King Hamlet appears to Hamlet, he reveals: “the serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown...Upon my secure hour, thy uncle stole with juice of cursed hebonia in a vial and in the porches of mine ears did pour” (I.v.41-47, 68-70). Hamlet now realizes that his uncle is not only guilty of incest; but he is also a murderer. This new knowledge that Hamlet now possesses ultimately leads to his plan of revenge. Hamlet confirms that he will avenge his father’s death and “put antic disposition on” to gain an advantage over Claudius (II.v.191-192). In other words, Hamlet decides to feign insanity in hopes of disguising his vengeance upon his uncle. As a result, the majority of the characters are sent into frenzy in the following scenes as they try to figure out the reason behind Hamlet’s strange behaviour. It is this very moment in which the consequences of Claudius ‘murderous actions start to unveil; as Hamlet’s behaviour starts to spiral out of