Character Analysis In Shakespeare's Hamlet

William Shakespeare once wrote “All the World’s a stage and all the men and women merely players.” Although those words were written for a comedy “As You Like It” it is still holds meaning in relation to Hamlet. Hamlet is about power, intrigue, some romance, and grief. It shows the strength and folly of the human spirt. As Hamlet is a play, it is meant to be seen. While there is much benefit that can be derived from reading a Shakespearian play, nothing compares to watching it performed. A performance requires actors, and in these modern times intelligent actors. In order to portray the poetic text, it first must be studied and understood. Character analysis is not unique to Shakespeare. In fact, Character analysis is a critical element to most believable performances. This element is especially crucial with Shakespeare, because an actor helps the audience understand the text. While completing a character analysis it is beneficial to consider a multitude of options on how to portray a character. Traditionally, It requires a troupe of players to constitute a production, so it is important that interactions between characters make sense. During a typical rehearsal process, a character can …show more content…
Hamlet goes through a multitude of internal and external conflict, and after reading the text it is plain to see that his character changes over the course of the play. This is to be expected, as the principal character is assumed to have the most dynamic story arc. However, the majority of the characters experience a moment of severe change. For example, Queen Gurtrude tries to spare her son by drinking the poison. Ophelia is taken from a sweet and innocent child, to a grief stricken one. Even the antagonist, King Claudius goes through a moment of change when he realizes that he can no longer pray. All of these changes are very humanizing, and can help an audience relate to