Hamlet’s Indecision
In the Shakespearean play Hamlet, Hamlet is mainly responsible for the downfall of the other characters such as Polonius, Ophelia, and Laertes due to his error of judgment in his action. During the course of his revenge plot against Claudius, Hamlet had made many errors in his judgment such as delaying the killing of Claudius despite the perfect opportunity to do so. As well, Hamlet had spoiled his relationships with many of the other characters, including his mother Gertrude. However, the most critical and major error occurred in the play when Hamlet, while having a conversation with Gertrude about her husband, accidently killed Polonius, who was hiding behind the tapestry. In the play, when Polonius was killed, Hamlet …show more content…
vii. 175-180)
Gertrude’s report of Ophelia’s death was very detailed and vivid. In her description, she describes the scenario of Ophelia’s death when she was drowning. When Gertrude states, “she chanted… incapable of her own distress” she focusses on her activities while Ophelia was getting close to death. Ophelia was chanting like a mermaid and had no realization of the danger she was in. Her not attempting to save herself from drowning illustrates that she had given up on life and had accepted everything she experience is her destiny, including death. Finally, the breakdown of Ophelia and the downfall of Polonius had led Laertes to lose control over his mind too. Him losing control over his mind made him vulnerable to Claudius’s manipulation and was the major reason that led him to his downfall. In the play, when Claudius said, “Laertes, was your father dear to you? / Or are you like the painting of a sorrow, / A face without a heart?... To show yourself in deed your father’s son/ More than in word?” (4, vii, 107-109, 125-126) to Laertes, he questioned his loyalty to his lost father and his love for him. Even though Claudius was aware of Laertes’s love for his father, he wanted to make him prove his love to his father. Thus, when Claudius said, “To show yourself in deed your father’s son/ More than in words?” to Laertes, he suggested him to take revenge from Hamlet for killing his father brutally, rather than just showing his anger and love for his father in verbal to the
In the Shakespearean play Hamlet, Hamlet is mainly responsible for the downfall of the other characters such as Polonius, Ophelia, and Laertes due to his error of judgment in his action. During the course of his revenge plot against Claudius, Hamlet had made many errors in his judgment such as delaying the killing of Claudius despite the perfect opportunity to do so. As well, Hamlet had spoiled his relationships with many of the other characters, including his mother Gertrude. However, the most critical and major error occurred in the play when Hamlet, while having a conversation with Gertrude about her husband, accidently killed Polonius, who was hiding behind the tapestry. In the play, when Polonius was killed, Hamlet …show more content…
vii. 175-180)
Gertrude’s report of Ophelia’s death was very detailed and vivid. In her description, she describes the scenario of Ophelia’s death when she was drowning. When Gertrude states, “she chanted… incapable of her own distress” she focusses on her activities while Ophelia was getting close to death. Ophelia was chanting like a mermaid and had no realization of the danger she was in. Her not attempting to save herself from drowning illustrates that she had given up on life and had accepted everything she experience is her destiny, including death. Finally, the breakdown of Ophelia and the downfall of Polonius had led Laertes to lose control over his mind too. Him losing control over his mind made him vulnerable to Claudius’s manipulation and was the major reason that led him to his downfall. In the play, when Claudius said, “Laertes, was your father dear to you? / Or are you like the painting of a sorrow, / A face without a heart?... To show yourself in deed your father’s son/ More than in word?” (4, vii, 107-109, 125-126) to Laertes, he questioned his loyalty to his lost father and his love for him. Even though Claudius was aware of Laertes’s love for his father, he wanted to make him prove his love to his father. Thus, when Claudius said, “To show yourself in deed your father’s son/ More than in words?” to Laertes, he suggested him to take revenge from Hamlet for killing his father brutally, rather than just showing his anger and love for his father in verbal to the