How Does Gertrude Use Religion In Hamlet

The play, Hamlet, would not make sense in an atheistic society as the play discusses heaven, hell, and the afterlife as these ideas help move the plot forward. Religion is prominent in the discussion of the play’s action. In the opening of the play in the first act, after the discussion between Hamlet, Claudius, and Gertrude, Hamlet remarks to himself about suicide. He discusses his thoughts on how his religion denounces suicide “self-slaughter” (735) and considers it an evil in society. Hamlet feels his world is falling apart. This is why he contemplates the thought of “self-slaughter.” However, his religion does not believe in suicide and if one commits this sin, they will go to hell. The thought of committing suicide deepens in Hamlet’s mind during his monologue in Act 3. The pinnacle of Shakespeare’s play is summed up by this line: “To be, or not to be? That is the question” (767). Again, Hamlet feels his world is falling apart. Hamlet …show more content…
The ghost first appears in Act 1 of the play where it torments Horatio and is said to look like the dead King Hamlet. The ghost reappears again later in Act 1, where it speaks and tells Hamlet it is the ghost of his father and that he died by Claudius poisoning him in his sleep. The ghost has come to tell Hamlet to seek revenge and kill Claudius. The ghost demands that Claudius must be punished for the sin he committed in the plotting to kill his brother. The ghost is important in the play, because it drives the plot of the story through the theme of sins. Without the supernatural being, there would be no character to unconsciously tell Hamlet to seek revenge against his father. Also, without religion, there would be no reason for the death of Claudius, because an atheistic society wouldn’t believe in punishing people for the sins they committed. Thus, the supernatural is pivotal in the development of the storyline of the