Conflict within texts builds tension and acts as a vehicle for dramatic development. Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy Hamlet explores the tension between the philosophical and academic concerns of the Elizabethan era including the inherent conflict between modern humanism and archaic values. Hamlet himself is constructed as a deeply conflicted individual, lost in caverns of introspection as he contemplates issues of life, death, morality, duty, and the women in his life. It is these inner conflicts, in conjunction with external confrontations that overwhelm him, inhibiting his quest for vengeance and ultimately rendering him unable to achieve any true resolution.
As humanistic values flourished within Shakespeare’s society, Elizabethan education …show more content…
Shakespeare highlights Hamlet’s inner turmoil through his use of antithesis in the famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy in Act III Scene i. Death for Hamlet is both a “consummation devoutly to be wished” and a thing to “dread” thus emphasising the tension between life, death and belief in an afterlife. Hamlet’s existential rumination echoes the uncertainty that people felt, and continue to feel, toward life, its meaning and fate. The appearance of Yorrick’s skull in the final act of the play symbolises death and its inevitability thus reflecting Hamlet’s reconciliation within himself that all men die. The historical allusion “Alexander died, Alexander was buried… Imperious Caesar dead and turned to clay” highlights his acceptance of the inevitability of death which is a stark contrast to the abstract, metaphysical, almost poetic idea of death he had earlier in the play. As Hamlet’s previous existential crisis shifts to a new existential calm, he no longer fears death as he had previously. Where he once considered whether “to be, or not to be”, he now resolves to “let be”. This is critical point in the play as it foreshadows the tragic ending of the play when most of the major characters will meet their deaths, including Hamlet. The soliloquies in which he weighs his options and tries to decide whether he will direct the course of his life or let fate determine it, teaches us something about what it means to be human, to have a conscience and to make difficult decisions in our own
As humanistic values flourished within Shakespeare’s society, Elizabethan education …show more content…
Shakespeare highlights Hamlet’s inner turmoil through his use of antithesis in the famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy in Act III Scene i. Death for Hamlet is both a “consummation devoutly to be wished” and a thing to “dread” thus emphasising the tension between life, death and belief in an afterlife. Hamlet’s existential rumination echoes the uncertainty that people felt, and continue to feel, toward life, its meaning and fate. The appearance of Yorrick’s skull in the final act of the play symbolises death and its inevitability thus reflecting Hamlet’s reconciliation within himself that all men die. The historical allusion “Alexander died, Alexander was buried… Imperious Caesar dead and turned to clay” highlights his acceptance of the inevitability of death which is a stark contrast to the abstract, metaphysical, almost poetic idea of death he had earlier in the play. As Hamlet’s previous existential crisis shifts to a new existential calm, he no longer fears death as he had previously. Where he once considered whether “to be, or not to be”, he now resolves to “let be”. This is critical point in the play as it foreshadows the tragic ending of the play when most of the major characters will meet their deaths, including Hamlet. The soliloquies in which he weighs his options and tries to decide whether he will direct the course of his life or let fate determine it, teaches us something about what it means to be human, to have a conscience and to make difficult decisions in our own