Hamlet is evidently a revenge tragedy, one of Shakespeare’s best works. Justice must be taken into the hands of the protagonist in order to satisfy their moral desire. Legally, the institutions that were designated to settle these dilemmas were biased and corrupt, and often didn’t truly serve justice. In this particular revenge tragedy, the highest power, King Claudius was the antagonist that had to be brought to justice. This could only be done through Hamlet as the King would not be the one to sentence himself to what he deserves. It is Hamlet’s strong belie in restoring the divine order that motivates him to act on getting justice for the late King Hamlet. Throughout the play we observe Hamlet’s analysis of the situation and how he plans
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The first indication of an unnatural balance is symbolized by the Ghost’s appearance. The introduction of the ghost is also the introduction of new information that moves the play forward. This ghost is here in the form of the late King Hamlet Sr to persuade Hamlet to seek revenge on the one who committed the unnatural murder. The divine order holds a particular importance in many of the mens lives, Claudius is the only one unfazed by its significance. Tasked with killing Claudius, Hamlet is also indirectly given the responsibility of resetting the natural order. The order can only be restored by the removal of the problem, which is Claudius since he initiated the chaos by killing the King, taking the throne from Hamlet, and committing incest as well as adultery. Since Claudius held the highest power there would be no legal way to justify his actions, and so Hamlet takes the situation into his own hands. However, before doing so Hamlet is aware of the consequences if the Ghost was a ploy by the devil and Claudius is in fact innocent, so throughout most of the play Hamlet spends his time trying to prove Claudius’ guilt in order to justify his murder. When Hamlet finally decides to kill Clausius may deaths had already occurred, throwing off the natural balance even more. As Hamlet’s first and final act as king he restores all the disorder by naming Denmark under rule of Fortinbras, giving the land a clean slate to move forward
The first indication of an unnatural balance is symbolized by the Ghost’s appearance. The introduction of the ghost is also the introduction of new information that moves the play forward. This ghost is here in the form of the late King Hamlet Sr to persuade Hamlet to seek revenge on the one who committed the unnatural murder. The divine order holds a particular importance in many of the mens lives, Claudius is the only one unfazed by its significance. Tasked with killing Claudius, Hamlet is also indirectly given the responsibility of resetting the natural order. The order can only be restored by the removal of the problem, which is Claudius since he initiated the chaos by killing the King, taking the throne from Hamlet, and committing incest as well as adultery. Since Claudius held the highest power there would be no legal way to justify his actions, and so Hamlet takes the situation into his own hands. However, before doing so Hamlet is aware of the consequences if the Ghost was a ploy by the devil and Claudius is in fact innocent, so throughout most of the play Hamlet spends his time trying to prove Claudius’ guilt in order to justify his murder. When Hamlet finally decides to kill Clausius may deaths had already occurred, throwing off the natural balance even more. As Hamlet’s first and final act as king he restores all the disorder by naming Denmark under rule of Fortinbras, giving the land a clean slate to move forward