Role Of Religion In Hamlet

From start to finish, the play Hamlet contains varying degrees of conflicts and dilemmas. These conflicts range from the external combat between Denmark and Norway, to Hamlet’s inner turmoil over avenging his father 's death by killing Claudius. Although religion plays a supporting role to the play, it still contains conflict between religious views. Throughout Hamlet, Shakespeare offers both Protestant and Catholic concepts, yet the play should be considered primarily Catholic for four reasons. Shakespeare 's personal experiences and family’s and own religious beliefs, were Catholic. There was necessity to disguise Catholic elements due to the political environment of Elizabethan England. Finally, the Protestant elements playing minor roles compared to the Catholic elements within the play.
Albeit born much later than Shakespeare, Ernest Hemingway stated, “In order to write about life first you must live it” …show more content…
To describe John Shakespeare in one word, historians would agree on Christian, and to be more precise Catholic. John Shakespeare’s strongest connection to Catholicism comes from the finding of a tract declaring his secret act of practicing Catholicism within the rafters of a house he used to live in (Milward). Greenblatt theorizes that Shakespeare 's father would have advocated for his son to perform Catholic burial rites for Hamnet, such as buying masses, although Hamnet received a Protestant burial (Greenblatt). Thus it is reasonable to conclude when Shakespeare began to write the play Hamlet, the religious elements surrounding death of the son—who share the same name as the main character—and the looming threat of losing his currently ill father would have been incorporated within the play. Specifically within the scenes revolving around death in Hamlet do these emotions truly