Who’s to blame?
Blame. To assign responsibility for a fault or wrong. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, many of the tragedies and deaths that occur are very controversial. Most of the deaths in the play can be argued in many ways, but one character that is definitely to blame for a lot of deaths is Hamlet. Hamlet is the tragic hero in the play and although his plan was only to kill Claudius he ended up taking out a lot of other characters along the way. Three major deaths that were directly Hamlet’s fault were Ophelia’s and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s. It is often thought that a lot of the deaths in the play had nothing to do with Hamlet. This stance fails to consider that although Hamlet didn’t directly cause all of the deaths in the play, he played …show more content…
In the middle of the battle between Hamlet and Laertes, Gertrude drinks from a cup that Claudius poisoned and dies. She says right before she dies, “The drink, the drink – I am poisoned” (V.ii.290). Although Claudius did tell Gertrude not to drink, he didn’t actually do anything to stop her because he knew his plan would be reviled. Claudius says, “Gertrude, do not drink!” (V.ii.268), but he doesn’t run to her and take the cup or tell her that the cup is poisoned. During this entire scene Hamlet was still fighting with Laertes and couldn’t be held accountable for Gertrude’s actions. He also didn’t say anything to lead Gertrude to want to drink from the cup, pointing all the blame to Claudius, who poisoned the cup in the first place. This objection carries some weight; however it overlooks why the cup was …show more content…
To summarize, Hamlet is responsible for many tragedies and deaths in Hamlet. Starting with Ophelia, Hamlet murdered her father throwing her into a state of madness and decay. It was only a matter of time before she was so consumed by sadness and anger that she took her own life. Later on in the play, Hamlet reveals how he purposely gets Rosencrantz and Guildenstern executed, leaving no room for argument as he describes in detail every step he took to get them executed. One could easily suppose that some deaths in the play weren’t Hamlet’s fault. By poisoning the cup and not doing anything to stop Gertrude from drinking from it, Claudius is to blame for Gertrude’s death. What this claim fails to consider is that it was Hamlet’s fault the cup was poisoned at all. Beyond that, Hamlet refused to drink from the cup, leaving the possibility for Gertrude to drink from it and later die. Overall, it is unmistakable that Hamlet was responsible for all of the deaths mentioned earlier on. Look at it this way: You can’t know for certain whose fault something is until you analyze both sides of the
Blame. To assign responsibility for a fault or wrong. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, many of the tragedies and deaths that occur are very controversial. Most of the deaths in the play can be argued in many ways, but one character that is definitely to blame for a lot of deaths is Hamlet. Hamlet is the tragic hero in the play and although his plan was only to kill Claudius he ended up taking out a lot of other characters along the way. Three major deaths that were directly Hamlet’s fault were Ophelia’s and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s. It is often thought that a lot of the deaths in the play had nothing to do with Hamlet. This stance fails to consider that although Hamlet didn’t directly cause all of the deaths in the play, he played …show more content…
In the middle of the battle between Hamlet and Laertes, Gertrude drinks from a cup that Claudius poisoned and dies. She says right before she dies, “The drink, the drink – I am poisoned” (V.ii.290). Although Claudius did tell Gertrude not to drink, he didn’t actually do anything to stop her because he knew his plan would be reviled. Claudius says, “Gertrude, do not drink!” (V.ii.268), but he doesn’t run to her and take the cup or tell her that the cup is poisoned. During this entire scene Hamlet was still fighting with Laertes and couldn’t be held accountable for Gertrude’s actions. He also didn’t say anything to lead Gertrude to want to drink from the cup, pointing all the blame to Claudius, who poisoned the cup in the first place. This objection carries some weight; however it overlooks why the cup was …show more content…
To summarize, Hamlet is responsible for many tragedies and deaths in Hamlet. Starting with Ophelia, Hamlet murdered her father throwing her into a state of madness and decay. It was only a matter of time before she was so consumed by sadness and anger that she took her own life. Later on in the play, Hamlet reveals how he purposely gets Rosencrantz and Guildenstern executed, leaving no room for argument as he describes in detail every step he took to get them executed. One could easily suppose that some deaths in the play weren’t Hamlet’s fault. By poisoning the cup and not doing anything to stop Gertrude from drinking from it, Claudius is to blame for Gertrude’s death. What this claim fails to consider is that it was Hamlet’s fault the cup was poisoned at all. Beyond that, Hamlet refused to drink from the cup, leaving the possibility for Gertrude to drink from it and later die. Overall, it is unmistakable that Hamlet was responsible for all of the deaths mentioned earlier on. Look at it this way: You can’t know for certain whose fault something is until you analyze both sides of the