The Appearance of Reality
The play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, conveys the theme of appearance versus reality through the clothing of each character. Throughout the play, many characters use clothes either to hide their true nature, or show a portion of their true feelings. One of the few characters who honestly expresses himself through his clothes is Hamlet. Unlike many characters throughout the play, Shakespeare conveys that Hamlet is everything he appears to be. His feelings are genuinely felt, without any pretense otherwise, an idea conveyed through Hamlet 's mourning clothes. Many other characters, however, put on a show in an attempt to create an appearance of themselves that does not exist. Laertes, for example, believes that the outward appearance is above all else, and matters far more than the reality of a person 's character. Again, Shakespeare highlights this character trait …show more content…
After coming to Denmark for the King 's coronation, Laertes is granted permission to return to France, where he will drink and party. Before he goes, he is given dogmatic advice from his father, Polonius, who tells him that he should always make sure to dress his best, “For the apparel proclaims the man” (1.3.78). Here, Polonius tells Laertes that clothing is what defines people, thereby instilling the importance of the exterior as opposed to the interior. Polonius teaches his son that the most important thing he can do is create an illusion of himself that does not exist. Laertes emulates this characteristic throughout the play, and believes that the way a person appears is far more important than how they actually are. Through the importance that Laertes places on clothes, it is clear that the effigy of reality is more important to him than true
The play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, conveys the theme of appearance versus reality through the clothing of each character. Throughout the play, many characters use clothes either to hide their true nature, or show a portion of their true feelings. One of the few characters who honestly expresses himself through his clothes is Hamlet. Unlike many characters throughout the play, Shakespeare conveys that Hamlet is everything he appears to be. His feelings are genuinely felt, without any pretense otherwise, an idea conveyed through Hamlet 's mourning clothes. Many other characters, however, put on a show in an attempt to create an appearance of themselves that does not exist. Laertes, for example, believes that the outward appearance is above all else, and matters far more than the reality of a person 's character. Again, Shakespeare highlights this character trait …show more content…
After coming to Denmark for the King 's coronation, Laertes is granted permission to return to France, where he will drink and party. Before he goes, he is given dogmatic advice from his father, Polonius, who tells him that he should always make sure to dress his best, “For the apparel proclaims the man” (1.3.78). Here, Polonius tells Laertes that clothing is what defines people, thereby instilling the importance of the exterior as opposed to the interior. Polonius teaches his son that the most important thing he can do is create an illusion of himself that does not exist. Laertes emulates this characteristic throughout the play, and believes that the way a person appears is far more important than how they actually are. Through the importance that Laertes places on clothes, it is clear that the effigy of reality is more important to him than true