King Claudius

Is Hamlet truly insane? There is much evidence in the play that Hamlet deliberately put on fake fits of madness in order to confuse and bewilder the king and his attendants. However, it is important to point out that the reason why Hamlet acted this way is because of the tragic incident of his father's death. This becomes evident right away when Hamlet contemplates suicide in the first soliloquy of the play. Hamlet gets the idea of faking insanity from Horatio's warning when he meets his…

experiences several events that could potentially unravel anyone without a pre-existing mental illness. He returns from university to discover his father has been murdered, his mother remarried within weeks, and his uncle is now both his stepfather and his king. He decides to avenge his father per the request of his ghost, ends up stabbing the wrong man through a sheet, gets into a fight with his now deceased’s lover’s grave, and contemplates suicide. But does he suffer from manic depression?…

truth about his father’s death. Shakespeare uses this speech as a turning point in the character of Hamlet to move his progression from rising king to devolving murderer. Shakespeare begins this soliloquy by having Hamlet express his anger at heaven by exclaiming “O all you host of heaven” (Shakespeare 129).…

All the characters speak Shakespeare’s words, but he also cuts the dialog greatly. The long speeches were removed; the speech delieverd by Horatio in scene one, the king in scene 2, and Hamlet in scene four. All in all, these changes serve to make the film less dependent on speech and more dependent on the actions and emotions. Zeffirelli’s film techniques are just as important as his narrative techniques. His ghost…

To Hamlet it seems that he is the only one who is loyal to his father's memory because he is still mourning him. In life Hamlet Sr. was a warrior king, he stood for honor and lived by the sword and he knew that though Hamlet was not the type of man for battle, Hamlet was a calm intellectual who never caused much of a threat to Hamlet Sr. or anyone else and in life he was there to protect his son…

price of too many lives. The tale of Hamlet by William Shakespeare is that of a young prince who comes home for the funeral of his father but finds out through his father's ghost that his father's death was a murder. The murderer of his father was Claudius, the king's brother. The ghost then says to Hamlet "Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder"(1.5.25). Hamlet then enacted a plan to avenge his father's death, but his father's spirit didn't tell him in what way his father wanted to be…

father’s murder. Even if others play a key role in determining who Hamlet was there is no character that forces Hamlet into doing anything. Hamlet has a final goal to get justice for his father but that can’t stop the resentment that feels toward Claudius, Gertrude and Ophelia, his obsession is a major flaw that takes away from his credibility…

Introduction Topic: A comparison of the element of Hamartia in “Agamemnon”, “Hamlet” and “ The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”. Thesis Statement: The protagonists in “Agamemnon”, “Hamlet” and in “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” are subjected to their downfalls as a result of hamartia (tragic errors or simple mistakes) committed by them due to their error in judgement or possessing a fundamental flaw in their characters. Mapping Scheme (Your Main Points): • Hamlet struggles with his…

The comparison of Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ and the world today reveals that teen suicide is caused by feelings of loneliness from family dynamics. Teen suicide has become a growing problem in today’s society. Studies by psychologists have shown that 60% of high school students have considered suicide at some point. When family life is rough, the children often blame themselves for the suffering, although it is not their fault. Sometimes, even when family life is running smoothly, children can…

When faced with a life-changing decision, one can be paralyzed by fear which may prolong the struggle. In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, the young prince of Denmark has been told by his father’s ghost that he was murdered by his uncle Claudius. Hamlet desires to avenge his father, yet he is also fearful. In this soliloquy, he weighs the decision for action against inaction. Through the use of figurative language and nuances, Shakespeare implies that when an individual struggles with inner conflict,…