Macbeth Essay Essays (1533 words) - Characters In Hamlet, Fiction

Macbeth Essay Person's thoughts will differ from their actions, be it the fear of being the same or different from others, the consequences of their actions, or the opinions that others may form about them. People live their lives like drones, always conforming to the rules, afraid to brake away from the norm and do what they know or even feel to be the right thing to do simply because they might cause a ripple in the smooth little lake in which their boat is afloat. Within the Playwright Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, Hamlet suffers from such dilemma. Hamlet refuses to act on what he knows to be accurate, always reassuring himself of his lack of action. Hamlet also acts in a manner which some may wish to call lunacy. This is due to the loss in which he has suffered, as well as he is just pretending to fool the people who he is plotting against. Hamlet's father, King Hamlet, was the greatest king Denmark had ever seen. Respected and revered by all with the exception of his brother, Claudius. Claudius had envied his older brother since boyhood, the king living the life that Claudius had always wanted. A wife, a son, and a kingdom were all the holdings possessed by King Hamlet, holdings and possessions that Claudius would soon make his, by the killing of his brother. Though Hamlet feels that his mother's marriage to Claudius was to soon after the death of King Hamlet, he does not suspect Claudius killed king Hamlet until told of a sighting of a ghost by some guards while on watch. Hamlet tells Polonious that he will stand watch that night with them to see if they can see the ghost again. That night Hamlet stands watch with Polonious and the ghost appears before them. The ghost tells Hamlet that he is his father, and of how he was killed. Hamlet is told that while his father lay under the shade of a tree Claudius came to him an d poured poison in his ear and caused his death instantaneously not allowing him time to repent of his sins, therefore condemning him to be trapped between the two paranormal worlds. The ghost then tells Hamlet to avenge his death. Though hamlet agrees to kill Claudius he does not kill him forthright. Hamlet hesitates and seems to invalidate every possible moment or opportunity that arises to take the life of Claudius. His reason for his hesitation is not known and one can only guess at what they may be. It could be that he doesn't believe the ghost. He could be afraid of hurting his mother by killing her second husband, or the fact that he is his uncle. What ever the reason is, he doses hesitate, and by doing so causes more pain and suffering for more people than if he would have killed Claudius forthright. The first example noted of such hesitation by Hamlet within the play if found within act three scene three where Hamlet contemplates the extermination of Claudius while he seems to be at prayer. ? Now might I do it pat, now he's praying. And (P70-71) Within this paragraph Hamlet will eventually state that he cannot kill Claudius due to the fact that to kill him at prayer would only send him to heaven and not eternally damn him to the bowels of hell. Hamlet thinks that if he killed Claudius while he was at prayer and he was sent to heaven that it would be unfair to his father who is eternally trapped between the present and the afterlife. That is at least the reason that is given by Hamlet directly from the text. Though by the reading the entire book you will see a patter of actions and lack of actions that seem to signify that he only acts insane so to disorientate the other people within the story. Yet knowing that his father was murdered, who murdered him, and what Hamlet was asked to do to seek vengeance he feels that he has to constantly reassure himself of his lack of action was right so that he doesn't feel like he is failing his father. Hamlet is mad