Prince Hamlet

Paper Summary:

This paper explores how, in "Hamlet", William Shakespeare initially portrays Hamlet as a spiteful, indecisive, angry madman. It looks at how he also effectively characterizes Hamlet as a traumatized individual, suffering depression as a result of his father's murder and his mother's incestuous re-marriage. It shows how the reader experiences catharsis as a result of Hamlet's threatening instability and remorseful depression, which causes Hamlet to emerge as both the minister and scourge of the play. It also discusses how, although, at first glance, Hamlet seems irresolute, wrathful, and insane, through Hamlet's characterization Shakespeare creates a feeling of sympathy in the reader.

From the Paper:

"One may call Hamlet a sinister individual because he plans to kill his uncle, King Claudius of Denmark. However, Hamlet's ghost-father, the former king, reveals that his brother Claudius, who "now wears his crown," is the "serpent" who "stung [him]" while he slept in his orchard. Shakespeare's comparison of Claudius to the serpent in the Garden of Eden evokes pity by revealing an underhanded predator who preys on the vulnerable and disrupts Prince Hamlet's orderly world. Claudius, the primary source of evil in the play, emerges as a powerful, fearful force as opposed to the weak and unstable Prince. Hamlet rejects his first opportunity for retribution, convincing himself not to avenge his father's death while Claudius defenselessly kneels in prayer."

More papers on Prince Hamlet:

• Analytical Essay # 55385 : "The Madness of Prince Hamlet"
• Essay # 37828 : "Prince Hamlet"
• Comparison Essay # 57181 : "Hamlet" and "Oedipus the King"

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