The appearance of madness and the reality of sadness are common occurrences after an unexpected experience of sorrow. The protagonist appears mad while the antagonist stays reserved and in control even with the guilt of killing his own brother. The appearance of sadness and madness play a role with select characters. Select characters, Hamlet and Claudius, in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, portray characteristics of a villain, while one acts as a villain with manipulation and murder, the other ponders over villainous acts. Without Claudius influence on Hamlet’s revenge, none of the deaths would have occurred, thus making Claudius a deadlier villain than Hamlet.
A feeling of sympathy can be felt towards Hamlet but it is hard to sympathize with Claudius. Sadness, madness, anger- these appositives describe the feelings of Hamlet (sp6). King Hamlet’s death by poison influences Hamlet’s appearance of madness creating an even greater heartache in the royal family. “That father lost, lost his, and the survivor bound in filial obligation for some term to do obsequies sorrow,” this explains Hamlet’s appearance of excessive grief (1.2.27). Because of Claudius’ villainous deed an even greater level of madness arises when a ghost visits Hamlet and the guards beside him, informing them that Claudius is the culprit of the murder of King Hamlet. This creates Marcellus’ idea that “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (1.4.100). Hamlet now forges a revenge plot in which he will kill Claudius and anyone who attempts to stop him; though Hamlet creates a diabolical plan to kill Claudius, he never pursues it and keeps his revenge plan to himself (sp1). “The play’s the thing wherein [he’ll] catch the conscience of the King;” Hamlet’s first attempt of revenge he does not complete (2.2.119). This differs from Claudius’ thought process because once he contemplates a devilish plot, he pursues it and completes it. This constant refusal of villainous acts by Hamlet benefits the constant building of hatred towards Claudius throughout the play. Through the consistent refusal of pursuit of villainous acts demonstrated by Hamlet, Claudius proves to be the greater villain.
Claudius is a far greater villain than Hamlet not only by physical murders, but also by manipulation. Claudius usurps the throne by murdering King Hamlet thus gaining power of the throne. Claudius mainly uses Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to try and squeeze information out of Hamlet. Claudius manipulates select people in order to get them to perform wicked acts, while Hamlet contemplates over performing such deeds. Guildenstern admits he was sent to spy by stating ‘”my lord [I] was sent for”’ (2.2.101). Polonius says to Claudius he “assure[s] good [his] liege [he] hold[s] [his] duty as [he] hold[s] [his] soul,” because of Claudius’ manipulation Polonius will obey him (2.2.85). Claudius is the focal point for the domino effect of deaths within the royal family and noble citizens of Denmark. Because of Claudius’ manipulation of Polonius, Ophelia and Hamlet separate with Hamlet stating ‘“If thou dost marry I’ll give thee this plague for thy dowry”’ (3.1.131). This manipulation of Polonius leads to Polonius’ demise for he is killed by Hamlet after Polonius is hiding behind the arras. Claudius is the only one to blame for this because he manipulates Polonius into doing sly things in order for him to gain more information in return. Claudius is also an excellent liar; he uses Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to attempt to extract information from them by instructing them to tell a small lie in order to obtain a greater amount of information in return. Claudius uses a multiple variety of skills in order to perform villainous deeds which ultimately lead to the demise of him and others. Through multiple acts, Claudius proves to be a far greater villain than Hamlet.
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet demonstrates the true goals of a villain: revenge and murder (sp3).The protagonist and the antagonist both have a villainous goal, antagonist, murder; protagonist, retribution (sp2). Readers must dive into the character to truly understand the madness of the situation in the royal family of Denmark. The dramatic conclusion clearly demonstrates how villainous acts of sadness and madness can destroy a dynasty.
A feeling of sympathy can be felt towards Hamlet but it is hard to sympathize with Claudius. Sadness, madness, anger- these appositives describe the feelings of Hamlet (sp6). King Hamlet’s death by poison influences Hamlet’s appearance of madness creating an even greater heartache in the royal family. “That father lost, lost his, and the survivor bound in filial obligation for some term to do obsequies sorrow,” this explains Hamlet’s appearance of excessive grief (1.2.27). Because of Claudius’ villainous deed an even greater level of madness arises when a ghost visits Hamlet and the guards beside him, informing them that Claudius is the culprit of the murder of King Hamlet. This creates Marcellus’ idea that “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (1.4.100). Hamlet now forges a revenge plot in which he will kill Claudius and anyone who attempts to stop him; though Hamlet creates a diabolical plan to kill Claudius, he never pursues it and keeps his revenge plan to himself (sp1). “The play’s the thing wherein [he’ll] catch the conscience of the King;” Hamlet’s first attempt of revenge he does not complete (2.2.119). This differs from Claudius’ thought process because once he contemplates a devilish plot, he pursues it and completes it. This constant refusal of villainous acts by Hamlet benefits the constant building of hatred towards Claudius throughout the play. Through the consistent refusal of pursuit of villainous acts demonstrated by Hamlet, Claudius proves to be the greater villain.
Claudius is a far greater villain than Hamlet not only by physical murders, but also by manipulation. Claudius usurps the throne by murdering King Hamlet thus gaining power of the throne. Claudius mainly uses Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to try and squeeze information out of Hamlet. Claudius manipulates select people in order to get them to perform wicked acts, while Hamlet contemplates over performing such deeds. Guildenstern admits he was sent to spy by stating ‘”my lord [I] was sent for”’ (2.2.101). Polonius says to Claudius he “assure[s] good [his] liege [he] hold[s] [his] duty as [he] hold[s] [his] soul,” because of Claudius’ manipulation Polonius will obey him (2.2.85). Claudius is the focal point for the domino effect of deaths within the royal family and noble citizens of Denmark. Because of Claudius’ manipulation of Polonius, Ophelia and Hamlet separate with Hamlet stating ‘“If thou dost marry I’ll give thee this plague for thy dowry”’ (3.1.131). This manipulation of Polonius leads to Polonius’ demise for he is killed by Hamlet after Polonius is hiding behind the arras. Claudius is the only one to blame for this because he manipulates Polonius into doing sly things in order for him to gain more information in return. Claudius is also an excellent liar; he uses Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to attempt to extract information from them by instructing them to tell a small lie in order to obtain a greater amount of information in return. Claudius uses a multiple variety of skills in order to perform villainous deeds which ultimately lead to the demise of him and others. Through multiple acts, Claudius proves to be a far greater villain than Hamlet.
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet demonstrates the true goals of a villain: revenge and murder (sp3).The protagonist and the antagonist both have a villainous goal, antagonist, murder; protagonist, retribution (sp2). Readers must dive into the character to truly understand the madness of the situation in the royal family of Denmark. The dramatic conclusion clearly demonstrates how villainous acts of sadness and madness can destroy a dynasty.
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