Hamlet by Shakespeare - Essay Example

Hamlet is a uniquely written play that focuses on issues central to the society. Hamlet’s legendary musings regarding suicide, particularly in his speech “to be or not to be” continues to direct discussions regarding the value of life, as well as the mystery of death. Death traces its way through the entire play from the opening scene dealing with a confrontation with a deceased man’s ghost to the last scene, which leaves nearly all characters dead after a bloodbath. Hamlet constantly reflects on the element of death from a number of angles. For instance, Hamlet seems to be seduced, as well as repelled by the notion of suicide (Shakespeare 55). In the gravedigger scene, in Act 5, Hamlet seems captivated by the reality of death. Although Hamlet’s fascination with death is intensely entrenched in his character, such fascination could also be a result of his grief following his father’s untimely death. In a sense, Hamlet is an extended dialogue between Hamlet and the element of death. This paper will examine how death permeates Hamlet from the opening scene to the end of the play. Death, in Hamlet, comes with a set of consequences that ultimately affect all characters and the nation, as well. As noted, death permeates Hamlet from the opening scene when Hamlet’s dead father appears to Hamlet and introduces the aspect of death and its consequences. The ghost of Hamlet’s father signifies a disruption to the conventional social order. This form of disruption emanates from the unnatural death of the country’s (Denmark) figurehead and which is soon followed by a wave of revenge, suicide and accidental deaths. Perhaps Hamlet’s most powerful reflection on death comes in Act 4. Here, Hamlet refuses to tell Claudius where he hid Polonius body. The theme of death is perhaps the main theme of Hamlet especially considering that the plot of the play is set in motion by the unnatural death of Hamlet’s father. Throughout the play, we encounter a number of deaths, either from suicide or murder. In Act 4, Hamlet kills Polonius after realizing that the latter was spying on Hamlet and his mother (Shakespeare 40). The death of Polonius drives his daughter Ophelia mad and she commits suicide by drowning herself. Death emerges in the play once again as Hamlet arranges to have Rosencrantz and Guildenstern killed. However, the notion of spiritual terror keeps characters such as Hamlet from committing suicide despite their despair. Such terror emerges as Hamlet finds himself in a difficult position of desiring his death, but also fearing death intensely. This form of double pressure provides the play most of its drama and thrill. However, the aspect of death that Hamlet finds most intriguing is its bodily reality as he argues that mankind is ultimately made of meat and bone, but no matter how much humans value their bodies, they are innately decomposing machines (Act 5). In the scene at the graveyard, Hamlet’s fascination with death emerges as he ponders over Yorick’s skull asking whether a piece of the skull or dead earth has any personality or connection to a being. Hamlet ponders the spiritual aftermath of death as embodied in the form of a ghost and physical aftermath embodied in physical remainders such as the decaying corpses and Yorick’s skull. Moreover, the theme of suicide serves to augment the element of death in Hamlet. Just like the theme of madness, the theme of suicide links characters such as Ophelia and Hamlet and typically shapes the concerns of the play on a larger scale. This is because Ophelia perhaps commits suicide although the act is shrouded in mystery. Hamlet, on the other hand, merely contemplates suicide but is too scared by the notion of death and the spiritual ramifications of suicide to commit it. In both Hamlet and Ophelia’s cases, the most significant outcome of suicide is its religious ramifications. Within Hamlet’s two suicide soliloquies, he reflects on religious mysteries and laws that argue that the Everlasting denounced self-slaughter. In Act 5, during Ophelia’s burial, the priest limits the burial service by speculating that Ophelia took her own life. In essence, Hamlet seems to suggest that, were it, not for the social stigma affixed to suicide by religious persons or the mysterious nature of death, there would be a lot of self-slaughter in the bitter and tough world. The play focuses a lot on the element of self, as well as the nature of the self (individual); thus it does not come as a surprise that the play also focuses suicide as a form of death. It is paramount to note that one of the biggest interpretive issues of the play lies in the question of whether Ophelia’s death was a suicide or merely accidental. Gertrude’s narration of Ophelia’s drowning suggests that the death was entirely accidental. However, some characters suggest that Gertrude’s story was a fabrication aimed at protecting Ophelia from social stigmatization (Shakespeare 19). In fact, the priest and gravediggers are almost certain that Ophelia committed suicide, and this provokes the query whether or not it makes any difference whether Ophelia committed suicide. Shakespeare inspires self-interrogation as whether the audience, like the play’s characters, also seeks to protect Ophelia from social stigma by arguing that her death was accidental. The mystery surrounding the aspect of death, in Hamlet, encompasses themes such as truth, spirituality and uncertainty since Hamlet believes that death will bring the answers to his deepest questions and end the problem of trying to find out the truth in the ambiguous world. However, because death is both the cause and the effect of revenge, it is intrinsically linked with the themes of revenge and justice. The murder of King Hamlet by Claudius instigates Hamlet’s pursuit for revenge and Hamlet believes that the death of Claudius is the culmination of that quest. In terms of symbolism, Hamlet connects all events such as the wellbeing of the royal family and that of the state. Characters frequently describe Denmark as a physical body diseased by Claudius and Gertrude’s moral decay. In addition, in Act 4, most of the characters believe the presence of a ghost is a supernatural omen that indicates something, in Denmark, is rotten (Shakespeare 44). The play portrays the dead as having sufficient strength to instigate the living to perform actions. For instance, after his death, King Hamlet still has the capacity to ask Hamlet to avenge his death. Throughout the play, several motifs and figures of speech emerge to augment the element of death. A great example of motif lies in Act 5 when Hamlet addresses Yorick’s skull. Hamlet traces the skull’s mouth and muses how he used to kiss Yorick’s lips (Shakespeare 26). Hamlet’s deep fascination with the physical ramifications of death throughout the play is a vital motif of the play. Moreover, the motif of misogyny or men’s hatred towards women is also notable in Hamlet after his mother married King Hamlet’s killer. The depth of character, as well as the uncertainty over Hamlet’s (the protagonist) sanity, makes the play a complex read. However, the play’s plot involving murder and ghosts gives it a modern edge that has so far not lost its appeal. The sound effects used in the play effectively portray the appropriate atmosphere. In addition, Hamlet uses repetition of words that sound the same to further enhance the plot. In conclusion, Hamlet is an extraordinary play in terms of the variety and depth of its reflections on death. Death casts a shadow over every scene of the play rising stimulating questions, but only a few satisfactory answers with regard to the anxieties and doubts of life. Work cited Shakespeare, W. Hamlet. Ed. Mowat, B. A. and Werstine, P. New York: Washington Square-Pocket, 1992. Print. Read More