Is Hamlet Primarily a Tragedy of Revenge - Essay Example

Hamlet by Shakespeare “Hamlet” by Shakespeare is a perpetual poet masterpiece of all times. The masterpiece depicts the main character, Hamlet, as a person of great and unrivaled eloquent power, a philosopher, and an individual who stands tall against the grey mold in his era. He struggles against societal injustices and strongly advocates for the truth (Adams 1). In the whole of the world literature, this unique image depiction of the Danish prince has no rivalry. The play incorporates themes of revenge and tragedy, and this revenge ultimately leads to the death of Hamlet and the people he loves. The desire by Hamlet to revenge the death of his father somehow distracts his intelligence and morals, leading to his early death. Arguably, Hamlet is one of the complex characters in Shakespeare’s works; literary analysts still debate on whether Hamlet’s insanity is original. The life progress of Hamlet is outstanding. He grows from a young prince with the opportunity to rule his kingdom but ends up as a lunatic and insane prince with the obsession of revenging the death of his father. The theme of revenge is present throughout the play and is the central driving force behind Hamlet. Hamlet believes that Claudius, his uncle, killed his father, which is true as the play later reveals. This triggers him to start investigations into the matter. Hamlet displays strong characteristics of insanity that can easily fool the audience, but his moves and strategies exhibit a high level of intelligence. Essentially, the pursuit of his father’s revenge has literary destroyed his life (Thorndike 127). For instance, his relationship with two women, Ophelia and Gertrude turn sour because of the revenge, as well as their deaths. At one point in the play, Hamlet actually questions the importance of his existence. Moreover, his revenge antics lead to the death of the innocent Polonius and the consequent death of his mother. Initially, Hamlet faces problems resulting from the unexpected marriage of his uncle and his mother. However, Shakespeare rapidly changes the theme to revenge, ensuring that the destiny of almost all characters depends on revenge. Consequently, he introduces Ghost, the perceived agent of death in His father’s shape making claims by Hamlet believable. The disclosures by the Ghost create a tussle between Claudius and Hamlet, prompting Hamlet to seek revenge. This makes the main of the play to be revenge. Indeed, all other subplots emanate from the theme of revenge. Polonius is the king’s main support, and therefore his spy (Tolman 164). In his strategies to revenge, Hamlet kills him. Ophelia, the daughter of Polonius and the beloved of Hamlet, commits suicide. Consequently, Laertes seeks the revenge for the death of his father and sister. Here, Claudius is opportunistic and uses Laertes against Hamlet. Essentially, Hamlet is seeking revenge from Claudius, and Laertes is seeking revenge from him. This clearly depicts the primary importance of the theme of revenge to the play. A tragedy of revenge is a form of tragedy with the primary source of tragic events being the theme of revenge. Nonetheless, not all tragic events with elements of revenge are revenge tragedies. Essentially, a tragic event may incorporate elements of revenge but its plot must revolve around the desire to carry out revenge in order to qualify as a revenge tragedy (Wiliamson 91). Hamlet is a prime example of a revenge tragedy. The source of all the desire to revenge in the entire play is the death of Hamlet’s father. If we were to trace back all the tragic events in the play, they would lead us back to efforts of revenge by Hamlet on his father’s death. The Ghost in form of Hamlet’s father discloses to Hamlet that his uncle killed him, thus Hamlet has to seek revenge. From this point onwards, Hamlet believes that he is entirely responsible for the revenge of his father, and he sets out to kill his uncle. This is the foundation of all the tragedies in the play. In the plot of revenge, he tries all the possible ways to kill his uncle Claudius and ends up killing Lord Polonius who was standing behind the curtains (Adams 5). This is the first instance that Hamlet reacts out of irrationalities of revenge, committing an irreversible action. Ophelia, after his father’s death at the hands of Hamlet, goes bizarre and becomes desperate. She decides to commit suicide and revenge on the people who hurt her and the world as a whole. This is evidently a making of Hamlet’s revenge strategies to defend his dead father. Laertes, son of Polonius, returns home and gets news of his father’s death at the hands of Hamlet and the consequent suicide of his sister. Rage fills his conscience and he suddenly desires to revenge against Hamlet (Wiliamson 93). Here, Claudius takes the opportunity to position Laertes against Hamlet, making the revenge circle a three-man affair. The last scene of the play presents the main revenge act and fulfillment of the plot where Hamlet kills his uncle Claudius, though is killed by Laertes. There are various examples that highlight the theme of revenge in the play. After the encounter with his father’s ghost, Hamlet says, “a villain killed my father, and I, his son, will send him to heaven”. This is the first time the play reveals the theme of revenge to the audience as the primary element and plot of the story. After killing Polonius, hamlet condemns him calling him an “intruding fool” (Thorndike 129). The murder consequently sets out a series of betrayals and deaths. After Laertes returns to Denmark, he receives news of the death of his father and his sister. After coming t terms with the news, he says, “revenge will come”. This is a vow to revenge the deaths of his sister and father against Hamlet. Moreover, he seeks to make Hamlet pay for treating Ophelia terribly. Despite her death, Ophelia got her revenge on Hamlet. We see Hamlet mourning her death. He says, “I loved Ophelia”, and that even forty thousand brothers with their love qualities would not make the same qualities that she had (Tolman 168). Here, he bitterly shows the audience his, the only truly important person in his life. At the end of the play, Hamlet says, “am dead, Horatio”, meeting the revenge tragedy fulfillment. Therefore, “Hamlet” is primary revenge tragedy. At the end of the play, all the characters seeking revenge suffer death. Hamlet pursuit of revenge for his father’s death is the basis of the play’s sub plots and other themes, and keeps the characters strong on their strategies. All the tragic events that occur in the play result from Hamlet’s revenge. Work Cited Adams, Joseph. Two Notes on Hamlet. Modern Language Notes. Volume 29, Number 1, Jan 1914. Pp. 1-8. Web, March 7, 2012. (http://www.jstor.org/stable/2916995). Thorndike, Ashley. The Relations of Hamlet to Contemporary Revenge Plays. Publication of Modern Language Association. Volume 17, Number 2, 1902. pg 125 – 220. Web, March 7, 2012 (http://www.jstor.org/stable/456606) Tolman, Albert. A View of the Views about “Hamlet”. Publication of Modern Language Association. Volume 13, Number 2, 1898. Web, March 7, 2012. Pg 155 – 184. (http://www.jstor.org/stable/456350) Williamson, Claude. Hamlet. International Journal of Ethics. Volume 33, Number 1, October 1922. Pg 85-100. (http://www.jstor.org/stable/2377179) Read More