Dynamics between Family Members in Hamlet - Research Paper Example

Dynamics between Family Members in Hamlet The greatest tragedy, or the most talked about, Hamlet has made a special mark ‎in the world of literature. Written by William Shakespeare, it was famous even in ‎the early days. The play revolves around the young Prince of Denmark Hamlet, ‎who is shattered by the death of his father, so much so that he is seeing the ghost ‎of the King who is telling him to avenge his death. The ghost tells him that he was ‎killed by his brother Claudius who has now taken the throne by marrying his ‎widow, Hamlet’s mother. ‎ The plot unfolds in a lot of twists and turns where eventually everyone is killed in ‎a most unpredictable or accidental manner. However, the more important thing ‎to see is the relationship between all the family members involved, which more or ‎less is the basic fundamental storyline of the entire play. Not one single ‎relationship seems stable, whether it is mother or son, husband or wife or uncle ‎and nephew. Everyone is just keeping up appearances, planning against each ‎other which ultimately lead them to their destruction. It goes to show how blood ‎and water really have no difference when people form their own agendas. ‎Without doubt, the entire course of actions could have been altered had a single ‎relation shown a bit of the caliber that was required of someone in that ‎arrangement. ‎ Hamlet seems to be extraordinarily close to his father because even when ‎members of the court have stopped mourning the death of the king, Hamlet is ‎unable to let go. His mental stature is so deeply worn by this broken bond that he ‎keeps seeing his father’s ghost which tells him he did not die a natural death but ‎was actually killed by his uncle Claudius, the King’s brother. Reading between the ‎lines, it seems Hamlet’s inner nature did not trust his uncle in the first place and ‎his instincts were telling him that Claudius was behind this heinous crime. ‎Throughout, he does not vocally blame Claudius and keeps his thoughts to ‎himself, planning to take vengeance when the time is appropriate. He also ‎believes his uncle cannot rise up to the stature of his father, as he says: “So ‎excellent a king: that was to this, Hyperion to a satyr.” (Act 1, Scene 2) He ‎compares his father, a God, to Claudius as an evil animal (Greenblatt, 2002, p.227).‎ Claudius too is not particularly fond of his nephew. He believes Hamlet is on to ‎him and his love for the throne exceeds his love for his nephew and he too is ‎planning to murder Hamlet in some way. Though both are very civil in each ‎other’s company, none is ready to trust the other. Amidst all this is a connection ‎between them which both of them seem to value more than any other and that is ‎of Hamlet’s mother also Claudius’s new wife Gertrude. The widow who had been ‎very much in love with her husband had quickly moved on and married his ‎brother, the acting King Claudius. It might be that Hamlet’s main reason for his ‎hatred of his uncle was his marrying Gertrude, and the Ghost was just a figment ‎of his imagination, telling him what he wanted to hear. However, Claudius’ actual ‎guilt corroborates with Hamlet’s belief (Wilson, 1951, p.259). ‎ Gertrude generally is fond of her son and cares a lot about his wellbeing but she ‎does not let it affect her relationship with her new husband, often siding with him ‎rather than Hamlet. This leaves a harsh mark on Hamlet who, because of this ‎betrayal of his father’s memory, is unable to trust any women in his life, even his ‎own love Ophelia. Often, he is depicted as wanting to rid of Claudius because of ‎the inappropriate union between his mother and his uncle than the vengeance for ‎his father’s death. Although his mother loves him, she is in the dark about his ‎feelings and is at times resentful of herself as a failure to her son. Instead of ‎talking it out, she chooses to think everything will work out in the end and does ‎not really work at solving any of the problems being caused in her family.‎ However, Hamlet is increasingly scarred because of how his mother acted, ‎immediately marrying after his father’s death, to the wrong man too. There is also ‎a certain amount of a weird tension between Hamlet and Gertrude, as he is ‎possessively jealous of all the attention Claudius is always getting. This indicates ‎that even though he is mad at his mother, he still wants to be the most important ‎person in her life. His actions of revenge are in order to seek vengeance for his ‎father’s death, but arguably so, they seem to be more of a way to take revenge of ‎taking his mother away from him. At one point, Hamlet beautifully relates one of ‎the most famous Shakespearean Quote: “Frailty thy name is Woman.” (Act 1, ‎Scene 2). It states of his faith in a woman’s loyalty, particularly where his mother ‎is concerned.‎ Due to the unbalanced and wavering relationships all the members of the family ‎have with one another, others are affected by these dynamics as well. The trivial ‎characters also face a lot of problems because of the mistrust and hatred, ‎frequently having to plan deaths of either Hamlet or King Claudius. Ophelia, ‎Hamlet’s love, too is severely affected when he decides he just can’t trust her ‎anymore, accusing her to be exactly like all other women. She ends up committing ‎suicide and although Hamlet is remorseful, he is not seen to be very moved by her ‎death, causing one to think again that his mother is the only important woman in ‎his life (Wilson, 1951, p.259).‎ On the other hand, Gertrude and Claudius seem to be very happy, despite the ‎accusations held on each person’s account. Claudius is attentive and gentle ‎towards his wife, increasingly so that scholars and analysts alike sense an affair ‎when Gertrude was married to the late King Hamlet. Gertrude too is very much ‎happy with Claudius and showers him with much love and attention, which is ‎debatably the main reason of Hamlet’s abhorrence of his uncle. Gertrude is vainly ‎innocent throughout the play and does not question the motives of her husband’s ‎actions as she does not think at all that he caused the murder of King Hamlet. She ‎trusts him, thinking that her son is the one who is causing trouble, his mind not ‎working properly after the death of his father.‎ These three are the main characters of the entire plot, the three Royals who are ‎brought about in a strange situation. It is their misguidance and actions that ‎prolong the story, causing effects, and is the main guideline. It is important to ‎realize that though disturbed and saddened, Hamlet has reason to mistrust his ‎uncle. And although he may be viewed as a soul searcher or a youngster who ‎thinks too deeply, there is evidence enough for him to know that Claudius did kill ‎his father. His motives and feelings are justified, stronger even when his mother ‎marries the enemy. He cannot understand, understandably so, how his mother ‎could have so quickly gotten over the demise of her late husband when she had ‎been so attached to him.‎ There are other families involved too, one of Polonius, who was more concerned ‎in helping Claudius than making sure his daughter’s future was safe and secure ‎because she was being courted by Hamlet. It only brings about the mere theory ‎that not one of the characters seem to be loyal to any of their blood. Hamlet ‎wants Claudius’s blood, despite the fact that his mother is very happy with him. ‎Claudius wants Hamlet dead, not even bothering to rethink that he is the son of ‎his wife and his nephew as well. Gertrude seems ‘innocently’ oblivious to the ‎feelings of Hamlet or the memory of her late husband, marrying Claudius only ‎after a short period of time (Greenblatt, 2002, p.227). ‎ The characters and their motivations are strikingly ignorant of any bonding ‎between relationships that generally demand respect, love and nurturing. Hamlet ‎is habitually shown to speak improperly with his mother while giving a lot ‎of sexual references that would not be fitting for a mother-son relation. ‎ All in all, the odd statics between every single one of them is a central theme and ‎ploy. Shakespeare has managed to berate most of the familial characteristics, ‎making this seem more like a drama than a tragedy. In the end, it brings nothing ‎but loss to all the characters, important or not. If only they could have been more ‎understanding and cooperative of the position of the one in pain, which they had ‎a job of doing, then things could have turned out very differently. Possibly so, the ‎turn of events were majorly caused by how they all were with each other. ‎ References Shakespeare, W. 2011. Hamlet. UK: Simon and Brown. Wilson, D., 1951. What Happens in Hamlet. London: Cambridge University Press. Greenblatt, S., 2002. Hamlet in Purgatory. London: Princeton University Press. Read More