Shakespeare's Hamlet revolves around the protagonist's duty to exact revenge on his relative Claudius for killing his father, King Hamlet. Following the murder of his sibling, Claudius aimed to assume the throne. It takes the ghost of Hamlet's father for him to begin an investigation into the heinous act committed by his sibling because at first Hamlet is unaware of it. Hamlet quickly starts to have second thoughts about whether or not he should believe the apparition and, consequently, what to do about his uncle if he does turn out to be guilty. Hamlet’s decision to feign madness in an attempt to allay suspicion does a lot to protect him from the eye of the king. Further conflict ensues when Hamlet erroneously stabs Polonius.
Resolution of the Play’s Central Conflict
Having been exiled by King Claudius to England, Hamlet was able to negotiate with pirates who brought him back to Denmark. Horatio and Hamlet elect to say their goodbyes to Ophelia, but they encounter Laertes who then challenges Hamlet to a fencing duel. It is here that the central conflict in Shakespeare’s Hamlet is resolved. Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother, drinks from the proverbial ‘poisoned chalice’ meant for Hamlet by King Claudius (Shakespeare and George 32). Despite King Claudius’ efforts to help her, she drinks it and dies. Hamlet then charges at Claudius and kills him. However, Hamlet has also incurred injury from Laertes’ stab with the poisoned tip, and thus faces his own mortality. He dies in Horatio’s arms, making his life-long friend vow to recount the events that befell the Prince of Denmark to posterity.
Subplots within Shakespeare’s Hamlet
The Tragedy of Hamlet has three plots. One is the main one, which concerns Hamlet’s quest to avenge his father’s murder at the hands of his uncle, now King Claudius. The other two are subplots, which involve Hamlet and Ophelia’s love story, and the impending war with Norway. In the Hamlet and Ophelia subplot, Laertes, brother to Ophelia, advices her against seeking out a romantic relationship with Hamlet, which she does by rejecting him. We then see Hamlet appear to Ophelia, half-naked and having the look of someone who has lost their sanity. When Polonius sends Ophelia to investigate what ails Hamlet, he verbally assaults her. Polonius is then killed after Hamlet mistakes him for King Claudius. Polonius’ death and Hamlets’ behavior brings Ophelia to the edge of insanity, and she is later found dead, having drowned (Shakespeare and George, 36). Laertes and Hamlet meet at Ophelia’s grave, challenge each other to a duel and mortally wound one another. As they die, they exchange apologies, upon which the Hamlet and Ophelia’s subplot ends.
In the Norway subplot, Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet, had slain the then ruler of Norway, King Fortinbras, in a battle long ago. As such, King Hamlet had claimed all the territories of Norway for himself and consequently had extended the reach of Denmark. A young Fortinbras had taken up arms in pursuit of reclaiming the Norwegian territories, and was marching toward Denmark. King Claudius attempts to quell the danger by diplomatic action toward the then King of Norway, uncle to young Fortinbras to prevent his nephew from undertaking rush actions against Denmark. When Fortinbras is directed by his uncle to cease and desist from any military action against Denmark, he unveils that he is instead marching to Poland to regain “A little patch of ground/That hath no profit in it but the name” (4.4.19). In his final moments, Hamlet now King of Denmark, decrees that Denmark be under the rule of the valiant young Fortinbras.
The two subplots contribute a great deal to the main story. For instance, the Norway subplot involves the intervention of King Claudius, who becomes occupied with the resolution of the impending attack by Norway, which then allows Hamlet to further his vengeful plans. Consequently, Hamlet encounters a captain in Fortinbras’ army, who informs him that the young Fortinbras wishes no harm on Denmark; rather he seeks to regain a piece of land from Poland. The subplot serves to further develop the characters in Shakespeare’s play. For instance, after the dialogue with Fortinbras’ captain, inspires Hamlet’s final soliloquy. The Hamlet and Ophelia subplot also reveals the extent to which love affects Hamlet’s decisions and furthers the main plot toward the climax. Laertes and Hamlet meet again on Ophelia’s grave, after they had both come to pay their respects. As such, the subplots, though narratives in their own right, contribute greatly to the main story.
Dramatic Structure, Climax and Denouement in Hamlet
Hamlet follows an Aristotelian tragedy structure and abides by the inherent rules of creating a dramatic action. The play, first, resonates with the theatre of illusion. This refers to theatrical works in which the audience experiences the events happening to the characters vicariously and enables them to not only identify with them psychologically, but also on an emotional level. Hamlet also exhibits a linear plot in which the narrative plays out from a beginning, onto a middle and subsequently, to an end. The play also adheres to the Theatre of Action and emotional involvement. In the play, we see that there is a definite protagonist, who learns information regarding his surroundings and acts, as he deems appropriate in order to attain his goals. For Hamlet, his goal is to defeat his foe, King Claudius, which he does so in the climax of the story.
The climax in Hamlet comes when, in the fourth Act, he finally succumbs to violent rage. When Hamlet and Horatio go to Ophelia’s grave for closure, they encounter Laertes who then proceeds to challenge Hamlet to a fencing duel. Hamlet does well to cut Laertes with his own blade as well as slay King Claudius, which was his main quest. The climax in Hamlet also serves as the denouement, with King Claudius coming to his fate, as well as the king loosing Gertrude to the poisoned whine, which had been meant for Hamlet. It is in the final Act that we see all the subplots concluded and resolved. For instance, the love-centered subplot is resolved when Hamlet and Laertes duel over Ophelia and end up killing each other. As they apologize to each other, the Hamlet and Ophelia subplot is drawn to an end. Similarly, the Norway subplot involving the young Fortinbras is concluded when Hamlet, having slain King Claudius and becoming the ruler of Denmark, opts to give dominion over the land to Fortinbras.
The Protagonist in Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Shakespeare’s main character, Hamlet, has fascinated the theater ever since his first appearance in the first rendition of the play. He is perhaps best described as enigmatic, and mysterious. His soliloquies inspire great thought within the audiences, and he moves the audience to empathize and resonate with him. Hamlet, a Prince of Denmark, is a loving character, as seen in his affection for Ophelia, is impulsive and rushing at times, as seen when he stabs Polonius. Hamlet is also misogynistic as seen in his onslaught against women, most notably his reaction toward his mother after she marries King Claudius. “Frailty, thy name is woman!” (Act 1, Scene 1). Hamlet’s fatal flaw is resolving to violence to solve his problems. It does him no good after he kills Polonius, as Ophelia is driven to suicide, and it does him no good at the end of the play, as he is poisoned and dies alongside his mother, and foes, King Claudius and Laertes. Whether or not Hamlet is indeed a hero, is a subject of debate as some of his actions cause considerable harm to the people around him. However, with regard to the main conflict and the main protagonist’s endeavor to resolve it, Hamlet does eventually succeed in avenging his father’s murder by killing his uncle. In this respect, he is a hero. In other regards however, he is proven to be villainous, for instance, his verbal assault on his mother and overall misogynistic undertone.
The Antagonist in Shakespeare’s Hamlet
In Hamlet, the major antagonist is King Claudius. He becomes the villain of the story when he kills his brother, King Hamlet and takes the throne for himself. Beyond this, he takes his brother’s widow, Gertrude as his own. While Hamlet is initially unaware of this, the ghost of his father appears to him and unveils the villainous actions of his uncle. From then on, Hamlet is consumed with the desire to kill Claudius. It is thus not surprising that King Claudius endeavors to kill Hamlet first. At first, he exiles him from Denmark to England, where he writes a secret letter to the king of England to have Hamlet executed as soon as he makes landfall. In doing so, audience resolves that King Claudius’ is indeed the true villain of the story and will go to any length to achieve his desires. King Claudius causes conflict intentionally. He does so by using his ability to manipulate people and political influence he has amassed over the years. However, a cunning foe, his wit is inevitably his undoing as he poisons wine for Hamlet, but instead ends up poisoning Gertrude.
Other Characters in Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Hamlet is presents the audience with a multitude of characters other than the main protagonist and antagonist who not only further the plot, but also expound on the two main characters. Gertrude for instance is a character essential to the main conflict. She values high stations and the privileges and respect that it comes with. To attain this, she has honed the ability to manipulate men to complete her wishes. She is described as being the beautiful queen of Denmark, a position she does not want to lose. Because of her manipulation of men to satisfy her need for self-preservation, she is deeply reliant on men in her life. Due to this reliance, she has lost the ability to think critically concerning any issue, particularly those that plague Hamlet her son and herself. Instead she exhibits a more reactive decision making process when faced with conflict. This is evident when she runs to King Claudius following her conflict with her son, even though Hamlet informs her that the current king might very well have killed her husband in pursuit of the throne. “That it should come to this!” (Act 1, Scene 1). Ophelia, another character in the play, is used both to further the romantic aspects of Hamlet, by centering within the Hamlet and Ophelia subplot. Ophelia is also used to further the theme of suicide and the impossibility of certainty. In this way, Shakespeare uses other characters to expound on the thematic reaches of Hamlet.
Time and Setting of Hamlet
Written during the turn of the 17th century, Hamlet was Shakespeare’s longest and most renowned play (Shakespeare and George 26). Shakespeare drew on 16th century literature in his conceptualization of Hamlet. However, Shakespeare uses several literary devices to critique the playwrights and society of his generation. It is important to note that Prince Hamlet is based on a historical Denmark prince whose father was slain by his uncle. Just like Hamlet, the prince embarks on a quest to prove his uncle’s guilt, and just as Hamlet did, he feigns insanity in order to alleviate any suspicion that might be upon him. However, Shakespeare opted to create a character plagued by philosophical queries and conflict. Hamlets contemplates his plan to uncover his uncle’s actions with great caution, predominately since his evidence of the same is so uncertain. The time and setting, 17th century Denmark, was instrumental to Hamlet’s plot. The political system at the time was a monarchy, which allowed for succession conflicts such as the one created by King Claudius. Shakespeare’s critique of the pervasions of political institutions can be applied to any oppressive regime.
Concerning the Title
The title of the play is the name of its protagonist and does not communicate the intricacies of the play to one who is a stranger to it. However, after reading and watching the play, the name of the protagonist seems to suffice as a title. In that regard, I would not change the title as the one bestowed on it by its acclaimed author, Hamlet, captures every essence of the theatrical masterpiece.
Theme of the Play
A major theme of the play is mortality. Evidenced from the start of the play, Hamlet is plagued by the reality of mortality and ponders on the philosophical implications that result from it. Throughout the play, mortality is presented in various forms. For instance, Hamlet is haunted by the uncertainty of the afterlife. Characters within the play also face their own mortality, from Hamlet’s accidental murder of Polonius to Ophelia’s suicide and the climax where Laertes, King Claudius, Hamlet and Gertrude meet their ends.
Theme in a single statement: Shakespeare’s Hamlet effectively draws on human mortality to bring out complex moral and philosophical conundrums that exist in society.
Classification of Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Hamlet is a tragedy, primarily due to the realism of the play. Despite Shakespeare’s use of supernatural elements, his play, Hamlet, does a lot which is grounded in reality. For instance, the political system that was the monarchy, and the conflicts, which arose from it. Murder and manipulation, as portrayed in the play are also issues observable within society, at any given time. Furthermore, the play, through such literary devices as the soliloquy, enables the reader to resonate and identify with the psychological turmoil, which the characters undergo in the narrative. Shakespeare uses special theatric device of surreal characters in order to further the main plot.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William, and George Richard Hibbard. Hamlet. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2008.
