In his famous work, Hamlet, Shakespeare presents two princes, Hamlet and Fortinbras, who initially appear to share much in common. Although these two characters and heirs to the throne share similar backstories including murdered fathers, these two royals are really quite dissimilar when it comes to the manner in which each discharges his royal duties. As a result, the differences in actions overshadow the similarities in background and station in life. Looking at both characters on
With self-serving power comes a vicious cycle of manipulation for cynical reasons. When one who is in power hopes to gain something for themselves they often manipulate people for cynical reasons. In Shakespeare’s 1603 play Hamlet, three powerful characters use their power to manipulate people into believing something or gaining information about another character. Through these three characters, Shakespeare sends a clear message that when one has a great power they may cynically misuse it for selfish
Tragedy of Hamlet is an ideal representation of prolonged inaction. Hamlet, the protagonist, drags out his plan for revenge all throughout the play. After his father, King Hamlet, dies Hamlet leaves his studies to attend the funeral at Elsinore Castle. Upon his return, he finds out that his mother is marrying Claudius, his uncle and his father’s brother. Furthermore, a ghost in the form of his dead father appears claiming that Claudius has murdered him for the throne, which also assigns Hamlet the task
In both the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare and the novel Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, time appears to be a major impact on the principal character’s behavior, beliefs, and development. Hamlet and Things Fall Apart, are two different stories yet they withhold numerous significantly similar aspects. Such as the middle age man’s life who is combatting his society and the people around him for a unique purpose. He attempts to impose his values and achieve his final objective with disregards
I interviewed Nick Williams, who plays the role of Horatio in the upcoming stage play Hamlet that will run from November 4th through the 7th at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke in the Givens Performing Arts Center. Actor Williams, who plays Horatio in the upcoming production is a junior at UNC- Pembroke where his major is theater. Williams says that he chose to audition for Hamlet because it would be a new experience and he thought it would be a good step to make in his acting career
In Shakespeare's Hamlet, several intriguing factors are implemented into the speech that the ghost pronounces to Hamlet. Shakespeare employs this address from the Ghost of King Hamlet to Hamlet to primarily give major relevant details regarding the plot of Hamlet. Hence, Shakespeare establishes this speech to let the reader know who is responsible for the death of King Hamlet, and also to give Hamlet, the son of the fallen king, some direction. Shakespeare begins the discourse of the Ghost showing
A final examination of the role of guilt and innocence within Hamlet questions the concept of accountability. There are characters such as Ophelia, whose madness makes her irrational. Is it fair for her to feel or assume guilt if she is not in a healthy state of mind? Ophelia’s situation is helplessly tragic as Gertrude poetically describes her death “as one incapable of her own distress” (4.4.177). Gertrude, arguably, does two things when she makes this claim of Ophelia’s death: she was trying
Throughout Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet is faced with the big responsibility of attaining retaliation for his father’s murder. He decides to do something a bit out of the ordinary. He fakes being insane as a part of his plan to get in the perfect situation to kill Claudius. Later on, It becomes more believable that Hamlet is a madman and all of the characters around him can see it clearly. However, through all of the thoughts and the “reasons” for his actions, it is pretty clear that he is not mad
Thinking Makes It So: Hamlet and the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so,” declares Hamlet in one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. Is the prince of Denmark right? The psychology which Hamlet embraces in this line is known as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy holds that an individual’s thoughts and feelings fundamentally influence one’s behavior (Martin). This therapy is seen in Hamlet not only in this single
In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the Prince Hamlet’s father was killed by his brother and then that brother marries Hamlet’s mother. Hamlet wants to do anything to get revenge for his father, which may even mean killing his own uncle. Prince Hamlet has an apparent delay in seeking revenge for his father’s death, this delay is due to not only Hamlet’s internal conflicts, but also some external conflicts. Hamlet has some external conflicts that contribute greatly to his delay in killing