It seems that Hamlet does not want to extract revenge and he regrets promising the ghost that he will do so, “O cursed spite,/That ever I was born to set it right! (I.v.28). Hamlet has many opportunities to kill Claudius throughout the course of the play. Hamlet considers killing Claudius while he is confessing his sins. Hamlet then does what he is good at and reconsiders his actions.
“To be or not to be, that is the question; whether’ tis nobler in the mind to suffer...” (Shakespeare Act 3, Scene 1). This quotation proves Hamlet becomes inferior to others and the environment through his madness, causing him to express himself explicitly towards others. Hamlet’s madness not only causes his loved ones lives but it allows his “end” to come because he accepts every challenge from his opponent. Hamlet’s madness not only affects him but Ophelia, who is mentally torn apart by Hamlet. Ophelia was once flawless, but since her encounter with Hamlet she has fallen into the same madness and wants to kill herself.
Hamlet also demonstrates his flaw when he says “That would be scanned,”(Shakespeare III.iii.76) which basically means that he wants think more about the situation at hand, before following it through. His nature to over-think matters is considered a tragic flaw, because his decision to put off the murder of Claudius, leads to the death of many characters in the play, including him. Not only does Hamlet miss his opportunity when he scum’s to his flaw, but he also displays another tragic flaw, which is to procrastinate. Ophelia’s character flaw that is displayed is her emotional weakness. Ultimately Ophelia’s flaw is the reason for her own death, which is what makes it so tragic.
Due to these beliefs and the complexity of Hamlet’s character, it is inevitable that his thoughts of death would wander outside the lines of his religion. As the play begins, we see Hamlet in the first stages of his escalating melancholy. It is easy to observe that his outlook on life has become bleak. “O! that this too too solid flesh would melt … all the uses of this world.” (I, ii, 129-135) Hamlet’s life no longer serves any value to him.
Franz Kafka once wrote that “All language is but a poor translation.” He meant that true meaning, true communication, cannot be conveyed through simple words alone. The idea of the inadequacy of plain text is most evident in Kafka’s short stories “The Judgment” and “In the Penal Colony”. Within those works, Kafka asserts that language is but a tool; in the hands of a simpleton, it will accomplish nothing. An expert however, can use language to share his thoughts in a manner as close to perfection as is possible with such a cumbersome instrument. The torture machine of the story “In the Penal Colony” is a symbol of the authority language has.
Furthermore, Shakespeare exhibits how Hamlet chose to devise a plan of acting mad, rather than avenging his father’s death immediately, progressing to his demise. On the other hand, Hamlet questions the appearance of his father: “The spirit that I have seen may be the devil”(II.ii.610,611). Consequently, Shakespeare conveys that Hamlet’s indecisiveness about his father’s murderer necessitates him to procrastinate more, and lead further to his death. However, Hamlet accomplishes the opportunity to murder Claudius, yet believes it is not the right time: “Up, sword, and know thou a more horrid hent”(III.iii.91). In fact, he desires that “...his soul may be damned and black as hell”(III.iii.97).
Hamlet infers, “conscience does make cowards of us all” suggesting that these potential consequences disallows Hamlet from taking action. Because of his tendency to over-think, he develops a lack of urgency in his decision-making, defining himself as truly a procrastinator instead of a “man That is not passion’s slave” (Act III. Scene ii. Lines 73-74). The death of Hamlet’s father and his mother’s hasty remarriage to his uncle commences Hamlet’s depressed state; however, his internal conflict and procrastination further Hamlet’s melancholic disposition.
Claudius, Hamlet's uncle is the most serious offender of lying and deceit. Although he has committed the most heinous acts, Claudius is the only characters who develops a guilty conscious as a result of dis devious actions. As each of the main characters develops on social, moral and psychological levels, lying and deception is an ever present theme and an integral part of the plot. From his very first scene in the play, Prince Hamlet establishes himself as someone who is morally opposed to deception. When Hamlet's uncle and mother urge him to “cast [his] nighted color off,” (Shakespeare 1.2.68) and stop acting and appearing so depressed, he replies that his “inky cloak.../ [and] river in the eye.../ are actions that a man might play” (Shakespeare 1.2.78-84).
It is the unconscious part of our minds and/or ego. Jung believed that whenever we criticized someone, cast them out for their indifference, or simply envied others, these traits of human nature are placed into our shadow side. Carl Jung believed that eventually these traits would manifest in the shadow side, and one day will be used and only then will you find tolerance for that trait which you criticized. “Every one carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it becomes. At all accounts, it forms an unconscious snag, thwarting our most well meant intentions (“Eigen”).
In drama, the symbols play the most imperative role. Tom acts as the narrator of the play and also a character within the play. He underlines the play’s hostility between objectively presented reality and the memory’s alteration of reality. He sometimes speaks to the audience directly, to give a more direct explanation of what’s been occurring between the characters on stage. I felt remorse for Tom as I was reading the play, and it was as if I knew exactly what he was feeling; the sense of being trapped in a life in which he wanted no part of; what kind of life is that for a person?