Hamlet And The Lion King

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Callie Ramirez & Abby Hamilton Mrs. Robinson AP English IV 03 February 2012 Royal Family Controversies “When we die our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass connecting all beings in the circle of life” (lionking.org). This is an important quote showing how closely based on the plot of Hamlet and The Lion King really is. In the story of The Lion King, Simba, the son of the King Mufasa, goes into exile when his jealous uncle, Scar, tricks him into believing that he was responsible for his father’s death. Simba is befriended by a warthog and a meerkat who persuaded him that he should adopt a ‘no worries’ attitude and enjoy life instead of facing his responsibilities to his pride. By chance, he is reunited with his childhood friend, Nala, who persuades him that he has to reunite to Pride Rock and confront Scar. The Lion King and Hamlet have similar themes of betrayal and revenge along with similarities in characters. Both Hamlet and The Lion King have similar themes. Betrayal is a theme easily seen in both movies, “In The Lion King, it is scar who betrays Mufasa and throws him off a cliff, and then Simba by blaming it on him” (Animationsource.org). In Hamlet Claudius kills the king with poison but still has the same intentions as Scar, wanting to take over as king, “With juices of cursed hebona in a vial/and in the porches of my ear did pour”(Hamlet I iv 62-63). Hamlet and his family are betrayed by Claudius when he poisons the King. Another major theme in both plays is revenge, “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (I.v 25) Unlike Hamlet, Simba is not told directly who kills his father, but is told by his father in a ghost image to return to Pride Rock to take the throne. With many similar themes in both stories, it is easy to see that the writers of The Lion King were influenced by William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Although the

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