Due to his indecisiveness on making key decisions, Hamlet suffers from the tragic flaw of procrastination. Hamlet procrastinated with his revenge of his father’s death, prioritizing his love for Ophelia, and his decisions on deciding to make the kill. Hamlet was procrastinating with his revenge of his father’s death because he was too indecisive on when and how he was going to do it also whether or not the ghost was right. Prioritizing his love for Ophelia, Hamlet did not show his love to Ophelia until she was just a cold, dead corpse being put 6 feet under. Finally Hamlet had the perfect opportunity to get his revenge and yet again his indecisiveness is getting the best of him.
It is her report to Claudius that seals his decision to have Hamlet executed. In scene I we learn a lot about Claudius’ character. He is a selfish king who is more concerned with his self preservation than achieving justice. His response to Polonius’ death is to get rid of Hamlet – not to punish Hamlet for his crime but rather to remove the threat Hamlet poses to his
The second difference that can be contrasted is the purpose of their acts of murder. The reason Claudius murders King Hamlet is because he longs for the throne of Denmark. On the other hand, Hamlet kills Claudius because he wishes to avenge for his father’s death. Therefore, the royalty and honesty within Hamlet’s personality can be brought out through these comparisons between him and
Hamlet's moral struggle for revenge becomes an obsession causing a change in his character. Hamlet goes so far as to feigned madness in order to achieve his revenge here he is speaking to Marcellus and Horatio saying, ” To put and antic disposition on- That you, at such times seeing me, never shall," (Shakespeare 1379) which foreshadows a change in Hamlet’s character. For Hamlet to get revenge he must change the way he acts in doing so he starts to struggle with everything else in his life like his relationships with Ophiela, and Gertrude. When seeing his father's ghost, he unquestionably accepts all he hears as truth, but doesn't act on it until he can verify it in some way. His organization of the players' performance of "The Murder of Gonzago" shows this well; only after seeing Claudius' reaction to the play does he prepare to act on the Ghost's plea for revenge.
In King Claudius’ soliloquy (III, iii, Line 54-64), he is kneeling praying to God for forgiveness for his murder. This is the first time that Claudius confesses that he has killed his brother. Claudius is not sorry for what he has aware that what he is asking of God is very foolish. He done to King Hamlet and is not willing to give up the crown, the power, and his wife that he attained. Claudius is acknowledges that this will not happen because of the possessions that he has gained.
This was perfect for Hamlet. He could successfully fulfill the void of his father and falsely slip into madness. This suggestion also proves that Hamlet prolonged the death of Claudius so he would not have to return to the world where he was depressed and without occupation. Hamlet sought revenge against Claudius in a subconscious effort to help himself. Hamlet is scripted a role from his father that he acted out knowing he could help himself.
The murder of his father has not been mentioned throughout this whole soliloquy because he might know someone is listening, however he does reflect all the themes and thoughts about killing, but on himself. The “how all occasions (…)” soliloquy does improve my understanding of hamlet’s failure as a revenger. He explains it himself, and reflects some things he has said in the “to be or not to be” soliloquy. His cowardice (as he sees it) and lack of confidence and self-loathe is shown throughout the text. The fact that he has not yet
Through Hamlet’s inaction, he determines that Claudius should not be killed while praying because that would send him to heaven but unlike Hamlet, Laertes is not concerned about eternal retribution but more about a direct repayment for his father’s death: “To this point I stand, / That both the worlds I give to negligence, / Let come what comes; only I'll be revenged / Most thoroughly for my father.” (Act IV, Scene 5: Lines 134-137) Fortinbras on the other hand seeks revenge not through someone’s death but through reclaiming the land his father lost to Hamlet’s father. Fortinbra’s dedication to avenge his father “Even for an egg-shell” (Act IV, Scene 4, Line 53) also sharply contrasts with Hamlet’s inability to kill Claudius. Although Fortinbras is only fighting to reclaim a small amount of land “That hath no profit but the name” (Act IV, Scene 4: Line 19), the revenge he seeks not only deals with the death of his father but also the history of wars over land for the sole purpose of righting of real and perceived wrongdoings. These three characters all seek retribution in different ways, and Laertes and Fortinbras show other avenues that Hamlet could have taken for his revenge if he had just acted and not concerned himself with the morality of
Claudius did so in order to gain access to the throne because he is at the top of the list of King Hamlet’s Line of Succession. Hamlet is convinced that he must kill Claudius in order to avenge his father’s “foul and most unnatural murder.” (I.V.25) Hamlet carefully plans the killing so that Claudius will go to hell in order for his father to be at peace. In addition, Hamlet is the only character in the play that knows the truth of his father’s death but is condemned by Claudius as a “madman that [must] not go unwatched.”(III.I.190) Therefore, Claudius’s royal servants and his wife, Gertrude, are convinced that Hamlet is an insane man whose words cannot be trusted. Claudius abuses his power even more by sending Hamlet’s school friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to escort Hamlet to England to have him killed. In the end, Claudius‘s corruption gets the better of him as he is killed by his own poison that Hamlet inflected on him but Hamlet is also killed by the same poison.
At the start of the play, Shakespeare introduces Claudius as a wise and confidant ruler with no apparent flaw. He portrays himself to be mourning for the recent loss of his brother the prior king. As the play goes on, Hamlet learns of his father’s murder which causes him to act unusually. Claudius, sensing Hamlet’s change in character, employs his servants to spy on his nephew. His suspicion of Hamlet is only minor until he watches the play written by Hamlet.