Hamlet Themes

HAMLET THEMES
1-Action and Inaction:

Hamlet is a type of play where someone, usually a man, seeks revenge against
those who have harmed him. In this case, Hamlet wants to avenge his father's
murder. But what's interesting is that Hamlet, unlike other revenge stories,
struggles to actually take revenge. He debates whether killing the person
responsible is worth it, and he's unsure if it's the right thing to do.
Shakespeare uses this to explore the idea of taking action versus doing
nothing. The play also touches on Hamlet's thoughts of suicide as a way to
avoid making difficult decisions.
There are two main challenges for Hamlet: first, deciding whether to kill
Claudius, and second, deciding whether to end his own life to avoid making
the first decision. Hamlet initially wants to follow his father's ghostly command
and kill Claudius, but he keeps delaying and wondering why he can't act. He
even pretends to be mad to buy himself time. As the pressure builds, Hamlet
considers suicide, questioning whether it's better to live or not. Even on this
matter, he can't make up his mind.
In the background, there's also Fortinbras, a prince from Norway, who takes
decisive action to reclaim lost lands. Hamlet hears about Fortinbras's mission
and sees him as someone who can do what he can't. In the end, Fortinbras
arrives at Elsinore, takes control, and becomes the new leader. He
accomplishes what Hamlet couldn't—political power and control of the
country.
As the play unfolds, all major characters die, and Denmark gets a new leader.
Hamlet's moral struggles and indecision have consequences. Death comes for
everyone, whether they were brave or cowardly, motivated or fearful, good or
wicked. Shakespeare portrays death as the great equalizer, showing that it
doesn't care about a person's qualities or actions
2-Appearance vs. Reality
In Hamlet, there's a constant theme of things not being as they seem. Hamlet
pretends to be mad to investigate his father's murder, but it ends up making
him genuinely lose his mind. Ophelia, by rejecting Hamlet's love, creates a gap
between them. Gertrude, Hamlet's mother, tries to ignore her husband's
murder, leaving her moral values. Shakespeare suggests that the desire to
figure out what's real and intentional can reveal that sometimes there's no
difference between reality and perception. People's actions and choices, even
if just pretending, become their realities.
Characters in the play struggle with the gap between appearance and reality.
Hamlet, in his pretended madness, confuses those around him to uncover the
truth. He criticizes others for hiding behind false appearances, like Ophelia
with her makeup and Polonius with his contradictory advice. Hamlet's
constant fear of deception leads him to question everything, but in the end,
he becomes complicit in his own fears.
Other characters also contribute to the theme. The ghost of Hamlet's father
raises doubts about its true nature. Gertrude may be pretending not to see
the ghost or genuinely unaware of it. Polonius contradicts his own advice, and
Ophelia, despite claiming purity, may have a complex history with Hamlet. As
the play progresses, the line between appearance and reality blurs, leading
characters to become what they once pretended to be.
Hamlet, with its complex exploration of morality, existentialism, and

appearance versus reality, serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of
adopting behaviors that obscure the truth of who one really is.
3.Women
In Hamlet, there are two main female characters, Ophelia and Gertrude. The
play sheds light on the tough challenges and unfair destinies women faced in
the early 17th century. Women were not allowed on stage, and the play is set
in a time when women, even those of noble birth like Ophelia and Gertrude,
had limited choices. Hamlet, while being obsessed with the women in his life,
also ridicules and scorns them. Shakespeare suggests that their actions are
forced upon them as a way to survive in a harsh and biased world.
Gertrude and Ophelia face misunderstandings and harsh judgments. Hamlet

accuses them of being cunning. However, what Hamlet fails to see is that
these women are shaped by their surroundings. They make tough, sometimes
deadly decisions to survive in a politically dangerous world built for men. For
instance, after King Hamlet's death, Gertrude quickly marries his brother
Claudius, who actually murdered him. Hamlet accuses her of immoral acts, but
he doesn't consider that Gertrude might have married Claudius out of fear for
her own safety. As a woman, Gertrude has no political power, and marrying
Claudius might have been her way of staying alive in a perilous court.
Ophelia's situation is similar. She gets caught up in a plot between her father
Polonius and Claudius to spy on Hamlet. Ophelia becomes a pawn in a game
among men, testing whether Hamlet's madness is connected to her. Ophelia,
trying to follow her father's orders, faces Hamlet's anger and ridicule. When
her father dies at Hamlet's hands, and she is left alone to deal with her own
troubles, she loses her sanity. Even in her madness, she continues to perform
the expected behaviors of a woman at court, ingrained in her after years of
trying to win favor, especially from men. Eventually, Ophelia takes her own life,
perhaps as a way to retain some control over her fate. Being a madwoman at
court would only make her more vulnerable, and suicide might have been an
attempt to maintain some dignity and agency.
Both Gertrude and Ophelia endure paternalistic condescension,

objectification, and abuse. They carry the emotional weight of knowing that
their treatment at court, though dehumanizing, is still better than what
women of lower social standing face. Their decisions are driven by the need to
survive, but Hamlet doesn't consider the weighty considerations behind their
actions.
4-Religion, Honor, and Revenge

In Hamlet, the rules of how people should act are shaped by society's codes of
conduct, mainly influenced by religion and an aristocratic honor code that
includes seeking revenge for any tarnished honor. As Hamlet seeks revenge
for his father's murder, he starts to realize how complex vengeance, justice,
and honor truly are. Shakespeare suggests that the rules societies follow are
often confusing and contradictory.
As Hamlet thinks about taking revenge—committing murder—he becomes
hesitant and inactive. His hesitation isn't because he's scared but because he's
seriously thinking about the consequences of violence in the name of
reclaiming honor. In Act 3, Hamlet finds Claudius alone, a perfect opportunity
to kill him unnoticed. However, Claudius is praying, and Hamlet fears that if he
kills him in that moment, Claudius's soul might go to heaven. Hamlet doesn't
know that Claudius was just lamenting about his empty prayers due to his lack
of true repentance. Hamlet, torn between religious teachings and the
demands of revenge, faces a turning point in the play. When he decides not to
kill Claudius to prevent him from going to heaven, Hamlet starts questioning
the social codes that demand blind vengeance and religious devotion at the
same time.
The second half of the play shows Hamlet adopting a new worldview, similar
to nihilism, surrendering to the randomness of life and the difficulty of living
by so many rules. As Hamlet becomes more existential about life, death,
appearances versus reality, and societal norms, he exposes the hypocrisies
that affect both common people and nobility. While Hamlet talks about
pursuing revenge, he also strategically outwits Rosencrantz and Guildenstern,
sending them to their deaths. He expresses a sense of inevitability, suggesting
that everyone, from great leaders to ordinary people, ends up in the same
place after death. Finally, he disregards Horatio's warning about dueling
Laertes, claiming he wants to leave his fate to God. Hamlet's carefree attitude
and reckless choices stem from realizing that the social and moral codes he
followed no longer apply to his circumstances.
Hamlet challenges societal norms and raises uncomfortable questions about

the value of human life, the indifference of the universe, and the construction
of society. As Hamlet pursues the ideals of honor ingrained in his society, he
discovers that honor may mean something different from what he was taught,
confronting the weight of society's arbitrary and outdated expectations.
5-Poison, Corruption, Death

n Hamlet, the line "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark," spoken by
Marcellus after seeing the ghost of King Hamlet, reflects a widespread belief in
medieval times that the well-being of a nation was linked to the legitimacy of
its king. As Hamlet investigates the corruption within Denmark, he becomes
increasingly disgusted by manifestations of death and the decay of honor,
decency, and the state itself. Shakespeare suggests a connection between
external rot and internal, systemic decay, indicating that physical corruption
predicts the poisoning of spiritual, political, and social aspects.
An atmosphere of poison, corruption, and death surrounds Hamlet from the
beginning. People in Denmark, both inside and outside Elsinore Castle, sense
that something is wrong. Watchmen like Marcellus, Barnardo, and Francisco
express hesitation and suspicion as they encounter an apparition of King
Hamlet on the castle walls. Hamlet and Horatio discover a deep corruption:
King Hamlet's brother, Claudius, murdered him and seized the throne. The
political corruption disturbs Hamlet, leading to his obsession with physical
corruption, decay, and the repulsiveness of death.
Hamlet's fixation on rot and corruption, both of the body and the soul, reflects
his society's merging of external spoilage with internal deterioration. Hamlet's
thoughts take an existential turn, and he becomes pessimistic about the decay
and foulness he perceives around him. When confronting his mother Gertrude
about her marriage to Claudius, Hamlet refers to Claudius as a "mildewed"
man and describes the "rank sweat" of their marriage bed. Hamlet believes
that just as bodies decay, so does deception and foul play. His obsession with
rot indicates his belief that Claudius's evil deeds will eventually come to light.
In a poignant moment at the graveyard, Hamlet holds Yorick's skull, the

former court jester. He reflects on the inevitability and foulness of death and
decay. Hamlet realizes that all people, regardless of their status, ultimately
turn to "dust." He seeks detailed descriptions of how long it takes for flesh to
rot from human bones. Hamlet's fixation on the undignified process of dying
and decay suggests his feeling of powerlessness in stopping the festering
issues in Denmark. In the end, a foreign leader, Fortinbras, takes over the
Danish throne, signifying that Denmark had to decay before flourishing, much
like how human flesh decays to fertilize the ground.
Shakespeare creates a gloomy and poisonous atmosphere in Hamlet to argue

that there is a profound connection between internal corruption and external
decay. The political corruption in Denmark is portrayed as odious as a
decaying corpse, emphasizing the destructive impact of a corrupt state.

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HAMLET THEMES

1-Action and Inaction:

Hamlet, with its complex exploration of morality, existentialism, and

Gertrude and Ophelia face misunderstandings and harsh judgments. Hamlet

Both Gertrude and Ophelia endure paternalistic condescension,

4-Religion, Honor, and Revenge

Hamlet challenges societal norms and raises uncomfortable questions about

5-Poison, Corruption, Death

In a poignant moment at the graveyard, Hamlet holds Yorick's skull, the

Shakespeare creates a gloomy and poisonous atmosphere in Hamlet to argue

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