Hamlet is a complex character with multiple character traits that lead him through his many confusing and often conflicting actions throughout the play. About thirty years old at the start of the play, hamlet is the son of queen gertrude and the late king hamlet, and the nephew of the present king, claudius. He is the son of queen gertrude and king hamlet, who was murdered by his uncle claudius. Hamlet, now free to act, mistakenly kills polonius, thinking he is claudius. Kemble plays it like a man in armour, with a determined inveteracy of purpose, in one undeviating straight line, which is as remote from the natural grace and refined susceptibility of the character, as the sharp angles and abrupt starts which mr. Teachers have the exciting opportunity to proceed in infinite directions in their teaching of the work. Polonius lord chamberlain, his son laertes and daughter ophelia are also important characters in this drama. Thanks to shakespeares skillful and psychologically astute characterization, hamlet now is considered to be the greatest dramatic character ever created. To confirm claudiuss guilt, hamlet arranges for a play that mimics the murder. But though hamlet certainly seems mad, he does not seem to love. Hamlet has fascinated audiences and readers for centuries, and the first thing to point out about him is that he is enigmatic. Cambridge shakespeare and furnesss edition of hamlet. Get free homework help on william shakespeares hamlet.
He distrusts the marriage between his mother and his uncle, which ultimately creates a distrust of women in general. Problem play and revenge tragedy the hamlet and ophelia subplot the norway subplot in hamlet introduction to the characters in hamlet hamlet plot summary the purpose of the murder of gonzago the dumbshow. The characters are deeply suspicious of one another, as it becomes clear that the king may have been murderedand by his brother claudius no less. She is also mother to prince hamlet, the main character in this tragedy. An analysis rosencrantz and guildenstern minor characters. He returns to denmark from the university of wittenberg. Hamlet study guide explanatory notes, character analysis. Act 2, scene 2, 239251 hamlet by william shakespeare is one of the most famous plays written that conveys a multitude theme. Hamlet is melancholy and cynical, full of hatred for his uncles scheming and disgust for his mothers sexuality. These brief discriptions of main characters in hamlet along with some hamlet character analysis will help you impress your friends and neighbors with your knowledge of literature. Contents page introduction ix thetragedyofhamlet i appendixi. Denmark to avenge his fathers honor, making him another foil for prince hamlet.
Horatio was hamlets confidant and best friend throughout much of the play horatio was the only person that hamlet could truly trust. Shakespeare has developed a character whose conflicts of interest and personality traits combine to lead him through actions that eventually led to his ultimate downfall, along with many of his. Polonius s daughter, laertes sister, and hamlet s lover. The ghost tells hamlet that his was not a natural death. Voltimand cornelius rosencrantz guildenstern osric courtiers. Hamlet is melancholy, bitter, and cynical, full of hatred for his uncles scheming and disgust for his mothers sexuality. Queen gertrude character analysis hamlet schoolworkhelper. Devastated by his fathers death, he had nevertheless hoped to succeed him, only to see his uncle claudius both be chosen as king and marry his mother. He wrote about 38 plays the precise number is uncertain, many of which are regarded as the most exceptional works of drama ever produced, including romeo and juliet 1595, henry v 1599, hamlet 1601, othello 1604, king lear 1606 and macbeth 1606, as well as a collection of 154. She is a very caring character when hamlet is thinking about going back to wittenberg for. He is wanting to commit suicide but hes contemplating it because it is a sin. The personali ties of his main characters are often complex, revealing the ambiguities and personal conflicts found in all of us. Whereas most of the other important men in hamlet are preoccupied with ideas of justice, revenge, and moral balance, claudius is bent upon maintaining his own power. The turmoil in denmark is an outward manifestation of hamlets inner conflict and inability to act to restore the sanctity of the throne.
Essays hamlets delay exploring hamlets hesitation is hamlet sane. A central quality of gertrudes character is that she loves her son. Three different texts of hamlet were published in shakespeares time. Petty, meddling, and hypocritical, polonius meets his end when, hiding behind a tapestry in gertrude s chambers in order to listen in on a conversation between the queen and hamlet, he lets out a noiseand hamlet stabs his sword through the tapestry, not knowing who is behind it but furious at being spied upon by a rat. A critical analysis, published in the international journal of english and literature, december. Hamlet is the melancholy prince of denmark and grieving son to the recently deceased king in william shakespeares monumental tragedy hamlet. Can you help me write a character sketch for hamlet. Hamlet, son to the late, and nephew to the present king. The character of polonius in hamlet from litcharts the. Hamlets friends, rosencrantz and guildenstern, to watch him. Hamlet is a monument of shakespeares talent, and as such. A deep and melancholic thinker, hamlet is ever contemplating philosophical questions about life, truth, and the motives of others. King hamlets story is a plot device intertwined with the theme of revenge in hamlet to inspire the main character, prince hamlet, to take action.
The character hamlet from shakespeares tragedy hamlet explores these existential questions, seeking truth and understanding as he tries to come to grips with his fathers death. Hamlet is shocked to find his mother already remarried to his uncle claudius, the dead kings. Most of the characters in hamlet are citizens of denmark and members of the royal court, reeling after the death of their king. Hamlet himself has 1,530 lines more than any other shakespearean character. The most meaningful focus, however, is to be found in studying the character of prince hamlet. He is at once the consummate iconoclast, in selfimposed exile from elsinore society, while, at the same time, he is the adulated champion of denmark the peoples hero. In william shakespeares tragedy, hamlet, the main character, hamlet, is incredibly dynamic. Hamlet character list hamlet the prince of denmark, the title character, and the protagonist. In the hands of an astute actor and a clever director, she can come across as either claudius coconspirator or hamlet s defender.
Keans hamlet is as much too splenetic and rash as mr. Hamlet is a character of melancholy because he is a very sad individual finding out that his very own uncle has killed his father. In the play gertrude demonstrates many characteristics and traits as the play progresses. King hamlet s story is a plot device intertwined with the theme of revenge in hamlet to inspire the main character, prince hamlet, to take action. The ghost of the old king returns to tell his son prince hamlet that he was murdered by his brother and must be avenged. Hamlet study guide please see the main page for the complete play with explanatory notes for each scene. Character analysis of hamlet in hamlet 730 words 3 pages. The meaning of death in shakespeares hamlet jeffrey r. Hamlet is a very unique individual and handles many situations in unusual ways. Needing to establish whether the ghost speaks the truth, hamlet feigns. When polonius, the pompous lord chamberlain, suggests that hamlet may be mad with love for his daughter, ophelia, claudius agrees to spy on hamlet in conversation with the girl.
From the moment we meet the crestfallen prince we are enraptured by his elegant intensity. Horatio was the only man that did not play pawn to the king in an attempt to change and alter the feelings of hamlet in the matters of his fathers death and his new unclefatherinlaw. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. End of play analysis questions due with hamlet packet pdf file 212k. The son of queen gertrude and the late king hamlet, the nephew of the present king, claudius. His brother has succeeded him to the throne and quickly married the late kings widow, gertrude. Born a prince, parented by a jester, haunted by a ghost, destined to kill a king and be killed for it, and remembered as the title character of a play he did not want to be in. Gertrude character analysis hamlet 1,500word sample. He has no friends left, but horatio loves him unconditionally. Hamlet character list kenton county school district. Claudius sends hamlet away as part of a deadly plot. Shrouded in his inky cloak, hamlet is a man of radical contradictions he is reckless yet cautious, courteous yet uncivil, tender yet ferocious. Prince hamlet is a university student who enjoys contemplating difficult philosophical questions. Hamlet is the prince of denmark, the son of the recently deceased king hamlet, and the protagonist of the play.
The king of denmark, is dead and has been succeeded not by his son, hamlet, but by his brother and killer. Omar sancho professor christopher cook english 2010810 hamlet paper 23 may 2016 hamlet character analysis there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so. As a young man, he is not much older than many of the teenagers who will the play. Introduction to hamlet hamlet is arguably the greatest dramatic character ever created. William shakespeares hamlet follows the young prince hamlet home to denmark to attend his fathers funeral. The ghost is the spirit of hamlet s father, who has recently died.
Three different early versions of the play survive. What follows is an overview of the main characters in william shakespeares hamlet, followed by a list and summary of the minor characters from the play. Essay on character analysis of hamlet 964 words bartleby. Hamlets major antagonist is a shrewd, lustful, conniving king who contrasts sharply with the other male characters in the play. William shakespeare was born to john shakespeare and mary arden in late april 1564 in stratforduponavon. There is always more to him than the other characters in the play can figure out. Hamlet is the main character and protagonist in the play hamlet by william shakespeare. She is the motheraunt of hamlet, and she is also the wifeexsisterinlaw of king claudius. Along with gertrude, ophelia is the only other female character in the play, ophelias actions and trajectory are unfortunately defined by the men around read full character analysis get the entire hamlet litchart as a printable pdf.
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