Hamlet 19
Hamlet 19Hamlet, the timeless tragedy by William Shakespeare, has at its core an amazing internal struggle within its title character. As a result of this quandary, Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, contradicts himself many times throughout out the play. As well as trying to be true to himself, Hamlet is proficient at acting out roles and making people falsely believe The roles that he plays are ones in which he feigns madness to ultimately accomplish his goal. While one second Hamlet pretends to be under a strange spell of madness, seconds later he may become perfectly calm and rational. These inconsistencies are directly related with the internal dilemmas that he faces. He struggles with the issue of revenging his father’s death, vowing to kill Claudius and then backing out several times. His actions throughout the play support this duplicitous nature. His dual persona is the foundation of Hamlet’s madness, and ultimately the play itself. There are many examples that illustrate how Hamlet’s fraudulent nature results in a tragedy because of his inability and reluctance to choose which role to play.
One such example occurs near the beginning of the tome. In Act One, Hamlet appears to be very straightforward in his actions, inner state, and role. When his mother questions him, Hamlet says, "Seems, madam? Nay it is. I know not seems" (Act I, Scene 2). By saying this, Hamlet lets Gertrude know that he is what she sees, distraught and torn over his father’s death. Later, he makes a clear statement about his state of mind when he commits himself to revenge. "I’ll wipe away all trivial fond records, all saws of books, all forms, all pressures past, that youth and observation copied there, and thy commandment all alone shall live within the book and volume of my brain" (Act 1 Scene 5). In that statement, Hamlet is declaring that he will be committed to nothing else but the revenge of his fathers death. There is no confusion about Hamlet’s character. He has said earlier that he is what he appears to be, and there is no reason to doubt it.
In the next act, however, Hamlet’s intentions suddenly become mired in confusion. In the first act, Hamlet was dedicated and inspired in seeking revenge. However, when Hamlet appears again in the second act, it seems that he has lost the conviction that was present earlier. He has yet to take up the part assigned to him by the ghost. He spends the act walking around, reading, and talking with Polonius, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and the players. It is not until the very end of the act that he even mentions revenge.
These two acts are crucial because they show Hamlet’s dire duplicity, and how tragedy results. With certain people, Hamlet is resolved to avenge his father’s death. With others, that seems to be the last thought in his mind. If he had any of the resolve he had showed earlier, his act of...
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