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Death In Hamlet Research Paper

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Hamlet’s plan, struggle, and inevitable death
Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a very controversial story of how the entire royal family of Denmark was wiped out. Hamlet is doomed to die, but in his death Denmark would be purged of its evil. Through murderous plots and schemes, it is revealed that King Hamlet’s brother Claudius murdered him. Hamlet is the son of the late King Hamlet, he was supposed to be the next king, but Claudius quickly married Hamlet’s Mother to take the crown. During the play, it is shown why Hamlet is a considered a revenge tragedy. Throughout the play Hamlet’s view of death prevents him from taking action, but through accepting his fate he is able to finally kill his uncle, without thinking about his death.
After Hamlet meets …show more content…
As Polonius speaks of Hamlet, he states: "Though this be madness, yet there is / method in't" (2.2.223-224). Polonius sees that Hamlet is descending into madness, but he still believed there was some method behind it. His plan was to fake going mad, but through the play, he begins to truly descend into insanity. When talking with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Hamlet shouts, "I am but mad north-north-west: when the / wind is southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw" (2.2.402-403). Throughout the play it is difficult to believe that Hamlet is faking madness, as he appears to be truly insane. Although his father’s murder was the biggest cause of Hamlet’s madness, it is necessary to remember, that it is not the only reason. Hamlet’s madness is evident to Ophelia: "O, what a noble mind is here o'erthrown!" (3.1.163). Ophelia’s breakup with Hamlet drives him deeper into depression and madness, while she also begins to struggle with life ultimately dying from possible suicide. Joseph Carroll alludes to the fact that Hamlet is descending into madness, and yet somehow, he manages to stick somewhat of a plan. Carroll writes, “The struggle for coherence and sanity amidst radical uncertainty,” (Carroll 251). The throne of Hamlet’s father was wrongly taken from him, when Claudius murders Hamlet Sr. and quickly married Gertrude. Carroll recognizes that, “Thwarted political ambitions are the least of Hamlet’s concerns” (Carroll 235). Hamlet struggles with his sanity during the play, it seems to be guided by a plan at first, but throughout the course of the play, his perfect plan as well as his sanity, begin to crumble. Carroll believes that throughout the story Hamlet shows real signs of insanity, which is why it takes him so long to finally murder his uncle. Hamlet began to descend into madness the minute his father’s ghost told him that he was murdered. Originally his mental state appears to be

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