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The Theme of Revenge in Hamlet, by William Shakespeare

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Justice And Revenge In Hamlet

Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays. The story revolves around Hamlet’s quest for revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who murdered Hamlet’s father in order to take the throne. Hamlet is a tragedy, and as such, it raises questions about the nature of revenge and justice.

On the one hand, Hamlet is motivated by a desire for revenge. He wants to kill Claudius in order to avenge his father’s death. This desire for revenge is what drives Hamlet to commit murder himself. On the other hand, Hamlet also feels that it is his duty to bring Claudius to justice. He wants to make sure that Claudius pays for his crime, and he does not want anyone else to suffer because of Claudius’s actions.

Hamlet is torn between these two impulses, and he struggles to decide what is the right thing to do. In the end, Hamlet chooses revenge over justice, and he kills Claudius. However, this choice comes at a great cost. Hamlet dies in the process, and his death brings about the downfall of Denmark.

So, what can we learn from Hamlet? Perhaps Shakespeare is trying to tell us that revenge is not always the best course of action. Or maybe he is trying to say that while revenge may be satisfying, it ultimately leads to more pain and suffering. Either way, Hamlet provides us with a complex portrait of the human condition, and raises important questions about the nature of justice and revenge.

Hamlet’s aims fluctuate between revenge and justice throughout the play, with this interior debate determining how events unfold. Revenge motivates Hamlet as his initial aim in his quest for vindication of his father’s death. Later, Hamlet’s torn sensibility and concern for justice are revealed in Soliloquy. Hamlet’s ability to act against Claudius is hampered as a result of this internal conflict. Only when Hamlet faces his own procrastination does inaction cease.

Hamlet swings towards his newfound realization that in order for justice to be carried out, Claudius’ wrongs must be righted through Hamlet’s own death. In the end, Hamlet chooses justice over revenge and both he and Claudius die.

Revenge is Hamlet’s dominant motive throughout much of the play. From the very beginning of the play, Hamlet is marked by his desire to avenge his father’s murder. Hamlet is unable to act on this feeling, however, because he is uncertain of Claudius’ guilt. Hamlet delay’s his revenge until he has absolute certainty that Claudius killed his father which leads him into a downward spiral as he attempts to Hamlet’s delay in revenge is caused by his uncertainty of Claudius’ guilt.

Hamlet’s soliloquies reveal his Hamlet’s thoughts and feelings to the audience, providing insight that would otherwise be unavailable. In Hamlet’s second soliloquy, Hamlet bemoans his inaction, cursing himself as a “dull and muddy-mettled rascal” (II.ii.560). Hamlet recognizes his own faults and weakness, yet he is still unable to take action against Claudius. Hamlet is again torn between his desire for revenge and his uncertainty of Claudius’ guilt, caught in a limbo between the two emotions.

However, Hamlet’s inaction is not simply caused by his uncertainty of Claudius’ guilt. Hamlet is also motivated by a desire for justice. Hamlet does not want to kill Claudius without just cause, as that would make Hamlet no better than a murderer himself. Hamlet wants Claudius to be punished for his crimes, but he also wants Claudius to suffer the same type of pain and anguish that he has been feeling since his father’s death.

Hamlet’s soliloquies make it clear that he is struggling with this internal conflict. In Hamlet’s fourth soliloquy, he contemplates suicide as a way to escape the pain and suffering that he has been experiencing. Hamlet is not sure whether death is the answer, but he recognizes that death may be preferable to the life that he is currently living. Hamlet is still motivated by his desire for revenge, but he is also motivated by his sense of justice.

Hamlet does not fully realize it until later in the play, but his desire for revenge and justice are actually two sides of the same coin. Hamlet wants Claudius to be punished for his crimes, and he wants Claudius to suffer as much as he has suffered.

Hamlet’s ultimate goal is to see that justice is done. Hamlet finally realizes this near the end of the play, when he decides to take action against Claudius even though he knows that it will lead to his own death. Hamlet’s decision to kill Claudius is motivated by his desire for justice, not revenge. Hamlet knows that he will die in the process, but he also knows that it is the only way to ensure that Claudius is punished for his crimes. Hamlet’s final act is one of justice, not revenge.

While Hamlet’s initial motivation is revenge, he eventually realizes that justice is more important. Hamlet’s journey from revenge to justice is a long and difficult one, but it is ultimately a successful one. Hamlet chooses to sacrifi ce himself in order to ensure that Claudius is punished for his crimes. In doing so, Hamlet ensures that justice is done. Hamlet’s story is a reminder that justice is more important than revenge.

Hamlet triumphs over his internal debate by combining opposed forces and justifying vengeance from the inside out. Hamlet’s will isn’t initially strong enough to act only on revenge. Even though Hamlet promised he would be “swift” and “sweep to my revenge,” he admits in the “rogue and peasant slave” soliloquy that he has been “unpregnant of my cause.” It is not until Hamlet grows weary of his own passivity that he begins to question Claudius’ culpability.

Hamlet’s procrastination is due to his conscience, which reminds Hamlet that murder is a sin. Hamlet must find a way to take revenge without becoming a sinner himself. Hamlet then decides that it is better to kill Claudius in public and suffer the consequences than to privately damning Claudius, who would go unpunished in the eyes of God.

Hamlet also justifies taking revenge as a form of justice as he believes that Claudius deserves to die for murdering Hamlet’s father and marrying Hamlet’s mother. Hamlet’s internal struggle between doing what is morally right and satisfying his thirst for revenge ultimately leads him to commit murder.

Revenge is often seen as an act that is motivated by anger and hatred. Hamlet is no different as he wants to revenge his father’s murder. However, Hamlet is also motivated by a sense of justice as he believes that Claudius deserves to be punished for his crimes. Hamlet’s inner struggle culminates in him committing murder, which can be seen as both an act of revenge and an act of justice.

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Hamlet and Revenge

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What is arguably Shakespeare 's greatest play, "Hamlet,"​ is often understood to be a revenge tragedy, but it is quite an odd one at that. It is a play driven by a protagonist who spends most of the play contemplating revenge rather than exacting it.

Hamlet’s inability to avenge the murder of his father drives the plot and leads to the deaths of most of the major characters , including Polonius, Laertes, Ophelia, Gertrude, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. And Hamlet himself is tortured by his indecision and his inability to kill his father's murderer, Claudius, throughout the play.

When he finally does exact his revenge and kills Claudius, it is too late for him to derive any satisfaction from it; Laertes has struck him with a poisoned foil and Hamlet dies shortly after. Take a closer look at the theme of revenge in Hamlet.

Action and Inaction in Hamlet

To highlight Hamlet’s inability to take action, Shakespeare includes other characters capable of taking resolute and headstrong revenge as required. Fortinbras travels many miles to take his revenge and ultimately succeeds in conquering Denmark; Laertes plots to kill Hamlet to avenge the death of his father, Polonius.

Compared to these characters, Hamlet’s revenge is ineffectual. Once he decides to take action, he delays any action until the end of the play. It should be noted that this delay is not uncommon in Elizabethan revenge tragedies. What makes "Hamlet" different from other contemporary works is the way in which Shakespeare uses the delay to build Hamlet’s emotional and psychological complexity. The revenge itself ends up being almost an afterthought, and in many ways, is anticlimactic. 

Indeed, the famous "To be or not to be" soliloquy is Hamlet's debate with himself about what to do and whether it will matter. Though the piece begins with his pondering suicide, Hamlet's desire to avenge his father becomes clearer as this speech continues. It's worth considering this soliloquy in its entirety. 

To be, or not to be- that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them. To die- to sleep- No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to. 'Tis a consummation Devoutly to be wish'd. To die- to sleep. To sleep- perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub! For in that sleep of death what dreams may come When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause. There's the respect That makes calamity of so long life. For who would bear the whips and scorns of time, Th' oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely, The pangs of despis'd love, the law's delay, The insolence of office, and the spurns That patient merit of th' unworthy takes, When he himself might his quietus make With a bare bodkin? Who would these fardels bear, To grunt and sweat under a weary life, But that the dread of something after death- The undiscover'd country, from whose bourn No traveler returns- puzzles the will, And makes us rather bear those ills we have Than fly to others that we know not of? Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, And thus the native hue of resolution Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought, And enterprises of great pith and moment With this regard their currents turn awry And lose the name of action.- Soft you now! The fair Ophelia!- Nymph, in thy orisons Be all my sins rememb'red.

Over the course of this eloquent musing on the nature of self and death and what actions he should take, Hamlet remains paralyzed by indecision.

How Hamlet's Revenge is Delayed

Hamlet’s revenge is delayed in three significant ways. First, he must establish Claudius’ guilt, which he does in Act 3, Scene 2 by presenting the murder of his father in a play. When Claudius storms out during the performance, Hamlet becomes convinced of his guilt.

Hamlet then considers his revenge at length, in contrast to the rash actions of Fortinbras and Laertes. For example, Hamlet has the opportunity to kill Claudius in Act 3, Scene 3. He draws his sword but is concerned that Claudius will go to heaven if killed while praying.

After killing Polonius, Hamlet is sent to England making it impossible for him to gain access to Claudius and carry out his revenge. During his trip, becomes more headstrong in his desire for revenge.

Although he does ultimately kill Claudius in the final scene of the play , it's not due to any scheme or plan by Hamlet, rather, it is Claudius’ plan to kill Hamlet that backfires.

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Explain the Theme of Revenge in Hamlet

Back to: Hamlet by William Shakespeare

Table of Contents

Introduction

Revenge is an action taken in return for an injury. In “The Tragedy of Hamlet”, Shakespeare deeply explores the theme of revenge. In the play, before the ghost reveals itself to those sentinels, Hamlet seems inactive. The knowledge of betrayal fills him with actions. The same goes for Laertes and Fortinbras.

These three characters are developed under their insuppressible urge for vengeance. Hamlet is a philosophical observer who in the beginning is crushed by the fact that after the death of his father, his mother is married to his uncle now but he is yet to be revengeful.

Through the character of hamlet, the theme of revenge can be studied philosophically. Betrayal precedes revenge. Hamlet alongside the death of his father also avenges for the betrayal by his two friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern when he forges the very letter to the King of England in which Claudius had ordered the execution of Hamlet.

Hamlet shows us the moral thoughts and principles of existence which goes behind the choices he makes. Hamlet fights within. In him, revenge is first exercised in words. Inaction drains him. He cries out, “ what an a-ss am I!… prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must like a wh-ore, unpack my heart with words and fall a-cursing like a very drab .”

Laertes and Hamlet

Laertes is enraged by this news. Under Claudius’ provocation, he swears revenge which is doubled after knowing that Ophelia has drowned herself. His way to seek revenge is an active way when Hamlet’s revenge is first worked out in his thoughts.

Fortinbras since the beginning of the play is determined to get the lands back from the kingdom of Denmark. He wants to avenge what Hamlet’s father did when he was the king. In a cunning way, he gets his army closer to the capital.

Different Dimensions of Revenge

Claudius manages to get Laertes and Hamlet in a fencing match but the fate worked differently and Gertrude is killed by mistake when she sips wine supposedly poisoned for Hamlet. Laertes dies in the fight but he amends with Hamlet right before dying.

Revengefulness can also have a consoling end. But it is Hamlet in whom revenge works out in an entirely different way. He can’t simply kill Claudius without questioning the morals of the time and place i.e. he didn’t kill Claudius when he saw him in a praying position. Revenge and its various implications is one of the prime thematic concerns of the whole play.

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Every society is defined by its codes of conduct—its rules about how to act and behave. In  Hamlet , the codes of conduct are largely defined by religion and an aristocratic code that demands honor—and revenge if honor has been soiled. As the play unfolds and Hamlet (in keeping with his country’s spoken and unspoken) rules) seeks revenge for his father’s murder, he begins to realize just how complicated vengeance, justice, and honor all truly are. As Hamlet plunges deeper and deeper into existential musings, he also begins to wonder about the true meaning of honor—and Shakespeare ultimately suggests that the codes of conduct by which any given society operates are, more often than not, muddy, contradictory, and confused.

As Hamlet begins considering what it would mean to actually get revenge—to actually commit murder—he begins waffling and languishing in indecision and inaction. His inability to act, however, is not necessarily a mark of cowardice or fear—rather, as the play progresses, Hamlet is forced to reckon very seriously with what retribution and violence in the name of retroactively reclaiming “honor” or glory actually accomplishes. This conundrum is felt most profoundly in the middle of Act 3, when Hamlet comes upon Claudius totally alone for the first time in the play. It is the perfect opportunity to kill the man uninterrupted and unseen—but Claudius is on his knees, praying. Hamlet worries that killing Claudius while he prays will mean that Claudius’s soul will go to heaven. Hamlet is ignorant of the fact that Claudius, just moments before, was lamenting that his prayers for absolution are empty because he will not take action to actually repent for the violence he’s done and the pain he’s caused. Hamlet is paralyzed in this moment, unable to reconcile religion with the things he’s been taught about goodness, honor, duty, and vengeance. This moment represents a serious, profound turning point in the play—once Hamlet chooses not to kill Claudius for fear of unwittingly sending his father’s murderer to heaven, thus failing at the concept of revenge entirely, he begins to think differently about the codes, institutions, and social structures which demand unthinking vengeance and religious piety in the same breath. Because the idea of a revenge killing runs counter to the very tenets of Christian goodness and charity at the core of Hamlet’s upbringing—regardless of whether or not he believes them on a personal level—he begins to see the artifice upon which all social codes are built.

The second half of the play charts Hamlet’s descent into a new worldview—one which is very similar to nihilism in its surrender to the randomness of the universe and the difficulty of living within the confines of so many rules and standards at one time. As Hamlet gets even more deeply existential about life and death, appearances versus reality, and even the common courtesies and decencies which define society, he exposes the many hypocrisies which define life for common people and nobility alike. Hamlet resolves to pursue revenge, claiming that his thoughts will be worth nothing if they are anything but “bloody,” but at the same time is exacting and calculating in the vengeances he does secure. He dispatches with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern , charged with bringing him to England for execution, by craftily outwitting them and sending them on to their own deaths. He laments to Horatio that all men, whether they be Alexander the Great or a common court jester, end up in the same ground. Finally, he warns off Horatio’s warning about dueling Laertes by claiming that he wants to leave his fate to God. Hamlet’s devil-may-care attitude and his increasingly reckless choices are the result of realizing that the social and moral codes he’s clung to for so long are inapplicable to his current circumstances—and perhaps more broadly irrelevant.

Hamlet is a deeply subversive text—one that asks hard, uncomfortable questions about the value of human life, the indifference of the universe, and the construction of society, culture, and common decency. As Hamlet pursues his society’s ingrained ideals of honor, he discovers that perhaps honor means something very different than what he’s been raised to believe it does—and confronts the full weight of society’s arbitrary, outdated expectations and demands.

Religion, Honor, and Revenge ThemeTracker

Religion, Honor, and Revenge Quotes in Hamlet

Thrift, thrift, Horatio! The funeral baked meats Did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables.

This above all—to thine own self be true; And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

O, villain, villain, smiling, damnèd villain!

O God, I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams.

What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form, in moving how express and admirable; in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god: the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals—and yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust?

The play’s the thing, Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king.

My words fly up, my thoughts remain below; Words without thoughts never to heaven go.

We defy augury. There is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now, ’tis not to come; if it be not to come, it will be now; if it be not now, yet it will come. The readiness is all.

Now cracks a noble heart. Good night, sweet prince, And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

Revenge is the Overarching Theme of the Play Hamlet

This essay will analyze the theme of revenge in Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.” It will explore how the pursuit of vengeance drives the plot and shapes the characters, particularly Hamlet, Claudius, and Laertes. The piece will discuss how Shakespeare presents revenge as a complex and morally ambiguous force, examining its impact on the characters’ psyche and the overall tragedy. It will also consider how the theme of revenge in “Hamlet” reflects Elizabethan attitudes and contributes to the play’s enduring relevance and dramatic power. Also at PapersOwl you can find more free essay examples related to Hamlet.

How it works

Revenge is a strange idea. It has been around since the dawn of time. An Eye for an eye, right? If someone hits you, you hit them back harder. In the play, Hamlet, William Shakespeare, Revenge is the overarching theme of the play. It shows what revenge can do to a person. Hamlet views revenge as a good deed: something that he must complete to avenge his dad. Revenge is binary, meaning it isn’t only the act of revenge, there are many layers to it for example, who it hurts or who it benefits.

The play has several critical turning points where revenge is apparent and shows what revenge can do to people, especially Hamlet. Revenge is necessary to preserve honor, according to Hamlet, therefore, Hamlet’s actions to choose revenge were justified. Hamlet seeks revenge due to his existentialism if we examine his views on life we see he rejects the role of regular society to dictate morality and its role in the process of morality choices. Hamlets existentialism allows his decisions to be amplified and elevated and ultimately he justifies his behavior.the first point of emphasis on revenge occurs when Hamlet speaks to his father, Old Hamlet.

In Act 1 scene 1, Hamlet talks to his dad in the form of a ghost, and learns his father was murdered, by Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle and his father’s brother, Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder.(1.5, 25) This quote is the beginning of Hamlet’s existential crisis. He is ordered from his father to murder his killer which Hamlet was ready to take revenge for his horrible murder. Hamlet believes that he will feel alleviated, relieved, and internally motivated due to avenging his father, Haste me to know ‘t, that I, with wings as swift As meditation or the thoughts of love, May sweep to my revenge.(1.5, 30) This quote reveals that Hamlet isn’t afraid to kill anyone, and is happy too. It shows that revenge is evident in the play, and that is will be a major factor in what the characters desire. But it isn’t that simple. Murder is against Hamlets morals, And so he goes to heaven. And so am I revenged. That would be scanned. A villain kills my father, and, for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send To heaven.(3.3,75-80) Here is yet another reason Hamlet should be justified in his quest for revenge. If Hamlet is going to kill Claudius, then he wants him to suffer for the rest of eternity for what he did to Hamlet’s father.

He doesn’t want to give Claudius the satisfaction of going to heaven and having a good afterlife because he was killed in prayer. Hamlet wants him to pay. Hamlet throughout the play does not act on the murder that he promised his father. In Act Two, scene two Hamlet expresses that he hasn’t done anything That I, the son of a dear father murdered, Prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, Must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words And fall a-cursing like a very drab, A scullion! Fie upon ‘t, foh! (2.2, 545) Hamlet is only able to act through his emotions and words. He pours out his heart in his soliloquy at the end of this scene. He acknowledges his inadequacy in what his father had asked him to do. Hamlet regards to himself as an, ass and is conflicted, O cursed spite, That ever I was born to set it right! Nay, come, let’s go together.(1.5,190) Murder is still against Hamlet’s morals, but that is in opposition of what Hamlet is asked by his father. In addition, the way that he viewed his father is important to understand why there is a controversy in the first place. He viewed his father as a powerful, fair, and noble King, So excellent a King, that was to this Hyperion to a satyr. So loving to my mother(1.2, 140) which is why Hamlet was so dire for revenge.

In an ongoing battle between overcoming morality and his morals, Hamlet comes to the realization that all actions in one’s lifetime are meaningless. That, Alexander [the Great] was buried, Alexander returneth to dust, the dust is earth, of earth we make loam(5.1,190) That even the Conqueror and King of Macedonia is dead. He is now dirt that is useless, unless you are stopping up a hole. He is accepting the fact that there is no heaven or hell, or any afterlife for that matter. If your dead, your dead. This point in time is where hamlet rejects his morals and will continue with his plot to kill the King. Hamlet over the course of the play, develops depression as a result of his inadequacy.

In Hamlet’s most famous silique can reveal a lot about the character that he developed into: To be, or not to be? That is the question Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And, by opposing, end them? To die, to sleep No more and by a sleep to say we end (3.1, 57-63) Due to Hamlet’s duty bound revenge that was consequently forced upon Hamlet, he considers how easy it would be to kill himself and end all of his troubles. Hamlet toys with the idea: although a sin, is suicide another option for not getting revenge? Hamlet’s motifs to inflict harm on someone for a wrong suffered at their hands is due to the fact that Hamlet feels like nobody is on his side. His mother betrayed his father and then tells Hamlet, Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted color off, And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark… All that lives must die, Passing through nature to eternity.(1.2, 70) Hamlet is told by his own mother that death happens, she has no sympathy for Hamlet who just lost his father, even worse he was murdered. When the ghost of King Hamlet says, “That incestuous, that adulterate beast” (1.5,49) he is implying that she never loved him, cheated on him when he was alive, and used him for the power and wealth. Gertrude then makes Hamlet feel as if he is in the wrong for mourning his father’s death, Why seems it so particular with thee?(1.2, 75) asking why is this so particular or important to you? He feels that his own mother doesn’t even care about him or his dead father.

Hamlet feels attacked by both Gertrude and Claudius, Claudius tells Hamlet, To do obsequious sorrow. But to persevere In obstinate condolement is a course Of impious stubbornness. ‘Tis unmanly grief.(1.2, 90) Claudius is telling Hamlet to stop being a coward and face reality, that everyone dies, and to just get over it. Claudius wants Hamlet to now see himself as his father figure and King. Hamlet is justified in his revenge on Claudius due to many reasons, one being the fact that he asked god for forgiveness but asked- May one be pardoned and retain th’ offense? (3.3, 55) No, one cannot be pardoned, because if one is asking for forgiveness but is unable to take any responsibility they don’t deserve forgiveness, and in Claudius’ case, he deserves his fate.

The King and Queen send Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to spy on Hamlet to see why he is going crazy. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were Hamlets old friends, which Hamlet hadn’t seen for a while. And instantly, Hamlet realizes why they have came, in the beaten way of friendship, what make you at Elsinore? To visit you, my lord, no other occasion.(2.2, 259) Hamlet knows that they are lying and believes that potentially they could be betraying his friendship and working for the King and queen. After the death of Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were asked by the King and Queen to take Hamlet to England, with a letter instructing Hamlet’s death. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern deny that they are working for the King, when in reality they are. Hamlet gets crossed by his two friends, and changes the letter to have Rosencrantz and Guildenstern sent to their deaths. This highlights revenge and how once Hamlet rejected his morals, his views on others is diminished. Their deaths highlight negative effects of revenge because they are in a situation between the King and Queen, who at the time had total power, and could have anyone executed, at any time, and Hamlet who is their friend.

Shakespeare’s use of the two side characters played a big roll in how Hamlet’s conscience changed over the course of the play Unlike Hamlet, delaying executing revenge, Laertes does the opposite, That both the worlds I give to negligence. Let come what comes, only I’ll be revenged Most thoroughly for my father.(4.5, 108) Laertes, who at the time of his father’s death was in France, immediately came back to Denmark. Laertes like Hamlet was mournful of his father and sister, but unlike Hamlet Laertes promises that, But my revenge will come.(4.7, 29) He promises revenge, because contrasted to Hamlet, Laertes doesn’t have the same morals that he must overcome for vengeance. He already had bad blood with Hamlet, being that he and Laertes sister, Ophilia were in a romantic relationship. Laertes father Polonius was, a noble father and his sister, Stood challenger on mount of all the age For her perfections he praised them and now that they’re gone, Laertes needs to feel compensated for his loss, and the only way he can fill this empty void is through revenge.

William Shakespeare uses these characters Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as interesting characters in the play. Hamlet tries to blame his suffering on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern because they betrayed Hamlet. Hamlet is alienated by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern because once he was crossed by his uncle and mother he couldn’t trust that anyone. And due to his existentialism, and lack of morality, Hamlet acted in the manner he did, rather than realizing that they would have been executed by the King and Queen if they would have told Hamlet they were sent to spy on him. Revenge as a whole shapes the play, Hamlet.

A lot can be learned and taken away from the theme such as why people think revenge is necessary or what are its consequences, both good and bad. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the only thing that was achieved was revenge. Although it can be justified, the play comes to the conclusion that revenge is negative. Revenge isn’t just a theme in the play or an action that the characters take over the course of the play, but it serves as a greater role in understanding both Shakespeare’s writing styles, and the struggle one makes to obey their morals. Shakespeare’s creativity and knowledge allowed his plays to have the deep character archetypes that have complexity to them.

For example, Hamlet had a lot going on in his life: His girlfriend ended their relationship, his dad was murdered by his uncle and remarried to Hamlets mother. And this allows for more broad understanding of why Hamlet delayed so much in his revenge, rather than just, Hamlet wanted to kill Claudius because he did him wrong. In a sense that is correct, but that isn’t the full extent of theme in Hamlet.

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Revenge is the Overarching Theme of the Play Hamlet. (2019, Sep 26). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/revenge-is-the-overarching-theme-of-the-play-hamlet/

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"Revenge is the Overarching Theme of the Play Hamlet." PapersOwl.com, Sep 26, 2019. Accessed June 11, 2024. https://papersowl.com/examples/revenge-is-the-overarching-theme-of-the-play-hamlet/

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PapersOwl.com. (2019). Revenge is the Overarching Theme of the Play Hamlet . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/revenge-is-the-overarching-theme-of-the-play-hamlet/ [Accessed: 11-Jun-2024]

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Revenge Tragedy in 'Hamlet' Vicki Corke

"Hamlet challenges the conventions of revenge tragedy by deviating from them" (Sydney Bolt, 1985)

The typical Elizabethan theatre-goer attending the first production of 'Hamlet' in 1604 would have had clear expectations. The conventions of Elizabethan revenge tragedy were already well established, drawn initially from the Senacan model of revenge tragedy, which combined bloody and treacherous actions with sententious moralising, and later developed by Thomas Kyd, who established the 'Kydian Formula.' This framework, comprising all the typical elements of an Elizabethan revenge tragedy, appeared in 'The Spanish Tragedy' and begins with a murder, committed by a subsequent King, who is thus beyond the reach of the law. The victim's ghost, returning from Purgatory to command his son to avenge his death, functions as a Chorus in the course of the play. His revenging son pretends to be mad and presents a dumb-show in court in order that he may be confident of the murderer's blame. The play, full of melodrama and rhetoric, ends with the death of almost all the characters, including the murderer, revenger, and revenger's accomplice. In 'Hamlet,' Shakespeare ensures that he adheres to...

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Student Essay: The Qualities of Revenge in Hamlet