Act Of Violence In Hamlet

William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark has many deaths in it, emphasizing the title’s claim as a tragedy. Most of the deaths in the play can be traced to a certain act of violence. Any given act of violence in this play has a meaning attached to it. The main act of violence that starts the chain of events to bring about the end of the play is when Prince Hamlet stabs Polonius. Polonius was spying on a meeting between Hamlet and the Queen to measure Hamlet’s sanity and to see what Hamlet thought of Claudius and Ophelia when Prince Hamlet killed him. Polonius wanted Hamlet to stay away from Ophelia, and he wanted to know if Prince Hamlet was suspicious of Claudius for King Hamlet’s murder. Polonius’s plan was originally

There are simpler ways to kill a rat than with a sword. Polonius had one job as an eavesdropper: stay silent and listen until Hamlet was done speaking and left the room. Polonius failed to stay silent. Polonius knew that Prince Hamlet was at minimum partially mentally unstable, and he probably knew that people as unstable as Hamlet tend to be paranoid. However, Polonius chose to reveal his hidden position for no good reason and got himself stabbed for his trouble. Polonius’s death sends several messages to the audience. A message to be taken from this could be use common sense. Another message could be avoid taking up questionable hobbies. A third and more important message to be taken from this section of the play encourages self control. Polonius would have lived he had stayed calm. Hamlet caught Polonius when Polonius decided to randomly repeat what the Queen said. Polonius could have avoided that fate in other ways as well. He could have left Hamlet alone. He could have made his presence known from the beginning instead of hiding when Hamlet entered. Polonius chose to hide and later reveal himself to Hamlet