ipl-logo

Deception In Hamlet Research Paper

413 Words2 Pages

In Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the theme of deception is practiced throughout the play. Characters surrounding Hamlet use deception as a tool to achieve their goal, Claudius and Polonius’s use of deception has a great impact on Hamlet’s actions in the play. Claudius is the epitome of deception, it is through his deceit that leads to the events that occur. The betrayal of murdering his brother King Hamlet is seen as the beginning of the end. “It hath the primal eledest curse upon’t. A brothers murder”, Claudius blaming his brothers death in natural causes, decides that entire kingdom into accepting a murderer as king, this eventually leads to Hamlet learning the the real cause of his fathers death and causes Hamlet to take drastic action. Claudiius will do anything to hold onto his throne, even to the extent of killing his wife's son. Claudius knows that Gertrude loves Hamlet, “The Queen. His mother lives almost by his looks”, but is still willing to kill to ensure that he remains king. Deceiving Gertrude by attempting to kill her son shows that Claudius does not care enough about the people around him, his only goal is to remain King by lying to the people around him. …show more content…

He is portrayed as a deceiver who, like Culadiis, betrays people he is supposed to be devoted to, such as law rtes and ophelia. Polonius engages in deceitful spying. He sends Laeryes back to school after King hampers death, but berates his son by sending a spy after him to report back. He also deceives Ophelia by insisting she talks to hamlet, but then he proceeds to listen in on their conversation. He attempts to spy on Hamlet and Gertrude’s conversation and when Hamlet hears something he goes to kill it, leading Hamlet to kill Polonius because of his deceptive actions. Polonius’s deceptive nature of spying led to his death by the sword of

Show More
Related
621 Words | 3 Pages

Charles Dudley Warner said, “People always overdo the matter when they attempt deception.” Hamlet is a play that is filled with deception. Nearly every character within the play has lied to one another or committed a form of deception, making almost every character a master in the act. Lying and secrets are prominent from the very beginning of the play. When the ghost, said to be the late King Hamlet, is introduced, it is very secretive and kept quiet.

Read More
805 Words | 4 Pages

Hamlet was also betrayed by not just his Uncle Claudius but his friends Guildenstern and Rosencrantz. They were spying on him and ordered to kill Hamlet by Claudius until Hamlet found out what they were trying to do, and was smart enough to know what was going on. Hamlet acted fast and ended up getting revenge on his friends which sentenced them to death. The play Hamlet is trying to tell us readers and writers that Betraying others is wrong and to never turn your back on your friends or family. Otherwise they will get revenge on you and will make you regret

Read More
829 Words | 4 Pages

Almost every character in the tragedy, Hamlet by Shakespeare intentionally or unintentionally deceives others by not showing who they really are or how they really feel. Hamlet is the greatest example of deceiving others because throughout the whole play he is never truly showing who he is or how he feels unless he’s alone and the audience or readers are the only ones who really know who he truly is. How ever what the readers and audience cannot decide on is whether or not hamlet deceives the other characters on purpose for a greater accomplishment or do the events that occur to him really change who he was in the beginning of the play. The plays main focus is based on hamlet’s way of viewing the other characters and how to make them feel like he wants them to feel. Hamlet deceives them so he can get everyone to think the way he wants them to think.

Read More
749 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout the play, Claudius is consistently deceiving people and it takes its toll primarily on Hamlet. For instance, Claudius’ incestuous marriage with Gertrude is based on deception as she does not know he murdered her previous husband. This upsets Hamlet greatly as he feels a certain melancholy. likewise, Claudius is able to redirect Laertes’ rage towards Hamlet as he deceives him by convincing him Hamlet was intent on killing Polonius. As a result, we now have an additional foe against Hamlet and ultimately kills him with poison.

Read More
1940 Words | 8 Pages

Hamlet Character deception is a common characteristic that has and will be a reflecting characteristic in literature for centuries. In many of William Shakespeare’s tragedies, deception, whether positive or negative, is being used to mislead, to protect characters, or to hide a crime or future crime. Analyzing why the characters are using deception against each other is very important to the reader’s understanding of the work as a whole. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, He uses Hamlet’s deception of character and also the character’s use of deception towards Hamlet to carry out the overall theme of the tragedy. The theme that is represented, is that in able to get malicious revenge, you must be able to act as if you are someone different than your true self while in turn, being able to deal with others deceiving you.

Read More
1053 Words | 5 Pages

His plan does not prove his theory, but he is determined to find the reason behind Hamlet's madness. That is why, later in the play, Polonius decides to spy on a conversation between Hamlet and Gertrude, which proves to be fatal. As the conversation goes on, Gertrude feels threatened by her son and she cries out for help. This leads to Polonius crying out in fear, and since Hamlet suspects the cry to belong to the hated Claudius, he stabs Polonius from behind the curtain. Polonius’s deceit cost him his life, and it was just another way that Shakespeare illustrated the harm that comes with

Read More
407 Words | 2 Pages

Shakespeare’s use of language helps to portray the major theme of deception in the play Hamlet. The utilization of diction helps to equate Claudius to an evil person, while metaphors help to make the comparison between Claudius and a deathly animal. By making comparisons and using specific word choice that help support the theme, Shakespeare is able to portray the deceitful antics of King

Read More
720 Words | 3 Pages

On the contrary, deception with malicious intent are the acts for one’s own satisfaction and well-being. Shakespeare portrays this theme by using lead characters such as Hamlet, King Claudius and Polonius who demonstrate malicious deception. Furthermore deception is portrayed in three major forms: the fear of being deceived, the act of deceiving others, and the result of being deceived. Deception is one of the key factors of the deaths of many characters in Hamlet. In the beginning of the play, Claudius is introduced on stage with his conflicting feelings of grief and joy.

Read More
1544 Words | 7 Pages

Many works of art, especially literature, has a large focus on deception and how deception pushes a plot and story along the line to completion. This had been used in the long history of literature an uncountable amount of times by a lot of different authors, but one of the most popular works which has a heavy focus of deception and the consequences thereof is the drama, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, by William Shakespeare. This drama, often just called Hamlet features incredibly heavy themes of deception as almost every character is being deceitful in someway, which all has varying effects on the advancement of the main story and plot. Arguably the most deceitful character in the entire drama is the namesake Hamlet. Hamlet has

Read More
1124 Words | 5 Pages

The character of Hamlet is expressed as a protagonist. His irritated attitude towards Claudius in scene 2 of act 1 leaves the audience with a clear first impression of his nature. He is deceitful of the king, his uncle Claudius who is now the ruler of Denmark after his brothers “death”, and disgusted of his mother marrying his uncle. Hamlet is an example of someone who has compromised his happiness, in order to avenge his father’s murder.

Read More
1168 Words | 5 Pages

By expressing their unwavering loyalty to the king by agreeing to spy on Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern reinforce the theme of deception as he betrays Hamlet, their long-time friend, in order to carry out Claudius’s dirty work. This betrayal and deception ultimately lead to their tragic demise as the letter, Hamlet’s execution note, which they are ordered to deliver, is discovered by Hamlet himself and used against them. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are executed and Hamlet feels no guilt whatsoever, as their betrayal really hurt him. Another illustration of deception is highlighted through the various acts of King Claudius, as he is the mastermind behind many of

Read More
339 Words | 2 Pages

Deception is an essential element in any tragedy. Its' affects on the lives of the characters could be destructive or benign. In William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark deceit proves to be the very foundation of the play. Shakespeare builds on this idea of deceit between the characters, from the very beginning. The deceit that is practiced is imposed on others as well as self inflicted ultimately leading to a tragic ending.

Read More
1534 Words | 7 Pages

Firstly, Hamlet is a play of a man by the name of Hamlet, whose father was murdered by Claudius, his uncle. Claudius murdered the king by pouring poison in his ear to claim the throne for himself. Hamlet is then told by a ghost to murder Claudius for revenge, and he struggles within himself for the length of play whether to do it or not. When Hamlet begins to hesitate it does more damage than good and causes a chain reaction of tragic events, and makes the readers question whether Hamlet is truly sane or not. Claudius’s corruptness begins to show when he uses his authority to order those around him to rid of Hamlet.

Read More
1932 Words | 8 Pages

Polonius is willing to spy on pretty much anyone so that he can knows more details about those close to him. He spies on his son Laertes and is willing to slander him without giving it a second thought when he tells Reynaldo, “to make inquiry of his behaviour” (II.i.3-4). Polonius wants Reynaldo to both spy on Laertes and to hurt his image, so that he can learn about his son’s character. Claudius betrays Gertrude by not telling her about the poisoned cup soon enough. He does not want her to drink the poison but she doesn’t know about it until it is too late, “Gertrude, do not drink.

Read More
1457 Words | 6 Pages

Deceit and deception are not the only themes in the story of The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, but it is also a way certain characters, mainly Hamlet himself, use to carry out their own personal gain. The focus will mainly be on the main character as he is the best example for a character using deception to his own ends. Hamlet is a very odd and curious character. He does not seem very ambitious, but actually, he is. He uses the tool of deception, under the disguise of moral justice, to seek revenge for his father’s death.

Read More

More about Deception In Hamlet Research Paper

Open Document