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Examples Of A Son's Guilt In Hamlet

1687 Words7 Pages

Emma Galgano
Mahony
AP English
9 February 2023 A Son’s Guilt
When faced with complex and overwhelming tasks, most people's natural instinct is to find the easy way out. One of the most common forms of escaping responsibility is to place one's obligations onto others. The first three soliloquies in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare reflect that same idea as they demonstrate how Prince Hamlet tries to escape his obligation of providing justice for his father's death by resting the burden onto those around him. Prince Hamlet's admiration and obsession for his father causes him to feel immense pressure to adequately avenge his death. This stress causes him to blame the perceived forgotten legacy of King Hamlet on his mother, Gertrude, …show more content…

Moreover, Hamlet unveils that his false allegations are derived from the abundance of pressure to avenge his father's death. As Hamlet laments his sorrows, he states, "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer/ The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles" (III.i.57-59). Hamlet is wailing about the unfairness of life due to his "fortune," which refers to his responsibility to provide his father's death justice. His use of the word "fortune" magnifies Hamlet's sorrows about life being misleading and dishonest, as the stressed syllable of "fortune" is composed of a high vowel frequency that conveys happiness and joy. However, Hamlet's "fortune" is the opposite, as it is daunting and frightening. Therefore, the word itself is deceptive. Hamlet then expands on the feeling of avenging a parent's death by saying, "take arms against a sea of troubles," emphasizing his overwhelmed emotional state. The idea of Hamlet being amongst a "sea of troubles" creates an image of him, a young man, drowning in pressure to successfully complete the burden of obtaining revenge for his father's death. Hamlet continues to mourn by lamenting, "For who would bear the whips and scorns of time" (III.i.70). Prince Hamlet's references to "whips and scorns" imply that as time progresses, the …show more content…

During mentally draining times, when people are faced with a substantial amount of pressure, humans often choose to place the burden onto others rather than address and overcome their challenges. Prince Hamlet is an exemplary model of when someone places responsibility and accuses others out of fear of punishment. People like Prince Hamlet overlook how mentally exhausting obligations are, especially when they are for individuals they look up to, and take on too much responsibility. In the process, they destroy relationships with the ones around them, leading them to spiral further into melancholy and anxiety. People need to reflect and take accountability for their actions, as without that, they will be drowned in grief and

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