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Examples Of Despair In Hamlet

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Hamlet's Despair in Act 1, Scene 5
After the conversation between Hamlet and the ghostly figure of his father, the king, in Act 1, Scene 2, Hamlet falls into a manic state of despair, attempting to grasp everything his father had told him from beyond the grave. Hamlet states, "Ay, thou poor ghost, whiles memory holds a seat / In this distracted globe" (1.5.96-97). In this metaphorical sentence, the "memory" of hamlets father is replaced by a "poor ghost" Hamlet is unable to see his father as the strong ruler he once was, now his father's memory has been replaced by the knowledge of Claudius the former king's brother murdering him to obtain both his kingdom and Gertrude, Hamlet's mother. Hamlet's father is now forced to "hold a seat in this distracted …show more content…

All that rage is redirected at his mother, Gertrude and his uncle Claudius. In some adaptations of this play, Hamlet takes out his notebook and writes, "That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain-" (1.5.108). Hamlet is referring to reparation back to the beginning of the play when Claudius justifies his actions to the court. By repeating the word "smile" two times, he emphasizes the importance of Claudius bearing a "smile" on his face, masking his true character. At this time, Hamlet only suspected that Claudius had killed the king. At this point in the play, Hamlet discovers that Claudius is only putting on a show and is "a villain" who is only "smiling" to disguise his murderous actions with happiness. This foreshadows the rest of the play when Hamlet makes the sudden decision, fueled by his despair, to perform the same act as Claudius. He takes Claudius's deception and twists it into his own, where Hamlet pretends to go into a manic state of despair to distract the court from the revenge plan that Hamlet is planning to both expose and dispose of Claudius. Hamlet's lines through these passages show the despair he feels by discovering the true nature of his father's death and

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After learning this, Hamlet’s sole motivation is to avenge his father’s death by revealing Claudius’ deception. Hamlet’s initial plan to expose Claudius is to have performers put on a play imitating the events of his father’s death. Hamlet says, I’ll have these players play something like the murder to my father before mine uncle. I’ll observe his looks; I’ll tent him to the quick. If ‘a do blench, I know my course…The play’s the thing wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King (Shakespeare

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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” (3.3.78-83). In this quote, Hamlet mistakenly thinks that Claudius is praying since he on his knees and this shows the true anger that Hamlet has. Just killing Claudius isn 't enough, Hamlet must make sure that Claudius is being sent directly to Hell where he will suffer for eternity. One of the most prominent times we see Hamlet’s anger is when he murders Polonius, the father to Ophelia, his lover, thinking that it was Claudius.

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“Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder.” (Shakespeare pg. 23) The foreshadowing in the beginning of the book provides Hamlet’s future intent to get revenge on Claudius. This goes to show how Hamlet couldn’t refuse revenge because he ended up killing his fathers murder. It’s built inside all

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Through the use of this metaphor Hamlet shows how he is depressed along with his hatred for Claudius and the situation at

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In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Shakespeare uses range of literary techniques such as soliloquies to express Hamlet’s depression and anger. Hamlet’s emotions play a crucial role to achieve his secret ambitions. Events such as King Hamlet’s death, Hamlet’s mother’s expeditious marriage, conflict between Hamlet and Ophelia. Hamlet’s depression and anger is expressed throughout the play but what are the causes. The root of Hamlet’s feelings of depression and anger was his father’s death.

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People deal with emotions in very different ways after death and handle it in very different ways emotionally and physically. This image is used in Hamlet by William Shakespeare; they show this through the shift of emotion between characters throughout the play, by showing how they handle grief and trauma. Shakesphere uses Hamlet and Ophelia to show shifts in emotion after life events that really take a toll on one's mental health, which makes them watch a different way. In Act III scene IV Hamlet's character has a switch in demeanor. He begins to talk back and disrespect his mother when he goes in to talk to her about her choice of being with her brother in law and how Hamlet does not approve of her choices and she needs to stop going to

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Hamlet states “How strange or odd some’er I bear myself /As I perchance hereafter shall think meet To put an antic disposition on)” (1.5.190-192) “ when he finds out through the Ghost otherwise known as the late King Hamlet, that Claudius or King Claudius, the brother to the now passed King Hamlet, actually murdered King Hamlet. In William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, Hamlet who is the main character, goes through a series of events which sometimes question his decisions that he makes. Though Hamlet is still considered not a full adult he faces situations in the play that forces him to make adult like decisions.

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Madness and grief can be mistaken for the same thing, but you experience more emotions when you are going through grief. In the play The Tragedy of Hamlet, Shakespeare presents characterization, foreshadowing, imagery in order to show Hamlet's grief, ultimately illustrating that when someone goes through grief they go through many different types of emotions, such as anger, denial , bargaining. In the text, Shakespeare made Hamlet experience a lot of trauma and it started with his father's death. Shakespeare uses imagery to show Hamlet's experiencing emotions of anger.

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In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Hamlet struggles to cope with his late father’s death and his mother’s quick marriage. In Act 1, Scene 2, King Claudius, Queen Gertrude, and Hamlet are all introduced. Hamlet has just finished publicly speaking with his mom and the new king, and after he is interrupted by his good friend Horatio, who reveal the secret about King Hamlet’s ghost. Hamlet’s soliloquy is particularly crucial because it serves as his initial characterization, revealing the causes of his anguish. Hamlet’s grief is apparent to the audience, as he begins lamenting about the uselessness of life.

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Some people may believe that the connection and strong affection between Hamlet and his father caused his anger to kindle even more towards Claudius, eventually leading to Hamlet's ambition towards killing his uncle. However, Hamlet is not able to take revenge because of his emotions, but when he sets them aside he is able to take action and therefore is not affected by the love of his father. Hamlet says “[i]s it monstrous that this player here,/ But in a fiction, in a dream of passion,/ could force his soul so to his own conceit/ That from her working all his visage wanned,/ Tears in his eyes, distraction in his aspect,/ A broken voice, and his whole function suiting/ With forms to his conceit?

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I define despair as losing all hope or confidence and the feeling of complete hopelessness. This definition can be applied or referred to by any individual but can be shown from different viewpoints. For example, setbacks have driven a person to the depths of despair. Shakespeare's play Hamlet, tells the story of Hamlet's transformation into a helpless man who is determined to find the unsolved truth. Throughout the play, Hamlet leaves the readers to grasp these unresolved mysteries.

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1124 Words | 5 Pages

“But o, how bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man’s eyes” Hamlet written by William Shakespeare during the Elizabethan age revolves around the setting, time and the nature of its characters. Happiness in Hamlet is a vague theme that involves almost all the characters, who are significantly influenced by the time and place of the play, the sexuality of the characters and also, how they practice deception. The tragedy of Hamlet presents various characters who pursue or compromise their happiness to satisfy their conscience. This is shown through characters such as Hamlet, Claudius and Ophelia. In addition, to how their differences and similarities shape their personalities, which causes them to pursue or compromise their happiness.

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575 Words | 3 Pages

When he learns Claudius is responsible for the death of his father, he intends to reveal this newfound information to not only Gertrude, but the rest of the characters. He is smart enough to know that she will not believe him based solely on his encounter with the ghost, and must create a trap where Claudius will reveal his guilt on his own. When the players arrive at the castle, he alters their script to mimic the king’s murder and “catch the conscience of the king” (II.ii.567). During the performance, Claudius shows signs of guilt and worry, making Hamlet’s plan a success and proving his

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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.

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629 Words | 3 Pages

This, along with how quickly his mother then married the murderous uncle, and at the request of his father's ghost sparks the thought of revenge in Prince Hamlet. Imagine the passionate feelings of betrayal associated with the loss of a father along with the lack of apparent mourning from everyone, including the widow. Despite these feelings, Prince Hamlet struggles with the thought of revenge, as evidenced by his inaction when he has the opportunity while Claudius appears to be praying and then again during his famous "to be or not to be" soliloquy. In the end revenge is served, doubly, as Prince Hamlet stabs Claudius with a poisoned sword and makes

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