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Examples Of Power In Hamlet

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The Price of Power
Power comes in many different shapes and forms. Whether it is the king of a nation, or a manipulative assassin, or even a pawn granted vengeance, power can be acquired in many ways. This is especially true in Hamlet by Shakespeare, where many different characters acquired their power in many different ways at the detriment of each other and others. In Galatians 5:22, we read about the fruit of the spirit and how God expects humanity to live; in love, peace, goodness, and self control to name a few (Galatians 5:22). In the play, “Hamlet” as Claudius, Hamlet, and Laertes rise to power, it comes at the expense of many others, including themselves, as a consequence for not following the command God has given to humanity.
Claudius is a character driven by greed for power. Being brothers with King Hamlet, Claudius coveted the throne. Eventually his wish comes true, but not without orchestration. Prince Hamlet learns from a …show more content…

Laertes returns home on account of his father’s death. Claudius manipulates and deceives Laertes into thinking that it was all Hamlet’s fault and that revenge must be taken. Laertes resolves to do just that by accepting the power Claudius grants him to arrange a sparring match, in which Laertes can poison his sword. Leartes states that all he must do is, “touch my point[on Hamlet] with this contagion, that if I gall him slightly, it may be death” (IV, vii, 147-149). Leartes plans the murder of Hamlet all on account of what Claudius wants him to do. The Bible warns people to protect themselves against such deceit, for John 10:10 states, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10). Laertes dies from the tip of his very sword and in the end, the thief, who is the devil, was successful in instigating the death and destruction of Hamlet and Laertes, for the devil seeks to kill and destroy (John

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Like many British rulers (e.g., Henry IV, Elizabeth I, Richard III), Claudius kills a family member, performing “an act of state” and following “a tradition which every English monarch had had to accept for two hundred years” (45). Once on the throne, he must begin the process of securing his position: praising the dead king, forming political alliances, marrying Gertrude, dealing with the threat of Fortinbras, conciliating ministers (e.g., Polonius), and attempting a reconciliation with his primary rival Hamlet. Because Hamlet refuses to embrace the new king, Claudius must engage in spying tactics to gain knowledge about his potential enemy and, ultimately, decide to terminate the threat. But in Shakespeare’s political tragedy (unlike the realities of British history), murderers are destined to fail. Aside from the fact that all of his supporters die (e.g., Polonius, Laertes), Claudius proves a weak leader because he “invariably prefers compromise to confrontation, placatory gestures to open defiance” (51-52).

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This worked out in his favor because he was able to put reason behind his actions of sending Hamlet to England. Furthermore, after hearing of his fathers death, Laertes and an angry mob storm into the castle to accuse the king of murder. Claudius is able to convince Laertes that he is innocent and that Laertes should get revenge on Hamlet: “Hamlet comes back: what would you undertake, To show yourself your father’s son in deed More

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“To be honest, as this world goes, is to be one man picked out of ten thousand.” (Hamlet 2.2.8). Claudius was the most dishonest person throughout the play and is perhaps the reason why all these tragedies take

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Throughout the play Hamlet continues to act insane and even dies with the act continuing. Even after Hamlet gathers all the evidence that proves Claudius is the murder, Hamlet continues to behave in a strange way. When he mistakenly murders Polonius he does not react as a sane person would. This act enrages Laertes, who then wants to avenge his father’s death. Driven to madness by the murder of his father, Laertes, with the help of Claudius conspires to kill Hamlet.

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On the other hand, Hamlet, also wanting justice was very indecisive, and found potential excuses for preventing the death of Claudius. Another noted difference between Laertes and Hamlet was the attempt and way they went about acquiring their revenge. Hamlet was ethical, which was visible when he resisted the urge to put a sword through Claudius when the new king was at church, on the contrary, Laertes’s means of acquiring revenge was sordid, because he had poisoned the tip of his sword in a fight that Hamlet thought was fair. Compared to Hamlet, Laertes is faced with similar issues, but reacts very differently making him a foil of

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Laertes was worried about his and his dad’s pride so he decide to murder hamlet. Laertes plans the big fencing match with Hamlet. He tricked hamlet and poisoned the tip of his sword. After he poisoned the tip of his sword everything went downhill. Laertes was being greedy because he wanted his dad to be king and stay king.

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Almost as bad, good mother, As kill a king, and marry with his brother… Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! I took thee for thy better. Take thy fortune.” Laertes shows he is impulsive when he says he is going to kill Hamlet with a poisoned sword.

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Then, Laertes chooses to become a participant in the killing of Hamlet. As aforementioned, this plan for death is a success, but causes many other deaths along with Hamlet to fail.

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To summarize, high class characters in Hamlet use their opposing appearances from reality to paradoxically succeed and fail. First of all, Claudius diverts from reality when he uses the role as king to act joyous at his wedding, act calm to manipulate Laertes and the courtiers, and act fearless when banishing Hamlet. These actions make the king succeed by distracting others from the death of Hamlet Sr., allowing him to seem innocent, convincing men to work with him to destroy Hamlet and avoiding political controversy by banishing his nephew to be killed elsewhere. He fails however considering that the wedding angered Hamlet, Laertes reveals Claudius’ plan to Hamlet and the trip to England killed two of his henchmen. Furthermore, Polonius is

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His willingness to conspire with Claudius and deceive Hamlet into thinking that it is a fair fight. Eager to get his revenge, Laertes “[dips] a knife in” the poison so that nothing “can save [Hamlet] from death,” demonstrating the damaging consequences of acting on desires for revenge through deception (IV, vii, 159). In the end, Laertes does end up wounding and therefore killing Hamlet, however, “Laertes, as he himself admits, ‘is justly killed by [his] own treachery’ (5.2.297),” by also getting stabbed by the same poisoned blade

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“To be or not or not to be - that is the question” (3.1.64). In life, people often have to decide whether to fulfill their desire by harming others or to uphold their conscience. In Hamlet by William Shakespeare, King Claudius chooses to pursue his desires through the suffering of King Hamlet, Queen Gertrude, Hamlet, and his servants. King Claudius’s lust for absolute power, in addition to his deceitful and manipulating tactics, leads to his downfall.

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