Hamlet Act 3 Rhetorical Devices

In Act III of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, King Claudius confesses to the murder of his brother. Riddled with rhetorical devices, the soliloquy follows Claudius’ emotional journey through intense guilt, internal conflict and urgent prayer. All of these devices imply and highlight his moral confusion as he attempts to achieve salvation. Whether it is through an allusion, rhetorical question, metaphor, simile, synecdoche, or imagery, Shakespeare utilizes rhetorical devices to underscore Claudius’ hesitancy and cowardice. Through a biblical allusion and an antithetical metaphor, Shakespeare characterizes Claudius’ confession as dramatic and regretful, but also reveals the king’s hope for an unburdened conscience. Overwhelmed with guilt and the

iii. 36-37). This allusion to the biblical story of Cain and Abel displays Claudius’ horror towards his crime and his pervasive guilt. Comparing himself to Cain, who committed the first and therefore arguably the worst murder in the bible, Claudius draws a parallel between Cain’s jealousy and his own desire for power. Claudius fears that his sins are so atrocious and unforgivable, that he will have to live with his guilt interminably, much like Cain was forced to bear a permanent mark on his forehead. In this biblical allusion, Claudius reveals his main desire: to avoid his extensive guilt and experience emotional relief. Wondering whether or not his sins are forgivable, Claudius considers the following: “what if this cursed hand were thicker than itself with brother’s blood, / Is there not rain enough in the sweet heavens / To wash it white as snow?” Claudius employs descriptive figurative language, which utilizes antithetical images of blood

After his attempts to decipher the most appropriate way to pray, he exclaims “Oh liméd soul that struggling to break free / Art more engaged!” (III. iii. 68-69). In this descriptive metaphor, Claudius compares himself to a bird that becomes more ensnared as it attempts to free itself. The more Claudius strains to “free himself” through intricate analysis of prayer, rather than through active prayer, the less likely he is to be forgiven. The more he attempts to understand how to repent rather than actually repent, the more confused he will become. Therefore, he commands himself into prayer: “bow stubborn knees, and heart with strings of steel / Be soft as sinews of the new-born babe” (III. iii. 70-71). Through a simile, Claudius displays his desire for a pure soul. He wants to be as compassionate, guilt-free and unburdened as a child, but cannot escape his own stubbornness and cruelty. By having to physically force himself into prayer, Claudius portrays his inner conflict between his criminal self and his ideal