"He who does not know how to deceive does not know how to rule," claimed Rafael Leonidas Trujillo as he executed thousands and manipulated millions to keep his power as the cruel dictator of the Dominican Republic. “To rule,” as stated by Trujillo appears to carry various interpretations for different people, but shares a common, and murderous, definition by Trujillo and King Claudius, from Shakespeare's play Hamlet, during their time in power. Despite their differences, Claudius and Rafael Trujillo represent the combination of intelligence, manipulation, and desire destined to end in catastrophe.
Plotting to take power with no opposition and hold onto it involves a certain amount of wit that both Trujillo and Claudius believed they possessed. King Claudius kept his loathsome secrets
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His mournful disposition allowed him to be tolerated by many characters in Hamlet, but he failed to prolong his deception due to the unplanned interference of the supernatural world. Foiling Claudius’ plan, …show more content…
Claudius came from a wealthy family, and although it is not specified in Hamlet, he probably had a strong education and was familiar with being surrounded by power his whole life. Trujillo, conversely, was born to a middle-class family with ten other siblings and received an education informally around his neighborhood. He survived life in a gang before he joined the military in 1919. Unlike Claudius, Trujillo worked his way to a high position in the military and had a strong backing when he became ruler. Although he rigged it, he won the election for president of the Dominican Republic and held the title officially for 8 years, then unofficially for another 22 years until his death ("Rafael Trujillo." History.com). Although Claudius’s and Trujillo’s lives differed in details, their fates prove it does not matter where someone comes from but the choices they