Hamlet By William Shakespeare

The dramatic play Hamlet by William Shakespeare is a play that portrays Hamlet, the son of King Hamlet, seeking vengeance over his father’s death once he discovers the truth of how he died. But the main focus is on Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude. Hamlet has bitter feelings for her decisions and actions throughout the story. These bitter feelings come from Gertrude’s decision to marry Hamlet’s father’s brother, Claudius. The marriage created the strained relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude, and as the sequence of events unfold in the story, the bitter feelings turn them against each other to where they do not trust each other at all. So, to understand the twisted relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude in this play, one must analyze how the

Hamlet was clueless about the spying his mother and stepfather had set up, but Hamlet’s mother’s intentions to try and prove that he was in fact going insane clearly shows that his mother was also questioning his decisions and actions just as he was with her. From these actions, one can clearly recognize that there was a strain on their relationship. They barely spoke, questioned each other’s motives, and did not trust each other. This how the relationship started off with a strain, but eventually went further than that.

The second stage of the relationship between Hamlet and his mother went from a strained or forced relationship to just disrespecting each other. Hamlets and Gertrude’s relationship to each other stays parallel throughout the story. As stated, the relationship had a heavy strain on it at first, but the relationship turns into one where each character disrespects during the rising action of the play. Evidence of this comes from act III, scene iv when Hamlets argues with his mother that Claudius is the criminal who ended his father’s life after Hamlet strikes Polonius with a

These two friends of Hamlet are brought in by Gertrude to be sent out and question Hamlet’s motives behind the killing of Polonius, to watch his every move, and pretend like they will not tell his secrets if Hamlet tells them. Hamlet is no fool, though. Hamlet knew that his two friends were out on a business trip before Gertrude sent them to him. Hamlet made no indication as to show that he knew his mother had sent them to him, Hamlet simply played along with the plan. This is also the point in the story when Hamlet is about to be sent to England, so he found the perfect opportunity to backfire on Gertrude’s plan. Besides that point, this is when Hamlet loses his trust in his mother. Hamlet knows from this point on that his mother will continue to keep a sharp eye on him. The text to prove this comes from Act IV, scene III when Gertrude and Claudius give direct orders to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. “Follow him on foot, tempt him with speed aboard, delay it not, I will have hence tonight. Away, for every thing is sealed and done that else leans on th’affair, I pray you make haste” (4.3.51-54). This how Hamlet knows his parents trust him no more and he vows to finish what he has caused between him and his mother at this point in the