Throughout Shakespeare’s Hamlet, one may see a strong theme of revenge. The three stories in the book provide contrast for each other but offer only two different endings: life and death. “Hamlet deals with three revenge plots, all of which involve a son seeking vengeance for the death of a father. In the end, though, the resolution of each revenge plot highlights the inadequacy of revenge.” (SHMOOP ) The first story is that of Hamlet, who takes forever deciding if he will go through with it. The second story is Laertes, who hardly thinks at all, and rushes headlong to get revenge. The third and final story is Fortinbras, who after a short-lived rebellion, thinks better of taking revenge for himself. Through these stories, Shakespeare teaches that pursuing revenge …show more content…
Hamlet learns that Claudius has killed his father at the very beginning of the play when he speaks to the ghost. The ghost claims that he is old King Hamlet who has been murdered, and he asks Hamlet to avenge his murder. “I am thy father's spirit, / Doom'd for a certain term to walk the night/ And for the day confined to fast in fires/ Till the foul crimes done in my days of nature/ Are burnt and purged away.” (1.5.14-18) Hamlet promises that “with wings as swift / As meditation, or the thoughts of love,’ he will ‘sweep to [his] revenge.” (1.5.35-37) “He then spends almost the entire play spectacularly failing to keep his oath” (Ryan) To cover his actions, Hamlet starts acting mad. However, it soon seems to the reader that Hamlet really has gone mad, and is no longer acting. Hamlet himself might not even see this, as he says, “That I essentially am not in madness but mad in craft,” (3.4.209-210) while speaking to his mother. Although Hamlet doesn’t think he’s mad, he had just killed Polonius without looking to see who it was. Hamlet may not be completely mad, but he is not completely sane either. This is one of the effects of his pursuit of