ipl-logo

Hamlet Strengths And Weaknesses

1844 Words8 Pages
Hamlet is William Shakespeare 's renowned tale of mystery, intrigue, and murder, centered on a young misguided prince who can only trust himself. Some may say that the actions of Prince Hamlet throughout the play are weak and fearful, displaying a tendency to procrastinate and showing an apathetic nature towards his family and peers. Others spin a tale of a noble young scholar, driven mad by the cold-blooded murder of his father by his uncle. In truth, I believe Hamlet is neither of these things. Hamlet is a sort of amalgamation of the two, a bundle of contradictions thrown together into one conflicting but very human mess of a character. The quote, "We admire Hamlet as much for his weaknesses as for his strengths", aptly describes my feelings towards this troubled young prince. It is simply impossible to characterise Hamlet as good or bad, strong or weak. It is my aim to show the depth of Hamlet 's personality and to explain to the best of my ability the traits which make him who he is. Hamlet is the neither the hero nor the villain of his story- he is simply a victim, a young man slowly losing his grip on sanity over the course of the play. Many of Hamlet 's traits may appear to be weaknesses but they are, at second glance, strengths which aid him in his attempt to do away with Claudius. His refusal to murder the "incestuous, murderous, damned Dane" as he prays in Act 3, Scene 3 was a wise decision. If the prince had indeed killed the king he would have been immediately
Show More
Related
733 Words | 3 Pages

Hamlet is a very confusing character in the story Hamlet. In this story Hamlet is acting as an insane person towards typical people. This is very debatable because, Hamlet is a person who switches on and off being an insane or sane person. There is many evidence that proves that Hamlet is not actually an insane person. Hamlet is a sane person because of the actions he takes.

Read More
1218 Words | 5 Pages

Only confiding in his trusted friend he tries to help him. Horatio being the only person Hamlet trust shows he actually is misjudged by his actions. Even after he dies he tells Horatio not to die with him even though he wants to just so he can tell his legacy. Also as Horatio is watching Hamlet talk to a skull as if this person was still alive he never questions him.

Read More
1126 Words | 5 Pages

Hamlet is still a hero, even though he often overthinking about a situation and lose his chances. Being driven and guided by his father ghost, he made the best out of the situation that he did not prepared for, and had his goal was accomplished. His path was uneasy. So what he made a few mistake, it just shows that after all, he is still a human

Read More
709 Words | 3 Pages

Hamlet's main flaw was his inaction, which eventually led to his demise. In the very beginning of the play Hamlet learns about his fathers murder, so he carries this weight of vengeance the whole play. In Act 1, Scene 5, Hamlet states, “And thy commandment all alone shall live Within the book and volume of my brain, Unmixed with baser matter. ”(1.5.102-104) This shows how Hamlet’s main goal is to get revenge for the Ghost and kill Claudius.

Read More
904 Words | 4 Pages

He was not the type of the aggressive and conquering hero, who made war for the sake of war and conquest. He was, however, the dramatist 's ideal king, who loved peace, and would almost never make war, but who would not hesitate to go to war in defence of his right and of his nation. He would not wage an aggressive war, but was valiant enough to defend his kingdom when attacked. This is the only kind of hero Shakespeare recognizes, and for this kind he had the most profound admiration. Few of the critics have appreciated this character of the elder Hamlet, or have seen in the account any significance for the

Read More
1577 Words | 7 Pages

Analyzing The Deceptions in The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark In The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare the reader is brought into a story of a heartbroken son and a kingdom that is filled with deceit every which way. Focusing primarily on the deceit brought about by Prince Hamlet and the reasoning behind using so many lies and plots towards those around him. Hamlet can be described as having untrust for people and to even lead to his actions being seen as “madness” to others. For the people closest to him question whether his emotions and his motives for doing certain things are all just an act or if he truly has lost it after his father’s death.

Read More
628 Words | 3 Pages

Like many things, Hamlet is intelligent and honorable, but his indecisiveness is the cause of his tragic downfall. In the play Hamlet, William Shakespeare portrays that Hamlet is very incapable of finishing the task at hand. Throughout the drama Hamlet faces many trials and tribulations due to his late father Hamlet, who was murderously killed by Claudius. His inability to kill Claudius and himself is one grand flaw of an epic hero. After King Hamlets passing, Hamlet entered an unknown state of mind that not only feared others for his wellbeing, but also feared himself.

Read More
763 Words | 4 Pages

Perhaps those who disagree with the notion that Hamlet would fail as a king would want more evidence as to why. If that is the case, then there is no shortage of Hamlet showing weakness other than contemplating suicide. Hamlet gets his chance to kill Claudius in Scene 3 of Act 3, but decides to pass up the opportunity because Claudius was praying at the time. Later on in Scene 4 of Act 4, Hamlet criticizes himself for failing to get revenge on Claudius voicing “And spur my dull revenge! What is a man, / If his chief good and market of his time /

Read More
1170 Words | 5 Pages

Though Hamlet may earn love from the people of Denmark, Claudius earns respect. Some may argue it is better to be loved than feared as a leader, but Claudius’ resilience in his quest to murder Hamlet proves

Read More
1467 Words | 6 Pages

In a way there was never another route for Hamlet to take but villainy. This is because a heroic character would have challenged Claudius to a duel and quickly avenged his father’s death. Hamlet does not do this, instead he feigns madness with the intent of getting Claudius to admit his guilt. This seems really pointless.

Read More
677 Words | 3 Pages

When can people see as a hero and as a villain based on their actions? Sometimes when a person is looking become a hero, it can lead them to be perceived as a villain to because other people’s ideas of heroic acts aren’t the same as others. The titular character from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet often thought he was involved in a heroic plot but came across as a villain, such as the murder of Polonius, the murders of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, when involuntarily involved in Laertes’s murder, and when Hamlet decides not to kill Claudius while he is praying. When Hamlet, prince of Denmark, confronted his mother, Queen Gertrude of Denmark about her involvement with Claudius who is the new King of Denmark after killing Hamlet’s father King

Read More
880 Words | 4 Pages

Through the entirety of the play “Hamlet” by William Shakespeare, the characters were overcome with the need for revenge as the outcome of many deaths. Therefore, no one was happy through “Hamlet” and it resulted in a tragedy. The character Hamlet played a big role in turning towards revenge and never would classify himself as being happy. Hamlet displays positive and negative behavior throughout the play. Hamlet exhibits strengths and weaknesses as well, although his weaknesses of over-thinking, bitterness, and his inability to accept the death of his father overshadow his strengths.

Read More
767 Words | 4 Pages

Hamlet Hamlet is a tragedy play written by William Shakespeare. It is a play that involves numerous deaths. Hamlet is the main character in the play and he is depicted as an insane person. Hamlet faked his madness so as to confuse Claudius and his assistants in order to find the truth about the death of his father.

Read More
793 Words | 4 Pages

Hamlet is a very diverse character that goes through several different emotional stages throughout the novel. Some think that he is depressed because of his father’s death, and some think that his breakup with Ophelia has made him go mad. Though Hamlet does seem out of control at times, it is because he is keeping a secret about his father’s death. The average person does not usually deal with the death of their parent well, and knowing that it was intentional makes Hamlet even more emotionally unstable. From the beginning of the novel, Hamlet proves to be very melancholy, and upset with his life.

Read More
962 Words | 4 Pages

I am writing this essay to deal with the question how and why is Hamlet regarded as Shakespeare’s most compelling tragic hero. First of all, I am going to define a tragic hero. Afterwards, I would like to outline my opinion towards this question. According to Aristotle a hero of a tragedy must awake in the audience a feeling of pity or fear.

Read More

More about Hamlet Strengths And Weaknesses

Open Document