King Hamlet’s ghost in Hamlet plays a very significant role in Shakespeare’s play even though he only appears briefly in the very beginning and two other times throughout the play. King Hamlet’s ghost furthers the play in many ways. He affects action by setting the play in motion, he affects the theme of revenge, and he helps develop other characters, specifically his son, Hamlet. He sets the play in motion by causing the wheels to spin inside of Prince Hamlet’s head, the ghost is the whole reason for Hamlet trying to extract revenge upon his murderous Uncle Claudius who is now the King of Denmark. The ghost affects the theme of revenge by causing Young Hamlet to be seized by vengeance, the whole play turns into a story of Prince Hamlet trying to avenge his father’s wrongful death. The ghost of King Hamlet helps to develop his son’s character by setting him on a path, he doesn’t tell Hamlet exactly what to do, but he tells him enough of the story to make Young Hamlet rageful and hate filled. First, King Hamlet’s ghost affects action when he first appears in the play. When he first appears, he doesn’t even speak. When he …show more content…
His ghost influences the actions of Hamlet in various ways throughout the story. The ghost influences the theme of revenge by telling Hamlet to avenge his death and go after his uncle, alters the development of characters, namely Hamlet, by changing who he is as a person. The ghost of King Hamlet is the reason for the events of the play even occurring. He influences the theme of the play by planting the seeds in Hamlet’s mind to make him want to get revenge on his uncle in the first place. Lastly, the ghost influences character development because what he tells Prince Hamlet and, in a roundabout way, makes him do, shapes Young Hamlet into a different person than he was previously. The ghost of King Hamlet plays an enormous role in Hamlet even though he is hardly in the play