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Personification And Appropriate Diction In William Shakespeare's Hamlet

603 Words3 Pages

In William Shakespeare's tragic epic Hamlet, the title character speaks to a troupe of actors who will later be performing for him. In this speech, Hamlet conveys his deep respect and enamorment for the art of theater. To display this, Shakespeare employs both abstract personification and passionate diction.

As Hamlet rants on to the players detailing how he would like them to perform, Shakespeare uses multiple abstract metaphors to display Hamlet’s reverence for the art of acting. This is first shown as Hamlet curses the wretched actors who overact their parts in order to receive the petty applause of the uneducated lower class. While emphasizing the importance of showing the proper amount of emotion, he mentions the infuriation he experiences when he hears “[an actor] tear a passion to tatters, …show more content…

Shakespeare's use of personification creates a vivid and visceral image of the non tangible emotion and dedication associated with acting being physically demolished. As shown by this usage of personification, poor acting not only irritates Hamlet, it goes as far as to insult him on a personal level. This utter dismay that Hamlet feels towards poor acting helps to show his true love of the art of acting. An additional example of personification, which displays Hamlet’s true passion for acting, is shown as he describes the true purpose of acting itself. In the midst of his heartfelt rant at the actors, Hamlet describes theater as, “ the mirror up to nature, to show virtue her own feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure”. In this quote, Hamlet’s use of personification

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