ipl-logo

The Poison Of Facades In Shakespeare's Hamlet

869 Words4 Pages

The poison of facades. It has become human nature to react to the elements that surround you, whether physical or emotional in value, and due to this reason, in William Shakespeare's Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, poison spread- starting with King Claudius until it affected Denmark in its entirety. “That one may smile, and smile, and be a villain” (1.5.105-109 ). Even the nicest of people can easily have an ulterior motive, deception plays a major theme in Hamlet. Take, for example, King Claudius; Claudius murders his own brother, who has become the King and Hamlets’ father. However, the only person who knows of this until the last few scenes of the play will be Hamlet, and throughout the entire play, King Claudius portrays himself to his disciples as a kind and courteous King. “Though yet of Hamlet our dear …show more content…

Claudius started the first facade the day he took the throne, he sits upon a throne of lies and deceit. In almost all of the Kings lines he pretends to really care about Hamlet and the court's best interests but in reality …show more content…

Polonius does in fact have a daughter, who Hamlet previously courted against Polonius’ wishes. As Hamlet continues to act crazy everyone who sees him generally starts to believe that his father’s death, his mother’s hasty marriage, or a love he can not have anymore must have driven him to madness- even though the antic-disposition has no real mirth. “I feared he did but trifle And meant to wrack thee. But beshrew my jealousy!” (2.2.81) Polonius speaks this line about Hamlet’s feelings towards Ophelia- which in retrospect appear very muffled and hard to comprehend throughout the play due to Hamlet putting on an antic-disposition; the reader never quite knows if Hamlet loves Ophelia or

Show More
Related

Rhetorical Devices In What Dreams May Come

1592 Words | 7 Pages

Perhaps if Claudius had not delayed his efforts to kill Hamlet, he might have been able to maintain his position as ruler; but the King “was such a nice man, in a way, that he decided to defer the action”

Read More

Claudius Deceiving Character Analysis

1517 Words | 7 Pages

This first seed of deception planted by the new king causes almost the entire chain of events that take place in the Tragedy Hamlet to happen. All in all Claudius’s deception plays a major role in the the layout and plot of Hamlet. Claudius is a deceptive power hungry foil character in this Shakespeare play who has a great influence on the of the actions and events that led to the climax and falling action of the play.

Read More

Character Deception In William Shakespeare's Hamlet

1940 Words | 8 Pages

Hamlet Character deception is a common characteristic that has and will be a reflecting characteristic in literature for centuries. In many of William Shakespeare’s tragedies, deception, whether positive or negative, is being used to mislead, to protect characters, or to hide a crime or future crime. Analyzing why the characters are using deception against each other is very important to the reader’s understanding of the work as a whole. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, He uses Hamlet’s deception of character and also the character’s use of deception towards Hamlet to carry out the overall theme of the tragedy. The theme that is represented, is that in able to get malicious revenge, you must be able to act as if you are someone different than your true self while in turn, being able to deal with others deceiving you.

Read More

Polonius Parenting In Hamlet

716 Words | 3 Pages

(3.1.43-49) Polonius orders Ophelia to distract Hamlet even though he knows the emotional distress it will cause her. He is the reason Ophelia breaks ties with Hamlet, yet he is willing to throw her at him for his own gain. Polonius cannot rationalize that spying on Hamlet is less important than his daughter’s mental stability. His utter selfishness makes him incapable of making rational decisions that are beneficial to both himself, and his children. Polonius gives good advice that he does not take himself, showing his bad decision making.

Read More

Similarities Between Hamlet And Machiavelli

910 Words | 4 Pages

Michael Olufunsho Fafemi Alan Rosiene HUM 2052 February 6 2018 Hamlet, The Claudius similarity and Machiavellism Shakespeare through the play Hamlet portrays many complex themes through the various characters in the play. Hamlet, the protagonist is in particular a mesh of various complexities and ideas. He is often caught in between his own opposing characteristics and these ultimately affect the course of his actions.

Read More

Motif Of Deception In Hamlet

434 Words | 2 Pages

Throughout Hamlet, the characters consistently deceive each other to disguise their true intentions and actions. The first line of the play reads “Who’s there?” (Shakespeare, 7); these words foreshadow the multi-faceted aspects of the actors throughout the development of Shakespeare’s work. The characters deceive one another in order to achieve a specific longing for themselves. The motif of deception can be found throughout the play in the actions of Hamlet, Guildenstern, and Claudius.

Read More

Ophelia's Soliloquy Essay

905 Words | 4 Pages

In Act III, scene i of The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare, readers will come upon Ophelia’s soliloquy. After Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have failed to find a reason as to why Hamlet is acting in a peculiar and mad way, Claudius is persuaded by Polonius that the reason for Hamlet’s madness is the broken romance between Hamlet and Ophelia. To prove this, Claudius and Polonius plan to spy on Ophelia’s meeting with Hamlet. During their conversation, Hamlet denies ever having loved her and curses her. Ophelia is left fretting over his sanity.

Read More

What Is Claudius Evil

254 Words | 2 Pages

Claudius, as seen in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, is both intelligent and clever, two traits that, put together, complement his manipulative and dangerous nature. Due to his cunning nature he portrays the role of a very complex villain. The death of King Hamlet by Claudius results in Prince Hamlet to act out of character, which thus resulted in the tragic death of Polonius and Ophelia. While Hamlet and Gertrude were having conversation, Polonius was hiding behind the huge carpet that was hanging on the wall. Unknowingly, Hamlet stabs Polonius.

Read More

Compare And Contrast Hamlet And Claudius

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

How Is Hamlet Intelligent

575 Words | 3 Pages

His detailed plans and keen mental ability make him the most intelligent character in the entirety of the play. Hamlet is a very clever and motivated individual who creates extravagant plans to achieve success. In the beginning of the play, Hamlet creates a false persona to divert the kingdom’s attention away from his intention to kill Claudius. He tells Horatio that he will “put an antic disposition on,” (I.v.172) to create a sense of madness. This falsehood is created to ensure Hamlet will not be taken seriously and can follow through with his plans without being suspected.

Read More

King Claudius's Ambition Essay

679 Words | 3 Pages

First of all, King Claudius’s ambition to become the next King of Denmark causes him to lose his conscience. As King Hamlet’s ghost reveals the truth of his death, he anguishes, “Thus was I [King Hamlet], sleeping, by a brother’s hand, Of life, of crown, of queen at once dispatched” (1.5.81-82). The throne of Denmark motivates King Claudius to slay his own biological brother to succeed King Hamlet’s “crown”. His desire to gain power has overwhelming covered up his moral values.

Read More

Theme Of Deception In Hamlet

1854 Words | 8 Pages

Deception is an action driven with the motive to employ one purpose which can be to mislead another individual in order to gain knowledge, to get revenge, or to reveal a plan unknown to the public eye and keeping it that way for the dutiful well-being of the Kingdom of Denmark. In the tragedy Hamlet by William Shakespeare, deception develops into the character trait that initiates the actions, heartbreak, and revenge driving this play. This attribute held by Hamlet is the leading cause of this same flaw development in Ophelia, King Claudius, and many others in an attempt to reinforce the theme. This theme is one of heroism, but the deceptive notion each action reveals challenges the perception the reader has on each of the main characters. In order to be able to fully analyze the part Hamlet’s deception plays in driving the plot and storyline of this tragedy, one must understand that a foil character juxtaposes each character to illuminate their shortcomings.

Read More

Use Of Deception In Hamlet

842 Words | 4 Pages

Claudius had arranged an execution for Hamlet, to get rid of him permanently. Behind these acts of deception, we can see Claudius had wanted power, and would do anything to achieve it. This makes

Read More

Hamlet Role Play Analysis

1313 Words | 6 Pages

However, Hamlet soon discovers that Claudius has been lying to him, and Claudius’ real motive is to kill Hamlet in order to exterminate all possible threats to his reign. Claudius’ role play affects the entire country of Denmark, and he convinces the people that he is the rightful king, when he is not, and has murdered his brother for the throne. Gertrude, too, takes on a role; throughout the play, she seems oblivious to her wrongdoings. She claims that she loves Claudius, and did not just marry him for political reasons.

Read More

Essay On Language In Hamlet

1115 Words | 5 Pages

Language is a complex system of communication that is developed to convey thoughts, feelings, and meaning. In William Shakespeare 's Hamlet, language is used as a device for manipulation shifting one’s perception of the truth as the play forms recurring motifs relating to the dichotomy of appearance versus reality. This is seen through the character Claudius, a politician that takes the throne by pouring poison into the King’s ear, then marries the Queen. During Act 1 his ability is shown through his speech filled with oxymorons such as “defeated joy” (I.II.10) to express grief over the King’s death, but then turns to talk about celebrating his marriage to Gertrude. Figuratively, he pours poison into others’ ears to reshape the appearance

Read More

More about The Poison Of Facades In Shakespeare's Hamlet

Related Topics

Open Document