ipl-logo

Why Hamlet Characters Die Analysis

420 Words2 Pages
Four major characters die in the last scene of Hamlet. Out of the four, Queen Gertrude is the least responsible for the tragic situation. During the dueling match between Hamlet and Laertes, Queen Gertrude notes that she will drink in dedication to Hamlet’s fight. Before doing so, King Claudius tells her not to. Queen Gertrude, stubborn, states, “I will my lord; I pray you pardon me” (V.2.275). Gertrude does not realize that the cup is poisoned. Her death may be viewed as accidental, because she could have listened to her second husband. She may have thought that it was an ordinary drink, but it really was meant for Hamlet to drink when he becomes tired of dueling. After she falls on the floor, she screams, “No, no, the drink, the drink! O
Show More
Related
1036 Words | 5 Pages

“The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them.” is a quote said by Lois McMaster Bujold. When someone loses their life, they no longer get the opportunity to get revenge. It is up to the living to get the revenge or justice that they feel is fair.

Read More
1112 Words | 5 Pages

Hamlet and the Hero’s journey Hamlet so much related to the Hero’s journey design which was adopted by Joseph Campbell’s monomyth journey and the two are in fact so inseparable. When analyzing the play Hamlet, one thinks that Campbell was using the plays so as to make the theory. This is a character arc and which is divided into five -act structure and which goes up to twelve steps. The ordinary world is the place where the character exists before he is called, and he is not aware of anything going on around him.

Read More
477 Words | 2 Pages

Queen Gertrude is the Queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s mother, the widow of Old Hamlet and the wife of Claudius, brother of her dead husband. Gertrude is ignorant and a woman who means no harm but because of her actions it contributes greatly to the terrible events that occur throughout the play. In this play there’s many conflicts, one of the first conflicts was when Gertrude married King Claudius two months after Old Hamlet’s death. Gertrude is ignorant because she’s not aware of anything happening. For example she’s not aware that King Hamlet’s murder was by his own brother Claudius, even though they were some hints out there to show that it was King Claudius who killed Old Hamlet.

Read More
1361 Words | 6 Pages

Claudius tries to warn his wife half-heartedly saying, “Gertrude, do not drink,”(5.2.317) but his warning fails and she dies from poison anyways. Both Hamlet’s mother and his opponent die from these circumstances. This shows that Claudius’ selfish decision to attempt to kill Hamlet actually ended up affecting his wife and a

Read More
856 Words | 4 Pages

Gertrude’s Speech on Ophelia’s Death Analysis This passage is from Act 4, scene 7, lines 163-183 of Hamlet. Laertes, hearing of his father’s death, storms the palace seeking revenge. Claudius, in an effort to calm Laertes’ rage, conspires with him on how to effectively kill Hamlet shortly before Gertrude interrupts with the news of poor Ophelia’s death. Laertes, heartbroken after hearing that his sister has died, seeks to mourn in peace, but Claudius insists that he and Gertrude follow him so that he can keep an eye on his temper.

Read More
734 Words | 3 Pages

Even though Hamlet is passionate about his mother, there is never a direct act from the prince that shows his sudden love and protection for her. Gertrude shows him an act of love by rising for his accomplishments during the fencing match and toasting a drink of wine to him. Unfortunately, that wine is intended for Hamlet’s consumption, and is filled with poison. Gertrude then shows an act of protection when she screams out to warn Prince Hamlet that the wine is indeed poisoned, saying “No, no, the drink, the drink!—O my dear Hamlet! The drink, the drink!

Read More
701 Words | 3 Pages

Then the ghost comes back and reminds hamlet that it is not Gertrude to blame. Because of his actions at the end Gertrude drinks a poisoned glass that was meant for hamlet and dies. Second, I don’t think Ophelia actions are justified either. According Doc C: Ophelia’s father Polonius was killed which really affected her and she became crazy.

Read More
314 Words | 2 Pages

Also, Hamlet displays his anguish at the Queen for dishonouring his dead father since “Almost as bad, good mother, as killing a king and marrying his brother” (Shakespeare, pg. 121). In this statement, Hamlet expresses how, through the marriage to her husband’s murderer, Gertrude is a symbol of dishonor and damaging her relationship with the prince. Hamlet is disgusted by Gertrude’s actions and recognizes her not as his mother but the queen and wife of Claudius, the murderer. The respect revered by children to their mother is not evident between Hamlet and Gertrude. In Gertrude’s death scene, Hamlet screams to his mother “Wretched Queen, adieu!”

Read More
379 Words | 2 Pages

The last act starts with the conversation of Hamlet and Horatio with the gravedigger, which is shown to be a comic relief from the tragedies happening. Then, later on, in Ophelia’s burial the priests makes it seem like a suicide and not surprisingly makes Laertes mad about it. This was because he loved his sister very much and has lost her forever. In addition, we learn how Hamlet escaped the trip to England and reveals his true intentions of killing King Claudius. Which leads up to the match against Laertes and as everyone arrives Gertrude drinks the poisoned cup even though Claudius told her not to.

Read More
1140 Words | 5 Pages

Hamlet eventually kills Claudius like his father told him to, but only did it after his mother, Gertrude, drank the poison that Claudius meant to give Hamlet. This is a result of external action from all the sorrows that was building up in Hamlet’s life. This brings us to our next character, Gertrude, Claudius’s wife and Hamlets

Read More
242 Words | 1 Pages

After Prince Hamlet striked Laertes again, Gertrude drunk the cup of wine to celebrate the victory. Claudius told her not to drink it, but she ignore the suggestion. Unfortunate Gertrude

Read More
164 Words | 1 Pages

The queen know understands that the king is attempting to murder her son hamlet. She says that he is fat. She offers him her napkin to whip the sweat from his face. She takes a sip from the glass. One knows this because the king becomes angered and says “Gertrude, do not drink”.

Read More
848 Words | 4 Pages

To begin, Gertrude is a victim because she is naive that eventually leads to her death. At the end of the play when Hamlet and Laertes are fencing, Gertrude unknowingly drinks the cup of wine filled with poison. Even after Claudius warns her not to drink it, she persists and tells him, “I will, my lord; I pray you pardon me” (5.2.318). Gertrude here thinks

Read More
1313 Words | 6 Pages

Unaware of the role Hamlet is playing, Ophelia feels rejected and hurt. Eventually, Ophelia’s heartache, along with the death of her father, causes her to commit suicide. Next, Claudius and Gertrude’s role play affect their relationship with Hamlet. At the beginning of the play, Claudius takes on the role of a kind, just king; he seems to genuinely care for Hamlet. He often gives him fatherly advice, and shows affection for Hamlet in ways that an uncle would.

Read More
1306 Words | 6 Pages

These continuous deaths heighten the tension, as the suspense and mystery revolving around who would die next, magnifies the sense of anticipation in the audience. These deaths occur gradually, with King Hamlet being the first, as he had died before the play even started. This is followed by Polonius’ death by Hamlet in Act 3, Scene 4. As a result of her father’s death, Ophelia had reached a mental decline and resorted to committing suicide by drowning herself in Act 4, Scene 7. The climax of the play is in the final act which is Act 5, Scene 2; where multiple characters such as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Gertrude, Claudius, Laertes and Hamlet have reached their untimely deaths.

Read More

More about Why Hamlet Characters Die Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document