Hamlet by William Shakespeare the Play Hamlet

¶ … Hamlet" by William Shakespeare

The play "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare has a story that revolves around the main themes of revenge and search for the truth. Shakespeare's male characters, in particular, are portrayed somewhat villainously because of the element of revenge inherent in each character's motivations in the play. Among the male characters in the play, the characters of Hamlet, Laertes, and Fortinbras emerge as the most remarkable among the numerous character in Shakespeare's piece. Many characteristics are shared among these three primary male characters. The first characteristic is that they possess the vitality of their youth, and the second one is that all of them face the world in an idealistic and somewhat naive perspective. Their being young, naive, and idealistic are the main reasons why, throughout the play, they have resorted to radical actions and behavior that will cause either their victory or downfall.

This paper will conduct a character analysis of Hamlet, Laertes, and Fortinbras' characters in relation to the events and circumstances that happened in the play "Hamlet." Furthermore, this character analysis will be accomplished using the comparative essay analysis, where the researcher will be able to give a causal relationship among the three characters, further discovering the actions, behavior, and motivations of each through their differences and similarities with each other. Texts from Shakespeare's original play and critiques on the play's character will also be used in support of the claims that will be presented in the paper.

It is evident that Hamlet, Laertes, and Fortinbras share one common similarity in the play, which determines their actions and behavior in the first place: all of the three men's fathers are dead. Hamlet's father, Old Hamlet, was killed by his brother Claudius; Laertes' father, Polonius, was mistakenly killed by Hamlet while he was listening to Hamlet and Ophelia's conversation; and Fortinbras' father, the King of Norway, was slain by Old Hamlet during battle. Because of their fathers' deaths, each of the young man's motivations became revenge, determining their actions and behavior throughout the play.

Fortinbras' course of action upon learning of his father's death is to invade the kingdom of Denmark, kill Old Hamlet and his kingdom, as well as usurp the Hamlet throne. Laertes, on the other hand, challenges Hamlet to a duel that will determine who will and will not live. Hamlet, lastly, resorted to feigning madness in order to determine the truth of what the 'ghost' of Old Hamlet had said. Hamlet's plan to act as a madman is seen in Act 1, Scene 5 of the play, where he informs his friends: "so help you mercy / How strange or odd soe'er I bear myself / As I perchance hereafter shall think meet

To put an antic disposition on..." His decision to put on an act in front of his friends and family is Hamlet's way to plan out his revenge and "to relieve the bitterness of his soul," as a result of his discovery that his father was murdered by his own family, Claudius (TheatreHistory.com 2001).

Another similarity that the three characters share in the play is that they both sought for and gave forgiveness to each other as each man faces his fate. Hamlet, as he lay dying from the poison that he received from Laertes' foil, gives Fortinbras his wholehearted blessing to govern Denmark (found in Act 5, Scene 2: "I cannot live to hear the news from England / But I do prophesy the election lights / On Fortinbras: he has my dying voice..."). Fortinbras, in turn, forgives Hamlet and his family for his father's death. In fact, Fortinbras requested for a royal and honorable death burial for Hamlet when he died as a sign of his forgiveness and respect for Hamlet: "Let four captains

Bear Hamlet, like a soldier, to the stage / For he was likely, had he been put on / To have proved most royally..." Laertes also forgave Hamlet from killing Polonius, putting the blame instead on Claudius, accusing him of bringing out all the unfortunate events that happened in their kingdom. Laertes' character becomes essential in the last act of the play, since this is the moment where Hamlet realizes that he must take action at once to revenge his father (University of Toronto 2003). By saying that everything is Claudius' fault, Hamlet kills Claudius immediately. Claudius' death results to an exchange of forgiveness between Laertes and Hamlet, absolving them from all ill feelings they have for each other: "Exchange forgiveness with me, noble Hamlet / Mine and my father's death come not upon thee / Nor thine on me."

Despite their similarities, a closer study of the three characters' attitudes and relationships with their fathers will reveal several differences that set them apart from each other. Take as an example the temperaments of each character as they deal with their "internal conflicts." Their temperaments are evident in the way each character handles his problem, especially on making decisions about the appropriate action or "punishment" that each father's murderer should receive.

Among the three characters, the most telling temperament is Hamlet's. Hamlet is known for his ability to plan things but is also noted for his faulty decision-making, especially after proving to himself that Claudius is indeed his father's murderer. An analysis of his character will reveal that Hamlet is a man who is torn between committing revenge and giving justice for his father and killing a person, especially a family relative and his stepfather: "Although Hamlet loved his father and grieved deeply for him, fear of doing wrong prevented him from doing anything at all" (Wilson 1993). His irresoluteness will become the catalyst for his unfortunate fate, wherein he will eventually die as a result of Claudius' treachery. Indeed, his inability to commit the necessary action for Claudius is seen in two instances in the play, the first being his conversation with Ophelia in Act 3, Scene 1 and his attempt to kill Claudius in Act 3, Scene 3 of "Hamlet." In Scene 1, Hamlet expresses his internal conflict, wherein he tells Ophelia his irresoluteness about what to do with his villain stepfather-uncle, Claudius: "To be, or not to be: that is the question: / Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer / The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,