Titus Andronicus and Hamlet

Children That Pay for Family Duty in Hamlet and Titus Andronicus External Forces Explored in Hamlet and Titus Andronicus Children often become casualties when they find themselves pulled into two different directions when it comes to family. Often faced with the responsibility of upholding honor in the name of family, they face challenging conflicts that hurt them. Two plays demonstrating this contradiction are Hamlet and Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare. The perils associated with following one's duty to family can be deadly.

Both of these plays illustrate how children "pay" for family duty. In Hamlet, Hamlet's duty is to defend Denmark is interrupted by an incessant ghost. After grieving his father's death, the ghost tells Hamlet to seek retribution on his father's "foul and most unnatural murder" (Shakespeare Hamlet I.v.1). This conflict trumps any duty from this moment forward, becoming a proverbial albatross around Hamlet's neck. The ghost and his command are enough to push Hamlet over the edge, causing him to vacillate between responsibility and madness.

His inability to kill Claudius coupled with ghostly visits only drive him deeper into madness. Resolution is achieved but any duty Hamlet may have felt at the beginning of the play is long gone. In Titus Andronicus, Shakespeare approaches family duty from another perspective, with the children serving as human sacrifices. Titus, corrupted by power, sacrifices Alarbus with no regard to how Tamora's feelings. He gives his virgin daughter to Saturninus, As he hands off Lavinia, he maintains she is a "tribute" (Shakespeare Titus 1.1.251).

He feels justified in his actions because of the Roman code. The other murders are equally justified. Here we see how children make an incredible sacrifice for their parents. Titus never considered his children's autonomous lives ahead of his own. They were his property to do with as he pleased. Children easily become victims when they find themselves in circumstances beyond their control. In both of these plays, we see how duty haunts and destroys children.

Hamlet's destruction is far different than that of Lavinia Chiron and Demetrius but the reasons behind it is the same. We see these children pulled into the fray of their parents' world, making sacrifices that, in their own right, would never see the light of day. Work Cited Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, et al. 2nd ed. New York: Norton, 2008. Print. External forces often guide our lives more than we like.

Things get in the way and obstacles must be reckoned with before we can move on. In William Shakespeare's plays, Hamlet and Titus Andronicus, the presence of external forces looms in the background, driving the action of the play. Claudius is all too aware of what he must do to keep the crown and he has no problem doing it. Similarly, Titus knows what he must do to conform to Roman law.

Each man allows outside influences to dictate his actions, a characteristic that spells pain and suffering for others in their lives. Hamlet demonstrates how external forces control lives from a distance. We see this with Claudius, who is ever mindful of the Norwegian troops. There is no doubt Claudius has his eyes set on the crown but in order to keep that crown, he needs to be constantly aware of what the enemy is doing.

The entire play revolves around this man's actions; the play begins because of something he does and it ends with his actions as well. Hamlet's return to Ellsinore is the result of what Claudius does. His first priority as king is to thwart the Norwegian invasion. This action involves dealing with Fortinbras, who is on his own mission of revenge. Fortinbras is a formidable opponent in that he not only seeks revenge, he wants to take back the province lost to the Danish.

Claudius realizes these things and will do whatever it takes to keep the crown. This means including hamlet on some level, as he becomes a problem. Claudius is intent on doing what it takes and he did not let King Hamlet stand in his way and he certainly will not allow his son to do so. Titus also shows us how external forces can manipulate our lives. Titus wastes no time in demonstrating this when he consents to the execution Alarbus.

He ignores Tamora's pleas for his life and even justifies the action by saying: These are their brethren whom your Goths beheld Alive and dead, and for their brethren slain, Religiously they ask a sacrifice. To this, your son is marked, and die he must, T'appease their groaning shadows that are gone. (Shakespeare Titus 1.1.125-129) Titus views.