What are the key themes in Hamlet?
Hamlet Themes
- Action and Inaction. Hamlet is part of a literary tradition called the revenge play, in which a person—most often a man—must take revenge against those who have wronged him.
- Appearance vs. Reality.
- Women.
- Religion, Honor, and Revenge.
- Poison, Corruption, Death.
What themes are linked to the theme of revenge in Hamlet?
The Mystery of Death And, since death is both the cause and the consequence of revenge, it is intimately tied to the theme of revenge and justice—Claudius’s murder of King Hamlet initiates Hamlet’s quest for revenge, and Claudius’s death is the end of that quest.
How is madness a theme in Hamlet?
Although revenge is the most obvious theme in Hamlet, Shakespeare writes extensively about madness. Those who believe Hamlet was truly mad cite his abrupt mood changes and erratic behaviour as proof that his father’s death drove him insane. Hamlet even reveals that he is feeling depressed following the king’s murder.
What was the main theme of the play Hamlet?
Before the ghost revealed about the betrayal by Claudius, Hamlet seems to be simply brooding over his mother’s hasty marriage and mourning over his father’s death. But the knowledge of deception makes him revengeful.
How did Hamlet get the name The Mousetrap?
Hamlet takes help from the troupe of actors who staged a play named The Murder of Gonzago. Hamlet added few scenes to play that resembles the murder of the King Hamlet as described by the ghost. Hamlet named this revised play as “The Mousetrap”.
What is the most famous line in Hamlet?
Throughout the play Hamlet contemplates suicide. His most famous line, “To be or not to be” deals with this. Hamlet wishes that God had not “fixed his canon ‘gainst self-slaughter” so he could end his suffering. Ophelia also may have committed suicide, but Shakespeare never specifies.
How does hamlet use action and inaction in Hamlet?
Hamlet overhears these murmurings of Fortinbras’s campaign, and though he never comes face-to-face with his foil and opposite, the audience (and Hamlet himself) recognize Fortinbras’s decisive action on his late father’s behalf as all that Hamlet is unable to bring himself to do.
