Character Polonius In Shakespeare Hamlet example essay topic

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive!" . This quote by Sir Walter Scott has been heard around the world, translated into many languages, and repeated to us by parents, teachers, and our peers. What does it truly mean Humans create major and possibly chaotic problems when trying to beguile others. This quote not only applies to one person affecting another, but also how the actions of one person trying to deceive many people through double-talk or hypocrisy lead to complex and sometimes unresolvable events. The character Polonius in Shakespeare Hamlet fits the description of one who tries to deceive others by wearing different masks, double-talking, and practicing hypocrisy to gain the approval of others...

It is safe to assume that since he is the Kings advisor, Polonius must act as a public person to protect the Kings best interest. Therefore; on a basic literal level, it is justifiable for Polonius to want to spy on everyone to protect the King. However; if his actions and speeches are examined closer, it is evident that he is a limited and vain person who is overly concerned with his appearance and wears different masks to tune up to different people. His first mask is the one he puts on for Laertes and Ophelia before sending Laertes off to England. He wants Laertes and Ophelia to think of him as a wise, moral, and respectable father as shown in the following lines: Give thy thoughts no tongue, nor be un proportioned thought his act... Those friends thou hast, and adoption tried, grapple them unto thy soul with hoops of steel...

Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice. Take every mans censure, but reserve thy judgment... Never a borrower nor a lender be... This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the nigh the day, thou canst not be false to any man. (Hamlet II, 65-86, Shakespeare) Polonius does an exceptional job of providing good morals for his son to live by, but then displays his first act of hypocrisy by judging Hamlet in front of Ophelia just a few lines later by saying Do not believe his vows, for they are brokers, not of that dye which their investments show, but mere impl orators of unholy suits, breathing like sanctified and pious bawds the better to beguile (II. 136-140).

He later speaks with Reynaldo and asks him to spy on his son, while still assuming the authoritative figure he displayed to Laertes and Ophelia. Polonius seems incapable of acting in an honest manner. His actions are reminiscent of a hunter's job; using all his wit to uncover the unwary prey in a roundabout way. He even uses hunters' terminology.

"Windlasses" (II. i. 72) means an indirect approach in hunting. He talks of the "bait of falsehood" (II. i. 70), being dishonest to the "prey", Laertes, and even to the people who are to help him catch the "prey", the acquaintances. Polonius wants to catch "the carp of truth". This topic is echoed later on when Hamlet calls Polonius a "fishmonger".

His methods of finding out the truth suggest that Polonius is not concerned about Laertes well-being; rather Polonius is worried how Laertes is making him look. Polonius has an inclination toward cynicism and suspicion of other people. For Polonius, acting rotten comes so naturally that he expects other people to also be like that. His tone suggests that he is at ease and not at all sorry about using dishonest methods or doubting their decency.

In fact, his vanity makes him very proud of his crafty strategies. Polonius puts on an entirely different mask for his superiors, including Hamlet. He plays an ignorant and eulogistic character when he is speaking to Hamlet, which is entirely contrasting to his authoritative character he portrayed to Laertes, Ophelia, and Reynaldo. He makes small talk with Hamlet in Act II. sc. ii and keeps his comments and questions short and brief. It is ironic that Polonius agrees with Hamlet when he says To be honest, as this world goes, is to be one man picked out of ten thousand (II. ii.

194-195), when Polonius is one of the plays most dishonest characters. Polonius also ingratiates Hamlet later in Act II. sc. ii by agreeing with Hamlets comment to the first player, The mobbed queen. Polonius third mask is the one he shows to the King and Queen. He decides to tell Gertrude and Claudius that he has discovered the reason for Hamlet's odd behavior, which is in his opinion caused by Hamlet's love for Ophelia. The fact that this kind of love relationship should make Polonius extremely proud because of Hamlet's princely status, does not affect Polonius because he is too overcome with bliss over the fact that he has solved the mystery that is so important to the King and Queen and everyone is trying to solve. This is evident in his language full of mannerisms and vanity.

"My liege, and madam, to expostulate what majesty should be, what duty is, why day is day, night night, and time is time were nothing but to waste night, day and time. Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit, and tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes, I will be brief. Your noble son is mad (Hamlet II. ii. 94-99, Shakespeare) This speech is a wonderful relief from the tension and tragic seriousness.

Here it is evident that Polonius is the clown of the play. His use of parallelisms, metaphors, and play on words are all delivered in the supreme confidence in his own ability. Most amusing is that Polonius is his own critic, as when, after a bombastic sentence about night, day, and time, he concludes, "brevity is the soul of wit". (II. ii. 97) Also, after indulging in another such exercise involving the words true and pity, he exclaims, "A foolish figure!" (II. ii. 106).

Polonius tries to put on a show of his wit by delivering a tirade addressing what he considers philosophical questions such as those about the nature of night, time, day, and duty. However, this is all obvious and not worth speaking about to the reader. Polonius rhetoric and flowery language that emphasize how profound this subject-matter is in his opinion make this all the more comical. Also the rhythm of Polonius speech is different from the rhythm before it: it is simple, with shorter lines, and even a sort of rhyme achieved by ending lines with the same words. This rhythm makes the speech seem even shallower and more superficial, contrasting to Polonius intend. Nevertheless, the language, however stupid, suggests that Polonius is an educated man.

He is parroting books because to him pompous language is a sign of wisdom. He is concerned about appearing as wise as possible, at the same time playing- it- up to the royal couple. His mannerisms are almost self-degrading. This tone is opposite to his tone of authority which he used when speaking to Laertes, Ophelia, and Reynaldo, but similar to his tone when speaking with Hamlet though more verbose. Even though Polonius is a comical character, he has a functional relation to the main themes of the play and helps us gain insight on other characters. I find the following quote to be one of Polonius most ironic lines: "Madam, I swear I use no art at all", (II. ii 104).

Readers should laugh to the absurdity of this statement. Polonius used a very wicked art; deceit, to gain knowledge that was none of his business. Polonius was a conniving, pompous hypocrite whose end was justified by his means. He was literally stabbed in the back without his identity being known to the murderer, just like he symbolically stabbed Hamlet in the back with his reports and comments to the King questioning Hamlets sanity.

The artificiality of Polonius suggests the kind of world in which Hamlet and the other characters live in after his death, as well as a world in which we live today: full of deceit, hypocrisy, pretense and masks.