One Second Hamlet example essay topic

Hamlet, the timeless tragedy by William Shakespeare, has at its core an amazing internal struggle within its title character. As a result of this quandary, Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, contradicts himself many times throughout out the play. As well as trying to be true to himself, Hamlet is proficient at acting out roles and making people falsely believe The roles that he plays are ones in which he feigns madness to ultimately accomplish his goal. While one second Hamlet pretends to be under a strange spell of madness, seconds later he may become perfectly calm and rational. These inconsistencies are directly related with the internal dilemmas that he faces. He struggles with the issue of revenging his father's death, vowing to kill Claudius and then backing out several times.

His actions throughout the play support this duplicitous nature. His dual persona is the foundation of Hamlet's madness, and ultimately the play itself. There are many examples that illustrate how Hamlet's fraudulent nature results in a tragedy because of his inability and reluctance to choose which role to play. One such example occurs near the beginning of the tome. In Act One, Hamlet appears to be very straightforward in his actions, inner state, and role. When his mother questions him, Hamlet says, 'Seems, madam?

Nay it is. I know not seems' (Act I, Scene 2). By saying this, Hamlet lets Gertrude know that he is what she sees, distraught and torn over his father's death. Later, he makes a clear statement about his state of mind when he commits himself to revenge.

'I'll wipe away all trivial fond records, all saws of books, all forms, all pressures past, that youth and observation copied there, and thy commandment all alone shall live within the book and volume of my brain' (Act 1 Scene 5). In that statement, Hamlet is declaring that he will be committed to nothing else but the revenge of his fathers death. There is no confusion about Hamlet's character. He has said earlier that he is what he appears to be, and there is no reason to doubt it. In the next act, however, Hamlet's intentions suddenly become mired in confusion. In the first act, Hamlet was dedicated and inspired in seeking revenge.

However, when Hamlet appears again in the second act, it seems that he has lost the conviction that was present earlier. He has yet to take up the part assigned to him by the ghost. He spends the act walking around, reading, and talking with Polonium, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and the players. It is not until the very end of the act that he even mentions revenge. These two acts are crucial because they show Hamlet's dire duplicity, and how tragedy results. With certain people, Hamlet is resolved to avenge his father's death.

With others, that seems to be the last thought in his mind. If he had any of the resolve he had showed earlier, his act of revenge should have already been completed. So instead of playing the part of the vengeful son, or dropping the issue entirely, he spends the entire act 'slacking off,' avoiding the decision he has to make, and pretending to be mad. This is shown when he says to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, 'I know not-lost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercise. ' (Act 2 Scene 2). Later he tells them that he is just faking his madness when he says, 'I am but mad north-north-west, when the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw.

' (Act 2 Scene 2). I feel that by admitting he is faking madness, he is ultimately saying that is comfortable with it. The idea of feigning or faking madness has a lot to do with acting. Faking, or in other words, playing a role, is at its root a way of acting. It is ironic how in a play, something entirely composed of acting, the theory of acting is brought up so much. By 'faking madness,' Hamlet is, definitely acting.

It is strange that Hamlet is comfortable with playing at this point, but the crucial concept here is that he is not acting out the role that he so resolved in act one. However, when the traveling theater troupe comes around, the resolve Hamlet once had returns. Hamlet is prompted to vengeance, again, by the moving speech that is given by one of the players. About this speech, he says, 'What is Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba that he should weep for her?

What would he do had he motive and cue for passion that I have?' (Act 2 Scene 2). In this praise of this players ability to act, Hamlet is saying that if this was a play, and he was an actor in it, he would have killed Claudius by now. He is then moved to swear that he should kill Claudius when he says, 'I should have fatted all the region kites with this slave's offal. Bloody, bawdy villain! O, vengeance!

Why, what an ass am I?' (Act 2 Scene 2). He makes this big buildup of what he should have done and how he will seek revenge, but then shoots it down in the next statement. This passage is the model of Hamlet's tremendous problem. After all of this swearing and support of the value of acting and words, he backs out of it again. He can't decide whether to play the role or not. Being caught in the middle, he decides that he needs more proof of the King's guilt.

He keeps going back on his resolve when he says, 'The play is the thing, wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King. ' (Act 2 Scene 2). Hamlet feels that not only can the inner and outer self not be linked, but also acting will transform one's inner self to match the exterior. This is a strong statement, but one backed up by the play. If Hamlet believes that acting can transform your one's inner self into whatever role one is playing, then it is clear to me why this play ends tragically. Hamlet has inherent flaws in the way he perceives the way people function.

By what he says here, if he would only act the part he wouldn't have a problem taking action. However, the contradictions that are so commonplace in Hamlet are shown again when he says, 'God hath given you one face, and you go make yourselves another. ' (Act 3 Scene 1). He is bouncing back and forth between supporting acting and denouncing it. Whenever he is in support of acting he is also ready for revenge. He says, 'It hath made me mad.

I say we will have no more marriages. Those that are married already all but one-shall live. ' (A.