Hamlet is cursed by the ghost of his father coming back and haunt him by dictating Hamlet to avenge his horrible murder. Since he is naturally both a thinker and a reasoner, Hamlet questions whether the ghost is really his father. The self-examination causes a delay in Hamlet’s avenge-seeking plans. Moreover, Hamlet displays signs of depression since his mother did not mourn her husband’s death for very long before remarrying, ironically to her husband’s murderer. The ethical concerns of Hamlet are obvious when the queen tells Hamlet: "If it be, why seems it so particular with thee?" (Hamlet 1.2. 76) Hamlet disputes Gertrude’s charge that he is being hypocritical, "Seems, madam? Nay, it is, I know not ‘seems’…"…
The appearance of his father's ghost didn't seem very reliable to him as he began to question his own sanity over what he thinks he should do about the situation. Hamlet deeply contemplates about his soul being damned on actions he was willing to pursue in avenging his father's death. He cautiously plots his act of revenge and waits for the ideal moment to avenge his father's murder. He decides to show King Claudius a play, a similar performance of Claudius' own murderous deed, hopefully seeing some kind of reaction from the king. He says "I'll have these…
He believes what the ghost tells him, and this makes us question can a man that sees his dead father really be sane? He contemplates killing Claudius, and starts to doubt what the ghost had told him. Hamlet then forms a plan to prove whether or not Claudius is guilty by having a play resembling the murder of his father done by his uncle and watching Claudius reaction. During the play, he acts most insane…
During Shakespeare's lifetime people were, in general, more religiously devout and more likely to believe in spirits and ghosts. Spirits could be messengers from heaven or evil in nature. This is one reason Hamlet so readily believed his friends when they told him they had seen his father's ghost; he was also more likely to believe their story because his friend Horatio told it, and he is an intellectual. However, when Hamlet is all too willing to follow his father's ghost, his friends, Marcellus and Horatio, are very reluctant to follow.…
The Ghost of Hamlet's father is a foil for Hamlet. The ghost is featured in the play for two large reasons: establishing the conflict, showing a supernatural improbability to Hamlet's character, and giving Hamlet someone to speak with. The ghost gives the information of how he died and who committed the murder. While Hamlet is talking with the ghost, he becomes very angry with his mother and uncle. He decides he wants revenge from Claudius for the murder of his father. Both Hamlet and the ghost believe Claudius should pay for what he has done, although neither do anything about it. Among others, one similarity between the ghost and Hamlet is that they remain in the same social class.…
Act I Scene 1 : Horatio’s opinion of the ghost before and after he sees it, is that the ghost is Old Hamlet, the dead king. He looks just like Hamlet’s father that was supposedly bitten by a poisonous snake. This ghost was dressed in armor, head to toe.…
In Act I scene V, the ghost of King Hamlet intends to ensnare Hamlet because it seeks revenge against Claudius for killing him. The ghost of King Hamlet announced to Hamlet that he did not die from a snake bite but instead was killed by Claudius during the time of sleep. With Hamlet being desperate to communicate with his father, he is attentively listening to every word that the ghost of King Hamlet gives to him. The ghost of King Hamlet knows that Hamlet loves his father very much therefore he takes advantage of him by announcing that he must “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (I.V. 31). The ghost of King Hamlet is trying to entrap Hamlet into murdering Claudius by reassuring him that the deed or killing Claudius must be done…
Hamlet does, in fact, believe that foul play was to blame for his father's death, and that it was orchestrated by his uncle Claudius, Hamlet Sir’s successor. Even though Hamlet has a strong gut feeling that his uncle is at fault he has no evidence or proof to go on. This all changes when his father's ghost appears to him and confirms his sons hunch, and orders his son to avenge him. Due to his father's apparition Hamlet’s course of action changes from just suspecting of his uncle, to investigating if the ghost is telling the truth, to ultimately killing his uncle. Hamlet Sir's ghost also affects the action of the play later on during Hamlet's quarrel with his mother…
The ghost in Hamlet is a manipulative figure who serves as a reflection of Hamlet’s perspective of his uncle. Hamlet is too distressed about his mother marrying his uncle and the death of his father for he himself to be considered reliable. As Horatio comments, “He waxes desperate with imagination,” portraying Hamlet’s desire to find something that may not even exist. Hamlet does speak to this “ghost” and confirms his own suspicions, as if this ghost simply existed to give Hamlet confirmation of what he already believed. This ghost also refuses to speak or be heard by anyone except Hamlet, putting into question its own existence. The ghost being part of Hamlet’s imagination is supported by Hamlet stating to Horatio, “My Father – methinks I…
In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the audience of Shakespeare’s time period as well as today’s audience would have recognized the play as a revenge tragedy. But, this is not your typical revenge tragedy but one with a twist. As in most Elizabethan revenge tragedies the ghost appeared to further the action or reaction of the hero. However, the ghost in Hamlet not only appears as part of the plot but surpasses the traditional role of the ghost and becomes an actual character within the play (Mandell).…
He tells Hamlet to keep his mother from being overwhelmed. Gertrude thinks Hamlet has gone mad, and has no idea who he is talking to. Hamlet is the only one who sees the ghost. She tells him that it is his imagination that he is seeing things. That they mind can hallucinate, when you have gone mad.…
The third thing about Modern day America that would have driven Hamlet insane is the skeptical attitude that modern day society has toward the idea of being able to ‘see’ apparitions. His father’s admonitions of danger and demands for vengeance would have likely had Hamlet committed had he confided these things to anyone from the present-day. His matter of fact acceptance of the sight of his father’s ghost as real is apparent from the following passage:…
I think a lot of the confusion that has been whipped up over Hamlet--including all the nonsense about his supposed inaction--is because Shakespeare didn't plant the dramatic idea of Hamlet's doubts of the ghost's veracity at the right place. If it had been placed right after…
In the early couple of stages during this play, Hamlet sees a ghost. One would think that this is real and just part of the story, until you find out that his mother does not see the ghost (the mother is mentally stable.) This is a sign of madness because it could mean that Hamlet is possibly hallucinating. Later, Hamlet makes the prediction that the ghost he is seeing is his father. Then he later changed…
Although this information seems ridiculous and impossible, Hamlet later sees this ghost with his own eyes. Since there is proof that others saw the ghost toward the beginning of the play, it is accurate to say the ghost is not Hamlet’s imagination. After Hamlet sees the ghost, he follows it and has a conversation with it. The ghost begins to reveal the truth about King Hamlet’s death. He tells Hamlet that his father was murdered and then says “…The serpent that did sting thy father’s life Now wears his crown” (I, 5, 24). After hearing this horrific news, it is likely Hamlet feels afraid, betrayed, angry and stunned. Hamlet later tells the others who saw the ghost not to say a word about what they saw and that he may pretend to act crazy. Shortly after Hamlet makes this statement, he begins to act bizarrely and speaks nonsense around everyone he comes across. Hamlet does state that he is going to pretend to be crazy; however, some readers believe he is not pretending at all. Hamlet may be pretending to some extent, but he is also likely to be suffering from an anxiety disorder, a depression disorder, or even a stress disorder. This is due to the fact that he just went through multiple traumatic events. These disorders affect the nervous system and cause people to act differently. Although no one…
