Hamlet

"Doubt thou the stars are fire; Doubt that the sun doth move; Doubt truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love."

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a 1597 tragedy play by William Shakespeare. First published sometime between 1601 and 1603, it tells the tale of a Danish prince who goes mad for lust and revenge after finding out from the ghost of his deceased father that his brother murdered him and took the throne.

Hamlet is Shakespeare's longest play and is considered by many scholars as his most famous play, as well as the most influential literary piece of work of all time.

Plot Summary
One dark night at Elsinore Castle in Denmark, two watchmen and a scholar named Horatio spot a ghost wandering the castle grounds. It resembles a lot like King Hamlet, who had just died. His brother, Claudius, has inherited the throne and married the king's widow, Queen Gertrude. Prince Hamlet, the son of King Hamlet and Gertrude, was summoned home from his school in Germany upon hearing his father's death. He suspects foul play when he sees his uncle with his mother.

When Hamlet meets his father's ghost in the castle, he tells his son that Claudius had murdered him by pouring poison down his ear and usurped his throne. Hamlet is now dedicated to avenge his father's murder on Claudius. He becomes depressed and insane, so the king and queen assign two of Hamlet's friends, Guildenstern and Rosencrantz to watch over him. After they fail to notice the prince's strange behaviour, the Lord Chamberlain Polonius suspects that he may be madly in love with his daughter Ophelia. Claudius spies on the two of them conversing with each other. But Hamlet is clearly not in love with her since he rejected her and wanted to place her in a convent.

A play is about to be performed by a group of travelling actors, and Hamlet comes up with a plan to have the actors do a reenactment of the king's death as a way to see Claudius' reaction and prove his guilt. When the murder scene is acted out, Claudius quickly leaves and prays. Hamlet knew that his uncle is guilty but decides not to kill him yet since he thinks Claudius will go to Heaven if he dies praying. Claudius, now fearing for his safety and of Hamlet, orders the prince to be sent away to England.

Later, Hamlet confronts his mother on her marriage to Claudius. Hearing a noise behind the tapestry, he stabs it through with his sword, thinking it was Claudius, but kills Polonius instead. He is immediately shipped off to England, with Rosencrantz and Guildestern given orders to have Hamlet executed upon arriving at their destination. Ophelia goes mad following the death of her father and drowns herself in a river. Her brother and Polonius' son, Laertes, returns to Denmark from France to avenge his father's murder. Claudius had convinced Laertes that Hamlet is to blame for Polonius and Ophelia's deaths. But after Horatio and the king receive news that Hamlet's ship was attacked by pirates on its way to England and that he has returned to Denmark, Claudius comes up with a plan. He would have Hamlet and Laertes fight in a friendly duel, but Laertes' sword would be poisoned so Hamlet would die if he is stabbed by it. The king also uses a backup plan to give Hamlet a goblet of poisoned wine if he wins both matches.

Hamlet arrives just in time for Ophelia's funeral. He fights with Laertes and claims that he had always loved her. Back at the castle, Hamlet tells Horatio that he arranged the letters around so Guildenstern and Rosencrantz would be executed instead, and knows that death would come at any moment. He agrees to participate in the fencing match.

Hamlet and Laertes start their duel. During the match, Gertrude drinks from the poisoned goblet that was supposed to be given to Hamlet and dies from the poison. Laertes wounds Hamlet with the poisoned blade, but Hamlet doesn't die immediately. The prince then wounds his opponent with the same lethal blade they have switched, and Laertes dies before telling him of the king's treachery on the queen. Hamlet finishes Claudius off by stabbing him with the same sword and pouring the poisoned wine down his ear, killing him. After achieving his revenge, Hamlet dies.

Shortly afterwards, a Norwegian prince named Fortinbras who earlier successfully defeated Poland in a battle, arrives with ambassadors from England. They announce that Rosencrantz and Guildestern are dead, and Fortinbras becomes the new King of Denmark. Horatio tells him of Hamlet's tragic story and the prince's body is carried away that resembles a fallen soldier's procession.

Characters
Hamlet- The titular character and main protagonist. Around 30 years old at the beginning of the play, Hamlet is the son of the late King Hamlet and Queen Gertrude, and is grief-stricken of his father's death and disgusted that his uncle married his mother. Melancholy but witty, he can also be impulsive and struggles with his thoughts. He goes mad after he sees his father's ghost and learning his uncle had killed him. At the same time, he finds himself becoming entangled in a series of problems he is unable to solve and questions his own morals.

Claudius- The main antagonist of the play. He had secretly killed his own brother and took over his throne, as well as marrying Gertrude. He is corrupt, cunning and domineering, as he takes pride in his power and having sexual desires toward his wife and former sister-in-law. His lustful and sadistic nature causes him to be hated by almost everyone, including his nephew Prince Hamlet. At the same time, however, he shows remorse for his actions and had prayed to God for his forgiveness to get over his dark side.

Gertrude- The Queen of Denmark and Hamlet's mother. She married her brother-in-law Claudius shortly after her husband King Hamlet’s sudden death. She loves and cares for her son, while she is unaware that Claudius had killed her first husband and Hamlet is suspicious of her being with his uncle, who enjoys his sexuality. Her weak character and recklessness causes her to be in dire consequences, such as when she dies after drinking the poisoned goblet that was supposed to be given to Hamlet.

Polonius- The Lord Chamberlain of Claudius' court. He is the father of Laertes and Ophelia, who he both adores; especially to Ophelia and how he would be concerned that Hamlet could be in love with her. While a pompous old man, he is determined to keep his loyalty to the king and queen by secretly spying on different conversations between the royals. But when he hides behind a tapestry spying on Hamlet and Gertrude, he is mistaken as Claudius and accidentally killed by Hamlet.

Horatio- Hamlet's best friend. Both Horatio and Hamlet went to school together at Wittenberg in Germany and is also his most closest confidant. As a friend, Horatio would often be concerned of Hamlet’s sudden madness, as he is wanting to help him get over his grief and take vengeance against Claudius. He witnesses most of the main events in Denmark and after Hamlet is dead, Horatio survives to reveal Hamlet’s entire story to the new king of Denmark Fortinbras.

Ophelia- Polonius' daughter and Hamlet's love interest. A beautiful, innocent woman, Ophelia is dutiful to the court and to her father and brother, who convince her that Hamlet doesn’t love her. Her dependency results in her being used as bait, when she converses with Hamlet and he makes it clear he isn’t as romantic as he seems. After Polonius was killed by Hamlet, Ophelia ends up succumbing to her insanity and causing Laertes to take revenge on Hamlet.

Laertes- Polonius' son and Ophelia's brother. He is a young man who spends most of the play in France, but returns to Elsinore following his father's death. After finding out Ophelia had killed herself, Laertes vows revenge on Hamlet. He is a complete foil of Hamlet.

The Ghost- The spirit of the King of Denmark and Hamlet's father, as he claims to be. He appears in the first acts of the play and informs Hamlet that Claudius killed him and took his throne. However, it is unknown if the ghost is exactly as he appears to be, and that his presence may have manipulated Hamlet into insanity and murder.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern- Two old friends of Hamlet. They are a pair of silly courtiers who are hired by Claudius to spy on Hamlet and monitor his behaviour. They are killed when Hamlet was to be executed but forged a letter to have his friends executed in his place.

Fortinbras- The Prince of Norway. He plans to avenge his father's death who was killed by King Hamlet. After Hamlet's death, Fortinbras is crowned King of Denmark.

Osric- A foolish courtier who serves as the King's messenger and brings Hamlet to his duelling match with Laertes.

Voltimand and Cornelius- Danish courtiers who Claudius sends to Norway as ambassadors.

Marcellus and Bernardo- A pair of officers at Elsinore Castle who were the first to spot King Hamlet's ghost.

Francisco- An Elsinore soldier and guardsman.

Reynaldo- Polonius' servant, who is sent to France to spy on Laertes.