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The “man versus himself”
conflict is most directly exposed in Hamlet's famous soliloquy where he is
wrestling with his conscience. The realization he comes to in this soliloquy is
that we are afraid to kill ourselves because we do not know what is to be found
after death. Another “man versus himself” conflict is Claudius' inability to
pray. He cannot really justify his past deeds and for him this is actually
another step into darkness. Hamlet may be a thinking man, however, this does not
mean he actually likes to think. Although he might have liked to think in the
time preceding the play, when the time comes for him to take action he cannot
because of this urge to believe. His capacity for thinking becomes a handicap
rather than an advantage and this is not even the most painful or tragic part of
the Hamlet character because the biggest problem is that he is aware of this.
Not only is he incapable of acting without thinking he knows that this is the
case, making the burden even heavier.
Hamlet does not want to face reality and
it is a traumatic experience for him when he has to believe the words of the
ghost, but when the ghost starts demanding him to act on this information is too
much for him. Hamlet is, however, a man of decision, but he is also
contemplative. He needs to think in order to justify his actions and his
intellectual characteristics are the major difference between Claudius and
himself. Hamlet is very aware of the relationship between action and reaction
and realizes that he has to proceed very carefully. In the play Claudius is the
decisive character and the man of action. He takes the first action, the action
that sets the story in motion - the poisoning of Hamlet's father. He also
instigates the final action, the poisoning of the blades and the cup an action
that will backfire and cause his own death. In the play, there seems to be a
constant shift of action, where only one party can act at any time.
These two
parties are of course Hamlet and Claudius. When Claudius has taken the action
that secures him the throne he allows Hamlet to become the man of action, but
Hamlet procrastinates. The only action Hamlet takes is staging the play, which
seems more to serve the purpose of establishing Claudius’s guilt for the murder
of Hamlet’s father. Hamlet then proceeds to kill the curious Polonius. Hamlet is
given the chance to avenge this most unnatural murder when he sees Claudius
praying. Hamlet, being a Christian prince, cannot carry out the act of killing
Claudius while he is praying, as this would secure Claudius’s place in heaven.
Hamlet wants to make sure Claudius will suffer in the afterlife just as Hamlet’s
father did. Hamlet leaves just before Claudius gets up, declaring he cannot
pray; My words fly up, my thoughts remain below: Words without thoughts never to
heaven go (Claudius, Act III, Scene 3).
Had Hamlet known Claudius was unable to
pray then he could have had his revenge right then and there instead of waiting
until the end, taking everyone else with him. Most of the other characters would
probably have acted much quicker than Hamlet if they were in his position.
Imagine Polonius in the situation Hamlet found himself in. He would not have
procrastinated, as much and it would have most likely been off with the head of
the murderer! Any other character in the play would not have stayed as quiet as
Hamlet does (confiding only in his best friend, and even keeping the truth from
his mother until the end of Act III) and these characters might not have come to
killing Claudius. Hamlet does not seem to do anything, again, he thinks too
much, but why? Hamlet is self-conscious, while the majority of characters that
surround him are not and this could explain why he feels inhibited to act.
Hamlet resembles a real person more than any other character in the play, which
might be another reason why he still remains a subject of discussion and why the
play remains so popular. Hamlet is one of the most interesting characters in
English fiction because we can identify with him and understand, although not
always agree with his actions. Hamlet is also set apart by his elusiveness. Many
of the characters in the play can be categorized within minutes of their
introduction. I'm not calling them caricatures, but there is definitely a
caricature-like side to some of them. The pompous Polonius and the deceitful and
thickheaded Guildenstern and Rozencrantz come to my mind, however, this does not
hold true for some other characters such as Laertes and Ophelia.
The character
of Hamlet refuses categorization. Interestingly in regard to this is his love of
theater. He is particularly interested in the idea that things may seem
different from what they really are, just like the people surrounding him. His
mother is no longer his father's wife, but his uncle's, his girlfriend is no
longer there for him, and Guildenstern and Rosencrantz are no longer his
friends. Also, he is aware that he will have to disguise himself and his real
motives and goals in order to attain them and this is why he fakes his madness.
It is not until he picks up Yorick's skull in the beginning of Act V that he
finds out what is real and what is not. In the end when the truth is revealed
and everyone's masks are removed, death is all that is to be found.
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