Hamlet

Author: William Shakespeare

Setting: Denmark

Plot:

Hamlet, the son of the late King Hamlet, is visited by his father's ghost who tells him that he was murdered by Claudius, his brother, and that Hamlet must kill Claudius, now king, to avenge his death.  Hamlet grapples with the idea and seems to descend into madness in his contemplation, but not action, of this act. This descent costs him his girlfriend, Ophelia, as her father Polonious is distrustful of the restitution of his intentions in the face of his potential responsibilities as King. Meanwhile Laertes, Ophelia's brother, wishes to go to France and asks leave of the king, which is granted. As Claudius grows suspicious of Hamlet's madness, he resolves to send him to England to be killed. However, his plans are foiled when pirates attack Hamlet's ship and he escapes, leaving his escorts Rozencrantz and Guildenstern to be killed in his place. Upon his return, Claudius and Laertes, angered by Hamlet's driving Ophelia to suicide, plan to kill him in a duel by poisoning Laertes' blade. In the fight, Hamlet is stabbed by the poisoned blade, after which he obtains it and stabs both Laertes and the king. Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, drinks the "backup plan": a poisoned wine goblet. As everybody dies, Hamlet proclaims that the throne of Denmark should go to Fortinbras of Norway, a seemingly bold and competent leader. 

Main Characters:

Hamlet - Plagued by inaction and long soliloquies, one of his major faults is an inability to act upon his feelings.

Claudius - Motivated by fear and lust for power and possibly love for Gertrude, this antagonist holds the throne of Denmark 

after killing his brother the king.

Laertes - A foil to Hamlet; he acts, but often doesn't think. He is impulsive and vengeful after hearing of the death of his sister, though his relationship with her is seen to be good and pure.

Ophelia - Hamlet's lover at the start of the play; Hamlet's supposed madness and the pressure put upon her by her father drive her drown herself in the river after going mad.

Gertrude - Seems to possess a genuine love for Hamlet, and has some affection for Claudius; whether she is attracted to his person or his power is unclear. Hamlet confides in her his plot to kill Claudius, and Gertrude keeps this secret. 

Polonius - The father of Ophelia and Laertes, he wants what he thinks is best for his children and for himself. He forbids Ophelia from seeing Hamlet.

Point of View: It's a play.

Tone: Shakespeare was always good about getting us to feel how he wants us to about his characters. We never really come to trust Hamlet since we don't know if he's crazy or not, and he doesn't do a whole lot. We don't like Claudius; he doesn't care for his son and killed his brother. On the whole the play has a very tense tone as everyone is on edge and suspicious of everyone else.

Imagery: Hamlet and Ophelia are the primary culprits here. Hamlet is always constructing vivid images depicting his own uncertainty, frustration, and fear. Ophelia shows us images as she goes mad: She paints her sorrow with flowers and nature in a truly moving way, causing us to mourn her all the more.

Symbolism:

Ophilia's flowers are explicable given characteristics, though interestingly who she gives them to isn't specified in the text. 

Hamlet explores the meaning of words, which seem to represent inaction and contemplation, particularly in a scene where he talks with Polonious about a book he's reading, and the words within. He sure says a lot of them.

Quotes:

"O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!"

-Hamlet

Hamlet here realizes that all he is is a man driven by base instincts. He is "rogue and peasant" in that he is base and savage, subject to fancy and fate. That he acknowledges that he is a "slave" is an early manifestation of his eventual realization that fate is the true master of man, not man himself. This quote marks the beginning of his acceptance of his fate, whatever it is, and his eventual action which, to some tragic extent, saves Denmark.

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark"

-Marcellus

This sets the scene for the whole show. Though there is personal conflict, growth, and death, this is to some extent a story of the purification of Denmark. Rotten is a good word indeed - Greed and fear have festered and spread till the kingdom is nearly paralyzed by it.

Theme: 

Neither action without thought nor thought without action can restore a broken world; one must accept that, do what we will, we can't control everything.

Hamlet takes his sweet time in doing anything, and as a result most everyone dies. Laertes, however, brashly acts instinctively and nearly throws the kingdom into even more turmoil. It is only the acceptance that we aren't in utter control of our destiny that we can act thoughtfully for the betterment of the world.