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Perseverance In Hamlet

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Humanity’s will power and perseverance is arguably the trait that defines us as humans. As a unified race, man’s duty to himself and others is vital for survival. However, in The Tragedy of Hamlet, this belief is put to the test. The Tragedy of Hamlet is a play written by William Shakespeare. It is a story set in medieval Denmark that focuses on the protagonist Hamlet and his quest for revenge. Hamlet struggles to avenge the murder of his late father, the former king of Denmark. As time passes Hamlet discovers that the murder was committed by none other than his uncle, the new king, Claudius. Hamlet’s inability to avenge his father is seen as a hidden warning to the audience. What this means is that William Shakespeare includes a message throughout …show more content…
Now he is a-praying. /And now I’ll do ’t. And so he goes to heaven. /And so am I revenged.—That would be scanned.” (Act 3.Scene 3.ln. 74-76) Here Hamlet is contemplating his decision to finally kill Claudius. After thinking it over, Hamlet stops short when he realizes that if he were to kill Claudius during his prayer, Claudius would have gone to heaven. Some speculate that what Hamlet did was perfectly normal while others think that this was an attempt by Hamlet to delay the killing of king Claudius. In the end Hamlet’s choice to spare Claudius is what most likely led to the deaths of Polonius, Ophelia, and, inevitably, Hamlet …show more content…
While travelling, Hamlet comes upon the army of Fortinbras, Prince of Norway. Hamlet, seeing Fortinbras march with his army to avenge his father, becomes so inspired he finally decides to take action against King Claudius. Hamlet says, “How all occasions do inform against me, /And spur my dull revenge!” Here, Hamlet realizes the errors of his ways. When he sees Fortinbras risking his life in the name of his father, Hamlet looks to himself and sees that he has been running from what he had to do this entire time. Hamlet then quickly returns to Denmark to achieve justice for his father. However, this moment in the story does not only serve as inspiration to Hamlet, but rather to show a contrast between Fortinbras and Hamlet. Fortinbras set out to take action since the very beginning of the play while Hamlet procrastinated his revenge. The very same contrast is also seen at the very end of the play. When all is said and done, Hamlet dies and Fortinbras succeeds. This has lead to a conclusion that one’s action leads to one’s victory while one’s inaction leads to one’s

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