Though Hamlet vows he will heed the words of the ghost and take revenge on the one who killed his father, he has yet to act. Revenge seems to be on the horizon, so why is Hamlet waiting so long to enact it? Consider also which characters serve as foils to Hamlet's inaction. Who is actually taking steps to do something?
11 Comments
Jared Fogarty
2/4/2015 08:09:42 am
Hamlet is waiting to take revenge against Claudius because he is thinking the whole situation over. As a man with somewhat logical thoughts, Hamlet is weary about information given to him by an unknown ghost. He does not know if the ghost is his father, and even then, if it is telling the truth about his father's death. Hamlet is taking time so he can devise a plan to tell if Claudius actually murdered his father.
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Sara King
2/10/2015 11:13:35 pm
I agree with Jared with the fact that Hamlet it thinking over his thoughts to make sure they are sane before he acts on them. Hamlet is not fully sure that the ghost was real, deep down inside he is not sure if he believes it or not yet. I think by thinking and speaking of his actions, and not actually doing them, he is trying to internally convince himself one way or another. Hamlet is taking his time so he can make sure his plan is perfect, and will work and will get the ultimate revenge.
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Pearl Davis
3/8/2015 11:42:58 pm
I agree that Hamlet is definitely thinking over his plan to make sure it is the right choice before acting on it, and with his plan involving murder, it is probably a good idea for him to think over it, even if it seems in excess at times.
Jared Fogarty
2/5/2015 08:03:15 am
Hamlet is waiting to take revenge against Claudius because he is thinking the whole situation over. As a man with somewhat logical thoughts, Hamlet is weary about information given to him by an unknown ghost. He does not know if the ghost is his father, and even then, if it is telling the truth about his father's death. Hamlet is taking time so he can devise a plan to tell if Claudius actually murdered his father.
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Taylor Leach
2/9/2015 11:31:17 pm
I think that Hamlet has not acted yet because he is intelligent. Although Hamlet appears to be crazy, underneath his madness he portrays are very calculated moves and a smart man. Hamlet has not acted because he is waiting for the right time. He wants to get all the facts and be sure of his actions. Hamlet does not want to take a drastic action until he fully understands the situation. I also think there is a little fear involved with Hamlet's lack of initiative in seeking revenge. Acting out against his uncle is a big step and Hamlet himself is still working through his grief. He was caught off guard by the ghost and is not sure what action exactly he should take until he can verify the situation. A foil character to Hamlet is his own uncle, Claudius, who took revenge on Hamlet Sr.
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Natalie Carlberg
2/11/2015 12:54:28 am
I think that Hamlet has not yet taken any action, like others have said, because he is making sure that his plan does not appear crazy. He knows that his mother and step father have taken action by sending his friends to spy on him, so he is being extra careful with what he does because he does not want his plan to be exposed before he takes action because that could potentially ruin his plan. Hamlet could also be waiting to see if he notices anything strange or anything that could lead him to further believe that Claudius did actually murder his father. I think that Hamlet did not take any action right away because then he might of been looked at like he is crazy, more crazy than some think now, because he would not have actually thought his actions through he would have just been throwing things out there without even thinking.
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Alison Von Haden
2/11/2015 08:36:53 am
I agree with the others that Hamlet has not taken action against Claudius because he is intelligent and is thinking things through. He is not sure if the ghost was his father therefore carefully planning what he is going to do next. Because he is sane and not crazy, he is going to make sure that Claudius for sure killed his father before he does anything drastic. Hamlet is able to carefully plan every move he makes because he is sane and can manipulate people into getting what he wants. I believe that Hamlet will always continue to get what he wants, especially in getting revenge.
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Elizabeth Anderson
2/13/2015 12:02:19 am
I disagree that it is a calculated action. Hamlet wants to kill Claudius, he has so much hatred and anger towards him that it affects his ability to make clear decisions as most emotions do. Emotions prevent him from acting or thinking logically sometimes. If he was intelligent and calculating, Hamlet would have killed Claudius when he had that opportunity. He didn't because of the high emotions associated with this situation. Hamlet doesn't take revenge maybe because he's smart, maybe because he's a coward, probably because he's an emotional youth. His father's death affected him greatly. How much do you think Hamlet really wants to be responsible for death? He views Claudius' death in a romantic sort of way where he just disappears and things get better. Hamlet's emotions get in the way of acting methodically, rationally, or brutally.
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Miranda Haack
2/16/2015 12:53:12 am
I agree with Elizabeth and her idea that Hamlet's hesitation to kill Claudius is not calculated. I think that when he had the opportunity to take action, he did not have a plan created, so he decided against it. Hamlet seems to let his emotions get the best of him, and can't see past them. Maybe he is so hesitant because he knows how sad he felt at the loss of his father, but it is more likely because he wants the pain to be worse than just random death. If he can make Claudius feel more pain and suffer before his death, maybe Hamlet will be more satisfied.
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Aidan Manley
2/17/2015 01:23:20 am
I completely agree! Hamlet is controlled entirely by his emotions instead of logic. I think his decision to let Claudius live was because he was afraid of actually going through with it. Now that he has killed Polonius, however, he knows what to do and what it feels like to kill, so he'll be much less afraid to do it in the future now that he has experience with it.
Cole Snyder
3/9/2015 12:21:18 pm
Well he's insane. He knows he should follow his father's advise but his emotions get the best of him. He wants to to be perfect and because of this, he is taking a long time.
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