Essay: Explore Hamlet’s Tragic Heroism in William Shakespeare’s Classic Tragedy

In the play Hamlet, William Shakespeare is able to convey an absolute tragedy that is depicted in a series of misfortunes that seem to follow the protagonist, Hamlet. By using various conventions regularly associated with a historical tragedy, Shakespeare allows readers to understand, relate to, and emphasize with his work. Through Hamlet’s tragic flaw, the underlying theme of revenge throughout the novel, and the take on Hamlet’s tragic heroism, it is evident that this playwright is consistent with any other shakespearean tragedy.
Firstly, through the depiction of Hamlet’s character throughout the entirety of the novel, we, as readers can begin to understand how his actions and his fatal flaw, an inability to make decisions and act on them, had set the foundations for its overall tragic ending. We first see Hamlet’s most significant character flaw when we are introduced to the ghost of his late father, who informs him that King Claudius was responsible for his death. Upon hearing this, Hamlet is enraged, however, seemingly not enough to act on it immediately, as he sets out to determine whether or not this revelation is the truth. This is a prime example of his indecisiveness and his overall inability to take action. Moreover, Hamlet is seen to be equally indecisive with decisions regarding his own life. In the moments following his downfall, he is seen to be contemplating:
To be, or not to be, that is the question.
Is it nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune
Or to fight against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing, end them. To die ; to sleep,
No more, and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to; ‘tis consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d.
(III.i.58-64)
In this moment, it is clear that Hamlet displays a certain sense of his own everlasting internal conflict, contemplating the nobility of suicide. Furthermore, even once Hamlet believes that it is evident that Claudius is responsible for his father’s demise, he is unable to follow through with his plan of avengeance. Once confronted with Claudius, he states:
Now might I do it pat, now a’ is praying;
And so I am reveng’d. That would be scann’d;
A villain kills my father, and for that,
I, his sole son, do this same villain send
To heaven.
(III.iii.74-80)
Hamlet is seen making yet another remark that will excuse him from killing Claudius. Due to his own issues that cause a constant conflict within himself, Hamlet is unable to carry out tasks that seemingly have the potential to change the overall course of his life and his overall being which in consequence, keeps him from doing what has been instilled upon him by his father’s ghost.
Secondly, Shakespeare uses the idea of revenge, an important aspect to any tragedy, to set an overall tone and advance the plot of this tragedy. As seen in the beginning of this play, when first met with the ghost, Hamlet is encouraged to avenge the demise of his father when he is told to “revenge his foul and most unnatural murder (Shakespeare I.v.25).” This initial introduction to the underlying theme of revenge sets a tragic tone for the rest of the play’s plot, and thus, Hamlet’s revenge becomes a central, recurring idea. In addition, the importance of revenge is further elaborated when Claudius has a conversation with Laertes on the matter:
King
Hamlet comes back: what would you undertake,
To show yourself in deed your father’s son
More than in words?
Laertes
To cut his throat i’ the church
King
No place indeed should murder sanctuarize;
Revenge should have no bounds.
( IV.vii.124-128)
This conversation, between Claudius and Laertes, accentuates the importance of revenge by disregarding the significance and symbolism of a church and stating that revenge should have no bounds. Later, Hamlet’s own personal struggles with and reasons for revenge are elaborated upon, when he speaks of his intentions to kill Claudius:
Does it not, think’st thee, stand me now upon–
He that hath kill’d my king and whored my mother,
Popp’d in between the election and my hopes,
Thrown out his angle for my proper life,
And with such cozenage—is’t not perfect conscience,
To quit him with this arm? and is’t not to be damn’d,
To let this canker of our nature come
In further evil?
(V.ii.65-70)
He explains that his reason for wanting revenge has much to do with both his dad, as well as the throne itself, as Claudius has disrupted the lineage and threatens his rightful place as king. This passage is used to, again, emphasize the true nature behind Hamlet’s ever present need for revenge, and gives him a motive, which allows readers to emphasize with his overall character and places meaning behind his actions.
Finally, the presence of Hamlet’s character serves as this play’s tragic hero, where it is inevitable to feel for the protagonist despite his questionable actions. At the beginning of the play, it is indicated that Hamlet holds a high amount of respect and admiration for his late father, when he describes him:
So excellent a king, that was to this
Hyperion to a satyr, so loving to my mother,
That he might not beteem the winds of heaven
Visit her face too roughly; heaven and earth,
Must I remember? why, she would hang on him..
(I.ii.139-143)
This sets the tone for Hamlet’s overall character, who’s beginnings include noble intentions in regards to his father. As the events unfold, it is made clear that Hamlet, as a character, is simply a good person who has been placed in rather unfavorable circumstances. In addition, the presence of his father’s ghost serves as a catalyst to his collapse as a character and ultimate demise. We later see the descriptions of Hamlet by King Claudius, as he orders Rosencrantz and Guildenstern “Get from him why he puts on this confusion, / Grating so harshly all his days of quiet / with turbulent and dangerous lunacy? (III.i.2-4).” This negative depiction of Hamlet, where the King eludes that he is feigning his ludicrousy, paints a picture of a noble man, merely misunderstood, as we can see on Hamlet’s end, that he is rightfully acting out. Even in his demise, Hamlet is seen as a hero:
Bear Hamlet like a soldier to the stage,
For he was likely, had been put on,
To have proved most royal: and, for his passage,
The soldiers’ music and rite of war
Speak loudly for him.
(V.ii.386-391)
As the play ends with a statement from Fortinbras, it is an ode to Hamlet’s heroism that highlights the true tragedy that is his death. It is for this reason that Hamlet’s character can be described as a tragic hero, because due to various conflicts, both external and internal, as well as his one tragic flaw, he is unable to ultimately succeed.
All in all, a tragedy contains basic defining conventions that set an overall tone for the work itself. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, there is the presence of Hamlet himself, who maintained his gallantry throughout and died a tragic death as the play’s protagonist and hero, due to his significant and fatal flaw. Along the way, the ever looming presence of a need revenge is one that plagues the characters. Ultimately, it is clear that Hamlet is no different from other shakespearean tragedies in the way of its formatting and the tragic message behind it.