The Force That Drives Hamlet

Submitted To: Mr.Freitas

Submitted By: Andrea Montesano
Date: October 5th, 2017
Course: ENG-4UP
 Revenge can be the greatest motivator for any man. In ​William Shakespeare's​ ​Hamlet​,

Hamlet is the son of a murdered father and has every reason to exact revenge for the misdeeds

that his Uncle Claudius has acted upon his family. Yet all the young Hamlet can muster in

response to his father’s unsettled spirit is elapsed time without action. Hamlet’s true motivations

are revealed when Hamlet’s protest of his mother's new marriage, his disobedience of his

father's orders, and his overall strange sexual infatuation for his mother are all analyzed. It is

evident that the passion that burns inside Hamlet is not one stoked by revenge for his father but

rather one that is fueled by jealousy for his mother.

Claudius is the man who sits atop the stolen throne of Denmark. Although he is

unrightfully king, an imbalance that Hamlet should desire to correct, the only true position he

aspires towards is to act as a partition in the marriage of Claudius and Gertrude. The tense

relationship between Claudius and Hamlet begins even before it is revealed that Claudius was

the perpetrator of the murder of Hamlet’s father. At the coronation for Claudius’ crown, Hamlet

disrespects the King in front of his noble disciples by rejecting the olive branch Claudius offers

replying with “Not so, my lord; I am too much in the sun”. (1.1 67), Hamlet disrespects the

marriage his mother is now apart of by displaying he will not be the son in this incestous

marriage. Additionally, after Hamlet confirms that Claudius kills his father, Hamlet squanders the

moment to take revenge. The silver tongue protagonist could not summon merely one deserved

insult towards Claudius, something Hamlet feels no remorse in doing to the innocent Gertrude.

In the end, Hamlet finally slays Claudius, and after the deed is done Hamlet stands over the

dead corpse of Claudius, stabbed with the sharpened fencing sword, and force fed with the

poisoned wine, Hamlet asks Claudius “Is thy union here?”(5.2 321) representing that Hamlet

has destroyed the last piece of Claudius and Gertrude’s marriage.

 A desperate soul trapped in a hellish place, KIng Hamlet calls upon his only hope to

regain his crown and dignity in some form through his son. Although Hamlet vows to follow

through on his father’s wishes, it is primarily a facade as Hamlet repeatedly ignores his father’s

orders for his own agenda. The first request from King Hamlet is a call for revenge: “​Murder

most foul, as in the best it is But this most foul, strange and unnatural.” (1.5 27-28) To which Hamlet

responds with: “ Haste me to know ’t, that I, with wings as swift As meditation or the thoughts of love,

May sweep to my revenge.” (1.5 29-31) Hamlet is always eager in speech to answer his father yet

never acts upon his own father’s gestures, displaying the overall lack of genuine care for his father’s

suffering. Additionally Hamlet not only does not follow through with his father commands, but goes

as far to betray his father’s word to pursue his true motivation. The spirit of the king specifically

declares to Hamlet to leave his mother alone. “Taint not thy mind, nor let thy soul contrive Against

thy mother aught. Leave her to heaven And to those thorns that in her bosom lodge To prick and

sting her.”(1.5 85-88) Hamlet proves again that his aspirations are to destroy his mother’s marriage

as he violently abuses Gertrude and torments her on her decision to be with Claudius. “From the fair

forehead of an innocent love And sets a blister there, makes marriage vows As false as dicers'

oaths”. After witnessing the abuse Hamlet gives to his mother, the ghost of Hamlet returns in an

attempt to sharpen Hamlet’s dull appetite for revenge, “Do not forget. This visitation Is but to whet

thy almost blunted purpose.”(3.4 112-113) King Hamlet himself admits that his sons current

ambitions are not what he proclaimed they were on their first encounter. The unsettled spirit can see

Hamlets true ambition is to shame Gertrude and destroy her marriage, a goal in which Hamlet never

procrastinates on.

Gertrude is a character who's loving and innocent personality is desired and also abused by

the powerful and hungry men in her life. With Claudius now occupying the most important position in

Gertrude’s life, it becomes Hamlets greatest ambition to take that position, more so than to avenge

his father. This is first shown with Hamlets horrid and awkward obsession with his mother's sex life.
These perverted thoughts all take over Hamlet's first soliloquy, which started as an ode to his great

father, he quickly turns to his main priority and begins lambasting his mother, constantly making

reference to an “incestous” bed when referring to her. “O most wicked speed, to post With such

dexterity to incestuous sheets!”(1.2 157-158). If Hamlets mental thoughts about his mother's sex life

is not enough of an indication of his true ambitions Hamlet eventually fully displays the position he

desires from her mother. He dishonours and violently disparages his mother all while allowing his

inner ambitious to flow through as he begins thrusting upon his mother in a rage that is both violent

and sexual. If it had not been for the interruption of Hamlet’s father there is no telling how far Hamlet

would have gone. The most evident example of Hamlet’s motivations stand are the instantaneous

response to the death of his mother. As Hamlet increasingly delays the assassination of Claudius in

the name of his father throughout the play, the second Gertrude fell to the poison of the wine,

Hamlet kills Claudius. Hamlet finally kills the man he vowed to slay countless times, and when the

deed is finally done Hamlet utters “Follow my mother”(5.2 322), the final indication he was killed in

the name of Gertrude.

As much as revenge can be the greatest motivator for a man, jealousy can be a feeling that

creates more than simply motivation. After the death of his father, Hamlet appears to vow himself to

a life dedicated to restoring honour to a tainted throne, when in reality Hamlets true motivations for

action is out of jealousy for his mother. Gertrudes innocent and depending personality invites a

presence for a strong male figure in her life. With the figure of her husband gone and replaced by an

unworthy man in the shape of Claudius, Hamlet bases his actions solely on how he can claim this

place from his uncle and win his mother’s affection.

Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. New York, NY: Folger Shakespeare Library, 1992. Print.
Essay Topic #9: “It is the discovery of his mother’s shallowness and sensuality that is
key to Hamlet’s attitude. Not the murder of his father.” to what extent do you agree?

Question: Is Hamlets father the true source of of Hamlets motivations

Answer/Thesis: It is evident that the passion that burns inside Hamlet is not one stoked
by revenge for his father but rather one that is fueled by jealousy for his mother.

Point 1: Analyzing the relationship between Claudius and Hamlet

Point 2: The disobedience towards Hamlets ghosts wishes
Point 3: Hamlets obsession with his mothers sex life and overall passion for her death
Point 4: Gertrudes reliance on men invites competition for men