Hamlet

CHARACTERS
Hamlet

 Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark. He is the son of Queen Gertrude and the late King
Hamlet, and nephew and stepson to the current king, Claudius.
 He is full of existential musings, immaturity, and layers of complexity, making him an
unusual protagonist in a play about revenge.
 He is a university student, and his long monologues throughout the play appear to be an
exploration of his inner thoughts as he struggles to distinguish between what society
expects of him and what he believes.
 His father's ghost orders him to take revenge on Claudius for murdering him, yet Hamlet
questions whether revenge is ever right—and if taking revenge will ever be enough.
 His hesitation leads to his inaction, his rumination on the meaning of life and death, and
his trouble distinguishing between what is real or not.
 Shakespeare utilizes Hamlet to investigate the nihilism one may face
when life and death are seen as random and futile. His mistreatment of
his lover Ophelia and his mother Gertrude, his killing of Polonius, and
his humiliation of Claudius are all results of his indecision.
 As Hamlet delays in taking action and claiming the throne, the kingdom
of Denmark grows increasingly unstable and exposed to outside threats.
 His conflicting personality, winding speeches, and doomed fate make
him one of Shakespeare's most renowned characters, and one of
theater's greatest mysteries.
Claudius

 Claudius is Hamlet's uncle and, ever since he took the throne as the King of Denmark,
Hamlet’s new stepfather. After the death of Hamlet's father, Claudius marries Gertrude, his
brother's widow, and seizes the throne, much to Hamlet's deep resentment and mistrust.
 At the start of the play, the ghost of Hamlet's father appears to Hamlet, revealing that
Claudius killed him in order to gain the throne, and the apparition urges Hamlet to take
revenge.
 Hamlet's hatred for Claudius increases following this revelation, yet he still fails to act.
 Meanwhile, Claudius assumes Hamlet's behavior is evidence of insanity, and he sends
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to investigate.
 He worries that Hamlet knows of his misdeeds, a suspicion verified when Hamlet puts on
a play that mirrors his father's murder.
 Claudius then attempts to pray to God for forgiveness, but he
admits that, though he won't be forgiven unless he repents in action
as well as in words, he doesn't actually feel real regret: he is
content with his position and his marriage to Gertrude
 Driven by ambition and greed, he seeks primarily to hold on to
what he has taken by whatever means necessary—no matter the
cost.
Gertrude

 Gertrude is one of only two female characters in Hamlet, and her plotline is
indicative of the play's exploration of women. As the Queen of Denmark, her safety
and social rank are dependent upon her connection to a powerful man—a reality
that leads to her swift marriage to Claudius following the death of her husband.
 This decision is regarded as cruel and calculating by her son, Hamlet, but it is
one of the few choices available to a woman in her position.
 Gertrude is one of the most multi-faceted characters in the play, and her true
intentions are often hard to gauge.
 For instance, when confronted by Hamlet, she admits that reflecting on her choice
of marrying Claudius after the death of King Hamlet is too painful to think about.
 It is unclear if Gertrude is aware of Claudius's murderous ambition,
but either way, she seems as if she would rather not delve too
deeply into the subject.
 Her story is linked to the play's theme of action and inactivity, as
her marriage to Claudius, whether she knows of his crime or not, is
a prime example of the complex moral implications of both taking
and avoiding action.
Ophelia

 Ophelia, the only female character in the play other than Gertrude, is Polonius's daughter,
Laertes's sister, and Hamlet's lover. While she shows traits of honesty and wit, she is manipulated
and controlled by the greater forces—and particularly by the men—around her.
 At the beginning of the play, she and Hamlet are in an ambiguous relationship, and her father
uses her to try and discover the source of Hamlet's madness, unaware that Hamlet is only
pretending to be mad.
 When Ophelia acts as part of her father's plan, Hamlet takes out his frustration on her, cruelly
suggesting she become a nun and making inappropriate remarks.
 The death of her father and abuse from Hamlet cause her to lose her mind and eventually take her
own life.
 In this way, she recaptures a semblance of personal agency that was unavailable to her in life.
Polonius

 Polonius, a counselor to Claudius and father to Ophelia and Laertes, is a verbose, conventional,
and fumbling old man. His servility to the king and queen makes Hamlet doubt him, viewing the
old man as spineless and deceptive.
 Polonius is desperate to stay in the good graces of the monarchs, and he devises many ways
of spying on Hamlet, generally behaving in petty, meddlesome, and hypocritical ways.
 In an effort to eavesdrop on a conversation between Gertrude and Hamlet, he hides behind a
tapestry in the queen's chambers.
 When he makes a noise, Hamlet stabs his sword through the fabric, believing that Polonius is
Claudius.
 Polonius's arc ties in with the theme of appearance versus reality, as his machinations and
flattery in pursuit of power make it impossible to identify his true self or intentions.
Laertes

 Laertes is Ophelia’s brother and Polonius’s son. A student at a university in France, Laertes is
gallant, worldly, hotheaded, and obsessed with his family’s honor.
 In other words he is in many ways Hamlet's opposite: active while Hamlet is passive,
physical while Hamlet is verbal.
 Laertes's love for Ophelia and duty to Polonius drive him to passionate action, while Hamlet's
love for Gertrude and duty to King Hamlet drive him to tortured inaction.
 And yet, Laertes is never portrayed as being better than Hamlet. He isn't an image of what
Hamlet could be if only Hamlet wasn't so navel-gazing. Rather, Laertes's orientation
towards action makes him easy for Claudius to manipulate.
 His desire to avenge his father and sister makes him a willing pawn in Claudius's plots against
Hamlet.
 Those plots ultimately result in getting Laertes himself killed, but
not before Laertes realizes his mistake and reveals Claudius's
treachery to Hamlet before forgiving Hamlet himself.
Ghost

 A supernatural being that appears to Hamlet at the start of the play and claims to be Hamlet's
father, unable to enter heaven because he was murdered by Claudius and unable to receive his last
rights. Hamlet seems to at once believe that the specter is his father, but at the same time to fear
that it might be some demon tricking him, a worry which helps drive Hamlet's feverish inaction.
 Horatio, Marcellus, Barnardo, and Francisco can all see the spirit, though it is debatable if it
can decide who it appears to.
 This is demonstrated when Gertrude is unable to observe the ghost in her room, either by
choice or by circumstance.
 The ghost is pivotal to many of the play's main ideas, such as the contrast of what is real and what
is not, action and inaction, religion, respect, and revenge.
 It urges Hamlet to act and becomes agitated with him when he does not.
 At the same time, the ghost is stuck in a limbo, unable to leave until
its mission is accomplished and sentenced to a kind of horrible
purgatory because of what seems like a religious technicality. This
serves as a reminder of death's power and that the afterlife might
not be pleasant, regardless of one's deeds while alive.
Horatio

 Horatio is Hamlet's most loyal and trusted friend.He is eager to

help Hamlet discover the truth of his father's passing and seek
revenge, but as Hamlet's behavior grows more erratic and
irrational, Horatio becomes concerned that his companion is in over
his head and cautions him against jeopardizing his name and safety.
 Horatio implores Hamlet not to engage in the duel with Laertes, which ultimately leads to the
demise of himself, Gertrude, Laertes, and Claudius.
 When Hamlet succumbs to the poisoned saber wielded by Laertes, Horatio contemplates taking
his own life, but Hamlet pleads with Horatio to stay alive and spread the truth of his story to the
world.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

 Claudius calls Rosencrantz and Guildenstern—Hamlet's old

classmates—to Elsinore because he wants them to figure out the
cause of Hamlet's insanity.Upon their arrival, Hamlet discerns their
motives and accuses them of being "sponge[s]" who let themselves
be manipulated by Claudius.
 After learning of Claudius's plan to have him executed, Hamlet forges a letter that orders the
death of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern instead, resulting in their eventual demise.
Fortinbras

 Prince Fortinbras of Norway starkly contrasts Hamlet. Driven by a

desire to expand his kingdom, make a name for himself, and take
revenge for the death of his father (who was killed by Hamlet's
father), Fortinbras is actively pursuing his goals.
 This is in contrast to Hamlet, whose inactivity is highlighted by the frequent mention of the
Prince of Norway's exploits.

 Fortinbras is only seen on stage at the end of the play.