Concept in Definition ABC

"Hamlet" is the title of one of the most recognized tragedies of the English playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616). This play was written between 1599 and 1601 during the Elizabethan period and according to most studies its author was inspired by an ancient Norse legend.

Main idea of ​​this reference work

Hamlet is the son of the recently deceased king of Denmark and he is dejected and full of doubts because his mother has married Claudius, the brother of his father who has become the new king. Hamlet's story revolves around two axes: the desire for revenge when he discovers that Claudio is the murderer of his father and the constant doubts that torment him.

Other minor themes

In addition to the thirst for Justice and Hamlet's existential doubt, other issues are addressed: reason versus madness, the forces of destiny opposed at random, the confrontation between good and evil and the binomial Liberty-responsibility. In the famous monologue which begins with the famous phrase "To be or not to be" Hamlet expresses his personal hesitations.

Psychological analysis of the characters and Shakespeare

To the margin of its indisputable quality literary, "Hamlet" has elicited all kinds of analysis and evaluations. Among them we must highlight the psychological analysis of the characters and of William Shakespeare himself, a writer whose life is wrapped in legend.

Hamlet is a tormented individual, as he has been dethroned and the murderer of his father has consolidated a corrupt kingdom. He is a dejected and disappointed man who internally struggles to know what his destiny should be: not to act in the face of injustice and feel like a coward or fight for his convictions by staining his hands with blood.

Claudio is an envious, unfair man, full of ambition and with an inordinate inclination for pleasure and vice

Gertrude, wife of Claudius and mother of Hamlet, is a woman dissatisfied, peaceful and trapped in the conflict family that she is living, because she is divided between the love for her son and the passion she feels for Claudio.

Ophelia, Hamlet's desired woman, is a sweet young woman who belongs to the nobility and who feels that her love for Hamlet is threatened by family pressure. Polonio (father of Ofelia and a close collaborator of Claudio) is a character who adapts to the circumstances, helpful and opportunistic.

Finally, the studies that have been done on the personality Shakespeare's maintain that she was a person with some psychosomatic disorder, sensitive, lover of orderly life, egocentric, fanciful and with a little home spirit.

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