The Grieving of Hamlet

The Grieving of Hamlet

Although many different positions could be taken on writing an essay for this Shakespearian play, the author took it upon himself to write about Hamlet's grief. His grief is obvious from the beginning of the play and he continues to grieve althroughout the play. Within his twenty-one-page essay, I chose this line to represent that I agree with his outlook on the play. "Ð'...his focus is on his grief and the profound impact in which the ghost has upon it. (Hamlet pg.18 paragraph 3)

I strongly agree with this statement because Hamlet is continually showing huge amounts of grief throughout the play. Even in his opening words in the play he shows some amount of grief to his uncle, the new king, and his mother. His mother basically says that his father is dead, and that there is no bringing him back. So what good does it do for him to weep and mourn? Hamlet replies to this by saying:

Seems madam nay it is! I know not seems

Ð''Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother,

Not customary suit of solemn black.

Not windy suspiration of forc'd breath,

No, nor the fruitful rover pf the eye,

Nor the dejected haviour of the visage,

Together with all forms, moods, shapes, of grief,

That can denote me truly. These, indeed seems,

For they are actions that a man might play;

But I have that with in which passes show---

These but the trappings and the suits of woe. (1,2,76-78)

Clearly this shows Hamlet grieving his father's death while showing hostility to the king and queen for being so deathly cold about the previous king's death. Also the readers can also see in Hamlet's opening dialogue, it shows that he still has not come to terms with his father's death and is still in the state of shock when we first see him.

All throughout the play Hamlet mourns the loss of his father, especially since his father is appearing to him as a ghostly figure telling him to avenge his death, and throughout the play it sets the stage and shows us how he is plotting to get back at the assassinator. Such an instance where the ghost appears to Hamlet is when Hamlet and his mother are in her bedchamber where the ghost will make his last appearance. Hamlet tells his mother to look where the ghost appears but she cannot see it because he is the only one who that has the ability to see him.

Queen: