Impossibility of Certainty in Hamlet

The Impossibility of Certainty in crossroads Doubt is that raise of mind where the questioner faces no undivided answer nor the lack of one, but rather a choice amid a pair of alternatives. Harry Levin in The pass of Hamlet It is arrogate that William Shakespe ares Hamlet is regarded as the Bards vastest spectacular enigma, for misunderstanding is the unavoidable condition of Hamlets quest for certainties. non only is Hamlet bewildered by puzzling visions and by commands plain incapable of fulfillment, but he is also the victim of misinterpretation by those around him.The dying Hamlet urges the honest Horatio to report me and my cause in good order To the unsatisfied, because none of the characters except for Horatio have caught more than than a coup doeil of Hamlets true situation (V. ii. 371-372). We as an observing audience, comprehend the inner thoughts and secret plots of almost any significant character, should remember that we cut vastly more than the plays chara cters. In Hamlet, we cannot pretend that we are unaware of what happens next or how it all comes outessay source prank. This is Shakespeares richest source of dramatic irony.However, the characters are faced with rival options to strike back or not to revenge, whether a Ghost comes from heaven or from hell. It is this doubt, this scruple in the face of two possibilities, that is central to Hamlet at every level. Hamlet is a play of misunderstanding and impediment. Its central source is the elusiveness of intimacy and certainty. From the very first scene, the play establishes incredulity through the interrogative communication between Barnado, Francisco, Marcellus, and Horatio Barnardo Whos there? Francisco Nay, answer me. Stand and unfold yourself Barnardo Say, what, is Horatio there? Horatio A piece of him. (I. i. 1-24) Having established a mood of fear and uncertainty, the shade of the Ghost causes Horatio to declare It harrows me with fear and wonder (I. i. 51). This ant ithetical placement of lyric poem heightens the paranormal and eerie setting of the play. The portentous Ghost acts as an harbinger for what is to come (I. i. 121). The betingly extravagant monologue where Claudius appeals to his subjects to accept the validity of his matrimony to Gertrude hints that the new King is putting on a facade.Read more about Dramatic CriticismClaudius uses many oxymoronic phrases to try and reconcile the death of out of date Hamlet and Claudius subsequent marriage to Gertrude such as, With mirth in funeral and with plaint in marriage (I. ii. 12). This rhythmically balanced but significantly inharmonious sentence serves to highlight that there is something suspect and Rotten in the state of Denmark. Claudius further enforces the idea that nothing can really be trusted. Similarly, the affinity between the actions and internal thought processes of human beings is seeming(a) in the intrigue Polonius.Polonius is also a man with little integrity capabl e of great lying. He tells his son Laertes, To thine aver self be true (I. iii. 84). but later Polonius enlists Reynaldo to spy on his son, stating, Your bait of falsehood take this object of truth (II. i. 70). This metaphor and the oxymoronic placement of falsehood and truth exemplify the bearing of dichotomy in the play. He dismisses Reynaldo aphorism, You have me, Have you not? (II. i. 75). The uncertainty and lack of trust indoors the play is mull overed in the chiastic syntax of this sentence.Polonius is distrusting of his own servant. The allusions to ancient Greece and Rome throughout Hamlet further support the ideas of duality and deception. Hamlet, in a simile, compares his father to Claudius like Hyperion to a Satyr (I. ii. 144). Hamlet later has the Players recite lines referring to the ominous knight of Troy (II. ii. 479). Polonius makes a informant to Brutus betrayal of Julius Caesar (III. ii. 109-110). All three of these references contribute to the duality and deception evident in the play.A Satyr is only half a man, the Trojan horse is heralded as one of the most treacherous and deceitful way of conquest, and Julius Caesar is murdered by people he thought were loyal to him. David Bevington notes in his commentary on Hamlet that the name Claudius stems from two words. The first is the verb claudo, essence to imprison. The second is the adjective claudus, meaning disabled, wavering, or uncertain (Bevington). It goes without saying that a character whose name literally means uncertain highlights the theme of doubt that is apparent through the whole play.The arrival of the Players and their presentation of The mutilate of Gonzago in Act 3 also demonstrate duplicity at heart the text. Hamlet modifies the play at bottom a play to have it reflect the murder of his father. This dramatic device conjures up the notion of appearance versus reality. The duality of Claudius, Polonius, and Hamlet demonstrate the lack of certainty and absolu te truth within the play. The perpetual search for meaning and questioning of the established order within the play reflects the unattainability of truth and certainty in greater society.Hamlets many soliloquies of self-questioning and self-loathing paint an image of a man overcome by torturous self-observation. Morris Weitz notes that Hamlets speeches show signs of existentialism (How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world, I. ii. 137-138), relativism (For there is nothing good nor but, but mentation makes it so, I. ii. 268-270), and moral subjectivism (Vicious mole of naturein their toleratewherinthey are not guilty since nature cannot choose his origin, I. iv. 27-29).Although the Grecian Sophists had dabbled in these concepts, and Socrates had once said, The only thing I retire is that I know nothing, this questioning of the societal and philosophical norms of the date was revolutionary and unparalleled (Weitz). The King at the time of Ha mlets publication was James I, who had affirmed the Divine Right of Kings to rule. At a time when the sovereignty of the Monarchy reigned supreme, Hamlets questioning of the afterlife, (To be, or not to bewhat dreams may come, III. i. 64-74), lamentation at the inequality n the world (Th Oppressorthat patient merit of the unworthy takes, III. i. 79-82), and rejection of the superiority of Monarchs (Our monarchs and outstretched heroes the beggars shadows, II. ii. 282-283), is a testament to the elusiveness of certainty and truth in the play. The themes of duality and deceit and the search for meaning and order are central to the essential message of Hamlet that certainty is unattainable. This duality makes up the entire structure of Hamlet, proving that, A double blessing truly is a double grace (I. iii. 58). Works Cited Bevington, David M. Introduction.twentieth vitamin C Interpretations of Hamlet a Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ Prentice-Hall, 1968. 1-12. Pr int. Levin, Harry. Interrogation, Doubt, banter Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis. The Question of Hamlet. bare-assed York Oxford UP, 1959. 48+. Print. Weitz, Morris. Introduction. Hamlet and the Philosophy of Literary Criticism. sugar University of Chicago, 1964. Vii-Xiii. Print. Bibliography Bevington, David M. Introduction. Twentieth Century Interpretations of Hamlet a Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs, NJ Prentice-Hall, 1968. 1-12. Print. Levin, Harry. Interrogation, Doubt, Irony Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis. The Question of Hamlet. New York Oxford UP, 1959. 48+. Print. Weitz, Morris. Hamlet Philosophy the Intruder. Shakespeare, Philosophy, and Literature Essays. Ed. Morris Weitz and Margaret Collins. New Studies in Aesthetics 10. New York Lang, 1995. 17-33 Weitz, Morris. Introduction. Hamlet and the Philosophy of Literary Criticism. Chicago University of Chicago, 1964. Vii-Xiii. Print. West, Rebecca. A Court and World Infected by the Disease of Corruption. Re adings on Hamlet. By Don Nardo. San Diego, CA Greenhaven, 1999. 106-11. Print.