Hamlet finds himself in a terrible situation. His love for his dead father conflicts greatly with the false words of “appearances” around him. Why do you think he goes along with appearances and doesn’t directly express his opposition to Claudius and Gertrude’s behavior?
Political accountability is perhaps why Hamlet doesn’t directly express his opposition to Claudius and Gertrude.
Any opposition to Claudius and Gertrude would disgruntle the kingdom, because a castle divided cannot stand. In other words, if Hamlet were to openly disagree with Claudius and Gertrude’s relationship, then political instability would ensue, and the people would become worried. Hamlet wouldn’t want any of this, especially when it would only worsen the situation between him and Claudius, and potentially set him multiple sets back from avenging his father’s death. This shows that Hamlet understands the importance of a publicly functional royal family, as well as the importance of strategy.
The second reason why Hamlet isn’t openly against Claudius and Gertrude’s relationship is that he doesn’t want to lose any political power. Once again, it’s all about stability. If Hamlet creates problems with Claudius, Gertrude, or Polonius, his chances of ruling the throne diminish drastically. Thus, Hamlet has to resort to holding his tongue once more.
The thing is, Hamlet has his hands tied from a political perspective. If he gets anyone of importance mad, then he will suffer only suffer the consequences. In the end, Hamlet’s goal is to avenge his father. And he can’t do that if he can’t get close to Claudius, if the public is mad at him for causing instability, or he becomes politically ineligible due to his problem-causing. Hamlet has to be careful about the moves he makes, and who he opposes at this point in the plot.
No comments:
Post a Comment