Hamlets Indecision


Hamlet is very indecisive all through out the play. One of the things he is undecided on is the fact that he can’t trust anyone for sure. Hamlet said during the beginning that the ghost that told him about his uncle’s treason could have been a demon or a bad ghost. That ghost could have been lying to Hamlet and then he would have gotten revenge for nothing. He would be killing innocent people. He also cannot trust his own friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. They only came to see Hamlet because the King and Queen sent for them. That is not very loyal and then they just listen and do what the King says! During the play, Hamlet is shipped off to England along with a letter meant for the King of England. Hamlet forgets his manners and reads the letter telling the King to kill Hamlet when he arrives in England. He changes the letter so that the King will kill Rosencrantz and Guildenstern when they arrive in England. This affected the plot of the play because that is two people that are dead.

Hamlet is also undecided with what to do with Ophelia. He loves her but having her around himself all the time is bound to make Polonius be with and protective of her. As soon as Polonius found out that Hamlet was plotting revenge, he would run off and tell the King about Hamlets plan and the plan would be all ruined. He could not tell Ophelia because she might tell her dad or brother and then it would be ruined again. He ends up killing Polonius but the risk is still there with Laertes, Ophelia’s brother. The only thing he could do is would be to tell her that he does not love her anymore. Even that plan back fired and in the end she killed herself. This affects the play because the death of Ophelia and Polonius brings Laertes and Hamlet against each other. This forces Laertes to join the Kings side. Plus the fact that two more people are dead.

Lastly Hamlet does not know what to do with his mother. The ghost said that she needed to be spared, but in Hamlets eyes, she sinned as well. He does not know if he should tell her or not because she may run to the King as well as Polonius would have done if he had not been killed. She is his mother/aunt and he does not want her to be sleeping with his uncle/stepfather. I know that if his mother would not have been involved with the situation then Hamlet would have just killed the King and would have been done with it. It would have been a very short book. His mother was involved though, and Hamlet wouldn’t want to do anything to hurt her. This affected the play because it took him a lot longer to get revenge than it would have.

Aubri