Shakespeare's Hamlet

In Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, there is a dominant and overwhelming theme that is concurrent throughout the play. Throughout the play, all the characters appear as one thing on the outside, yet on the inside they are completely different. The theme of Appearance versus Reality surrounds Hamlet due to the fact that the characters portray themselves as one person on the outside and one different on the inside. In the play, Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle, appears to be kind, gentle, and caring on the outside, but in actual fact, he uses his loving behavior as a mask to cover up the fact that he is a selfish, mean, and cold murderer. The women in Hamlet appear to live happy and wonderful lives on the outside, but their happiness is used as a mask to cover up the corruptness of their lives on the inside. Finally Hamlet appears to be mad and insane, but really he is using his madness as a mask to hide his secretive quest to seek the truth behind his father’s death. Appearance versus reality is concurrent theme that develops as the Danish kingdom got engulfed in a web of a deception, corruption and lies.

Hamlet is filled with characters covering up their true intentions with a whole other person, which appears to be innocent. One character, that used deception to cover up their true intention, was Claudius. Claudius, Hamlet’s uncle, is a very deceptive and cruel person. Claudius killed his brother, whom was Hamlet’s son and then married his brother’s wife in order to become the new king of Demark. No one knew that Claudius committed the murder so he did not receive any punishments for his actions. Claudius was forced to put on an false appearance that transformed him from a cold murderer to the perfect king. This illusion that Claudius puts on ensures that his secret is kept hidden. Under the illusion, Claudius is no longer a mean, and selfish guy, instead he appears in all aspects to be the perfect gentlemen. Claudius exemplifies the appearance versus reality theme, by the fact that he appears to be kind and gentle, but in actual fact he is using his kindness and gentleness as a mask to cover up the malicious murder that he so violently committed. Claudius throughout the play feels guilt for action, and thus tries to repent for his sin by praying. In his prayer he says, “My fault is past. But, O, what form of prayer can serve my turn? Forgive me my foul murder? Try what repentance can…”(Act 3 Scene 3 Line 51). In this scene Claudius is not clear on what to feel. He struggles to get out his prayer, because he is unsure that he will be forgiven. He wants to repent for his sin, but he knows that he can’t because he is not truly sorry. Claudius lists some reasons why he can ask for forgiveness. He says “Of those effects for which I did the murder- my crown, mine own ambition, and my queen.” Claudius realizes that his outside wants to seek forgiveness but his inside cannot and does not want to give up the positions that he had gained by living this lie. Claudius thus realizes that he has to separate his own deceptive illusion from that of true feelings.

The women in Hamlet exemplify the theme of appearance versus reality as well. Ophelia and Gertrude display deceptive illusions to hide the corruptions of their lives. Ophelia shields her love for Hamlet in the beginning of the play, but eventually is forced to throw herself to Hamlet, at her father’s request. Ophelia pretends to be in love with Hamlet, so her father can prove to the king and queen that Hamlet’s madness comes from his love for Ophelia. Hamlet senses that Ophelia’s love is not genuine, and therefore treats her with disgust. He assaults Ophelia with words, and also with his actions, which include killing her father. Hamlet begins displaying acts of cruelty towards Ophelia, by using spiteful sarcasm. He tells her to “Go thy ways to a nunnery. Where your father… Let the doors be shut upon him, that he may play fool nowhere but in his own house, farewell.” (Act 3 Scene 1 Line 121) Before this scene, Hamlet overhears the king and Ophelia’s dad attempt to form a plan to try to figure out the source of Hamlet’s unusual behavior. Their plan involves using Ophelia as the bait. Out of anger, Hamlet says to Ophelia, “I did love you once but you should have not believed me; for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock but we shall relish of it. I loved you not.” (Act 3 Scene 1 Line 115) Hamlet renounced his love for Ophelia and called her a fool for actually believing that he did love her. Hamlet’s bitter words caused Ophelia to break down emotionally because she was caught in trap that forced her to go against her lover. Ophelia’s emotional breakdown could have been prevented if she would have realized that Hamlet’s harsh behavior was an illusion used to conceal his feelings about his mother’s scandalous