The Cause of Tragedy in Hamlet

发表时间：2011-09-29T15:19:35.203Z 来源：《魅力中国》2011年6月下供稿 作者： 陈月涛[导读] The hero is one of controversial images in the history of foreign literature.

◎陈月涛

（河北省唐县第四中学，河北 唐县 072350）

中图分类号：I106 文献标识码：A 文章编号：1673-0992（2011）06-113-02

Abstract：Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s the four famous tragedies, which represents the supreme art achievements of

Shakespeare. It is also the sign of the maturation in the art of Shakespeare’s play. Many things about Hamlet still remains puzzles , oneof which is what causes Hamlet the end of tragedy. This article aims to analyze the cause of tragedy in Hamlet. The struggle betweenHamlet and Claudius is about the conflict between the newly emerged capital humanists and the feudal evil force, which reflects thehumanists’ hardship for their dreams to come true. As the essence of Renaissance, humanism is a newly emerged thought at that time.On behalf of humanists, Hamlet confirms human’s value and dignity, and also the wisdom and power, but in front of the evil reality, all hisdreams are destroyed completely. He just gets the spiritual victory at the expense of his life. Key words：tragedy; reality; humanism; ideal; contradictions Introduction:

Hamlet is generally regarded as Shakespeare’s most popular play on the stage , for it has the quality of a “blood and thunder” thrillerand a philosophical exploration of life and death . The play opens with Hamlet , Prince of Denmark, appearing in a mood-wearinessoccasioned by his father’s death and his mother’s hasty remarriage with Claudius, his father’s brother. While encountering his father’sghost, Hamlet is informed that Claudius has murdered his father and then taken over his father’s throne and widow. Thus Hamlet is urgedby the ghost to seek revenge for his father’ s “foul and most unnatural murder .” This play also exposes a corrupted court---“an unweededgarden” in which there is nothing but “a foul and pestilent congregation of vapors.” As a princess, Hamlet think that the time is out of jointand he was born to set it right. But Hamlet has none of the single-minded blood lust of the earlier revengers. It is not because he isincapable of action, but because the cast of his mind is so speculative, so questioning, and so contemplative that action, when it finallycomes, seems almost like defeat. This article aims to analyze the cause of tragedy in Hamlet. The tragedy of Hamlet is mainly caused byboth internal and external causes. It is not comprehensive to emphasize either of them. Chapter I External causes

The design and creation of any works is not fortuitous and as one pleases but the presentation and embodiment of the ideology andemotions of their day of authors, or the author want to achieve his goal or convey certain ideology through his work. Therefore, when westudy Hamlet, we should associate the work and break away from it at the same time. We should look at it comprehensively.

A. Hamlet is the embodiment of Shakespeare’s emotions and rational. This play also embodies humanistic ideology of Shakespeareand how to turn it into reality. At the beginning of 17 century, England is not a paradise Shakespeare describes in his early comedies, butthe time out of joint. Shakespeare had no choice in the face of the cruel reality. His humanistic ideology is splendid but no way to realizeit, like colorful foam of soap which will be broken by a slight touch. He had no early full confidence in realizing his ideology and he is nolonger an optimist that he used to be , but he wasn’t completely disappointed. In the play, Hamlet is the representative of humanists.Their ideology is successfully conveyed by Hamlet. Shakespeare has claimed through the mouth of Hamlet that “What a piece of work isa man! how noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in form and moving how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in

apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals!” Though humanistic ideology is splendid. They find no wayto success in reality. Therefore , his rational decides the tragedy of Hamlet and solemnly sacrifice for his noble belief so that he can getsupport and sympathy in doctrine.

B. The constriction between the ideal of Shakespeare and the actual impossibility of reality is another important reason for thetragedy of Hamlet. What’s more, the constriction doesn’t compromise. Shakespeare bases the realization of his humanistic ideal on

Hamlet princess and the princess accepts the humanistic ideal. However, the conflict between his humanism and his status of noble andhis ideology of noble class formed in the long term doesn’t compromise. Though accepting humanistic ideology, he has to take theintersts of his own class into consideration. Though he sees the decadence of his class, he is not willing to overthrow it, only hoping toreform it,which is what the humanists want to get, including Shakespeare. His humanistic ideal is doomed to have limitation resulting inthe limitation in action. He regards himself as the Saviors. He doesn’t propagandizes humanistic ideology widely, which can awake thepublic so that he can emancipate the people fundamentally, but is afraid to associate the mass and ignore their strength during the action.Though his ideal coincides the ideal of the mass and the struggle also do good to the interest of the mass, the princess cut himself offfrom the people who live under heavy burden and have to bear great sufferings as the princess knows. That is the greatest fault and thebarrier that he can’t go beyond as a princess. The tragedy of Hamlet shows humanists including Shakespeare basing their ideal onenlightened king is a failure, to be a tragedy. Chapter II Internal causes

Layers of contradictions Hamlet who bears the burden of revenge shows are the direct reasons for the tragedy.

A. The conflict between humanistic ideal and the gloomy reality. The feeling of happiness results from the coincidence of ideal andreality, while the feeling of tragedy results from demand but not gain. The greater the gap between demand and gain is, the deeper thepain is, which is the portrayal of Hamlet’s life pursuit and the end. In the eyes of Hamlet, he bears the burden of realizing the humanisticideal and revenging for his father. He wants to seek a perfect way to reach his goals. His father’s foul and most unnatural murder, hismother’s hasty remarriage to the brother of her husband, the wicked, traitorous uncle full of witchcraft, the abandon of his friends so goagainst his humanism that he become melancholic and lose all his mirth, falling into the dilemma between action and mind. As a

humanist, he wants to expose the crimes of his uncle to the public, letting people distinguish the damned villain , not to kill him easily. Ifso, that will cause disorder and greater evil, doing harm to the realization of their ideal. But he is eager to revenge for his father, so hismind is full of contradiction. The direct results of fierce contradiction in the mind is that he is puzzled about his future. Trapped in anightmare world of spying, testing, plotting, and apparently bearing the intolerable burden of the duty to revenge his father’ death ,

Hamlet is obliged to inhabit a shadow. Apparently, he looks doubtful, melancholic , hesitating and has a weak will. It is not what to do but

how to do that he hesitates about. B. The question of life and death

The actual question facing Hamlet when revenging for his father is“ to be or not to be” .Hamlet , in his youth, has much prospect ofthe future. But he get the burden of revenge, he has to think it over, because revenging means death. “To be, or not to be- that is thequestion: Whether it's nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune Or to take arms against a sea of

troubles, And by opposing end them. ”In the front of the fierce and cruel facts, Hamlet is filled with conflict and hesitation. Because hedoesn’t know what will happen after he die. He has to consider the results of the coming life brought by his action. Not until he wasstabbed by the poisonous sword his hesitation disappears and he kills his enemy decisively at the expense of his own life. C. The dilemma between action and mind

The foul and most unnatural murder of his father is a great shock to him. His mother’s hasty remarriage and many facts are

contrary to his ideology. He has to accept the facts and again recognize the world. From his words “What a piece of work is a man” likethis, we know he beautifies the world and his father. The sudden unexpected facts make him treat the world extremely and deny all thepeople, all the beauty in the life and all the good points of the world. Reality makes him be in low spirits and lose in thought. He don’t know how to solve this. He has to explore the questions such as death and life, responsibility and coward and so on, thus giving his uncletime to make his plots. We also know Hamlet has the quality of poets and lack the boldness of a hero. The fact demands immediateaction not thought. He was destroyed by a burden which he neither bear nor give up. Conclusion:

In a word, Hamlet sacrifices his life for his ideals. In his action, he makes his revenge increase to the height of the life and death. Heis no longer a simple revenger. His tragedy is not an individual tragedy, but a tragedy of humanists in that times because of objectivecircumstances and their faults. Though Hamlet almost fails, he is immortal in the eyes of many people.