ERH 321WX
John Stann
11/9/19
Help Received: Spell Check, Grammar check, Works cited

Revenge
Hamlet, like many of Shakespeare’s plays with a focus on a particular emotion or set of emotions. In Othello, for instance, Shakespeare focuses on passions and in Hamlet, Shakespeare decides to tackle the act of revenge. Two of the main characters in Hamlet are driven by the desire for revenge, and this desire drives both characters to either act rashly or to madness and eventual suicide. In Hamlet, the main character, Hamlet, and Laertes are both driven by revenge. It Is important to study revenge specifically in Hamlet not only because we can learn what the people thought about revenge but the Christian doctrine on revenge can be learned too.
Shakespeare was influenced in his plays by his Christian religion. Many Christian themes seep into his plays and suicide and revenge specifically are explored in great detail in Hamlet. “Hamlet is strongly influenced by Christian theology: even as it lays out the motives and impulse to revenge, it also gestures toward the prohibition of revenge in divine and positive law.” (Jordan,202). Shakespeare also adds a legal twist to the issue of revenge. According to the customs and beliefs of England at the time, “Most opinion declared that a wronged subject had no recourse against tyranny but prayer.” (Jordan, 202) However, because Hamlet is royalty himself, some believe him to be in a privileged position and he should act not just for revenge, but for justice as well. (Jordan, 203) A third twist is added with the relationships of the characters of the play. Because Claudius was Hamlet’s father’s brother and he married his mother this makes Hamlet’s desire for revenge a familial matter. Because Claudius married his brother’s wife some would believe this to be an incestus relationship, Hamlet himself makes reference to this in the play. Because Incest is a sin, was Hamlet justified in this regard to act against a sinful person? The beliefs on revenge is interesting in early modern England while the bible declares revenge to be a sin, there were some instances according to Early English writers that said that revenge was allowed, albeit still looked down on. “the most tolerable sort of revenge is for those wrongs which there is no law to remedy; but then let a man take heed the revenge be such as there is no law to punish; else the man’s enemy is still beforehand, and it is two for one.” (Jordan, 208) Through this view of the multifaceted approach to revenge the character of Hamlet and his desire for revenge becomes far more interesting to analyze.
Part 2
Hamlet’s desire for revenge comes from his want for justice against his father. “Yea, from the table of my memory, I’ll wipe away all trivial fond records, all saws of books, all forms, all pressures past. That youth and observation copied there, and they commandment all alone shall live with the book and volume of my brain.” (I.v.97-101) Hamlet doesn’t want the throne, he doesn’t even want to live, he just wants justice for his murdered father. Because there is no law, above the king, Hamlet is justified in seeking revenge. He doesn’t gain anything out of it except for rest for his and his father’s soul. “Rest, rest, perturbed spirit!” and later on “That ever I was born to set it right!” (II.i.179-185). Laertes, on the other hand, while he does seek revenge for the same act, murder, does not go about it in the correct way. There are legal ways to solve disputes, the king, however, manipulates Laertes so that he can use him for his own plans instead of Laertes going about getting justice in the proper way. “Let this be so, his means of death his obscure funeral, no trophy, sword, nor hatchment o’er his bones no noble rite, nor formal ostentation, cry to be heard, as ‘twere from heaven to earth, that I must call into question.” (IV.V. 209-213). Instead of Laertes desiring justice in the legal manner, he gets caught up in his emotions and vows revenge instead. In doing so, he uses revenge in the wrong way.
Everything in the Christian world had a purpose, revenge should be used only in the right way. This includes revenge. Hamlet sought revenge for the right reason while Laertes sought revenge for the wrong reason despite desiring the same end goal.

Works cited

Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Constance, Jordan, Pearson/Longman, 2005.