The Character of Claudius in Shakespeares Hamlet Essay -- GCSE Englis

The Character of Claudius in Hamlet As a supporting point of reference in Shakespeares play, Hamlet, Claudius is not developed to his full potential. His primary role in the play is to initiate Hamlets confusion and anger, and his subsequent search for truth and lifes meaning. further Claudius is certainly not a static character. While Claudius qualities are not as thoroughly explored as Hamlets, the treacherous King of Denmark is a complete character. When we kickoff see Claudius, he strikes us an intelligent and capable ruler. He gives a speech to make his court and country proud, addressing his brothers death and the potential conflict with Norway. Claudius knows that a change in government could ignite civil unrest, and he is afraid of possible unlawful allegiances and rebellion. His speech juxtaposes the peoples loss with the new beginning they will need under his care, and he uses the death of Hamlets father to create a sense of national solidarity, the whole kingdom/To be contracted in one supercilium of woe (I.ii.3-4). Claudius has assumed the role of the chief mourner, and the people can unite behind a collective suffering. He can now concentrate on his kingly duties, and he takes immediate and decisive action by sending Cornelius and Voltimand to appease the Norwegian king. He also deals skillfully with Laertes request to leave for France. On the whole, then, there emerges a King who is well qualified for his office...there continually appears on the stage a man who is utterly unlike the descriptions, and this in turn gives to Hamlets address their real value. (Lokse, Outrageous Fortune, 79). But Claudius, in private, is a very different person. The Ghost refers to him as that incestuous, that adulterate beast (... ... from indulging his human desires. He is not a monster he is morally weak, content to trade his humanity and very soul for a few prized possessions. As the great critic Harley Granville-Barker observes we induce in Claudius the makings of the central figure of a tragedy. (Granville-Barker, Prefaces to Shakespeare.3., 269) Bibliography Bradley, A.C. Shakespearean Tragedy. (New York St. Martins Press, 1966). Burnett, Mark, ed. New Essays on Hamlet. (New York AMS Press, 1994). Evans Lloyd Gareth. Shakespeare IV. (London Oxford university Press, 1967). Granville-Barker, Henry. Prefaces to Shakespeare.3 (New York, Hill and Wang, 1970). Loske, Olaf. Outrageous Fortune. (Oslo Oslo University Press, 1960). Muir, Kenneth. Shakespeare and the Tragic Pattern, Proceedings of the British Academy, Vol.XLIV (London Oxford University Press, 1958).