Wednesday 6 January 2010

Is there an example of appearance vs. reality in act 4 of Hamlet, regarding the revenge plotline?

In ,andplot
a deceptive revenge onfor his killing of . Claudius is desperate to get rid of , knowing that
Hamlet knows that he, Claudius, killed his father. Laertes quite simply and hot-headedly wants
revenge and wants it now. Claudius uses this to his advantage.

The two plot
to arrange a sword fight between Hamlet and Laertes. Laertes will use a blade that is sharpened,
not dull (as would be normal for such a contest). Laertes will also poison the tip of his blade,
and Claudius will make sure a cup of poisoned wine is on hand in case all else fails.


This will appear to be a "ceremonial" fencing match where nobody gets hurt,
but in reality, it will function, Laertes and Claudius hope, as a way to murder
Hamlet.

No comments:

Post a Comment

To what degree were the U.S., Great Britain, Germany, the USSR, and Japan successful in regards to their efforts in economic mobilization during the...

This is an enormous question that can't really be answered fully in this small space. But a few generalizations can be made. Bo...