How do images of disease and corruption support the opening of Hamlet Essay Example

two reactions to the ghost's appearance.

Horatio implies that the appearance of the ghost indicates a looming threat to their state. The sudden appearance of a ghost in a place exclusively inhabited by humans disrupts the ordinary and highlights a sense of corruption, where the deceased walk the earth as if they belong. Shakespeare employs this technique to challenge the norm, prompting readers to analyze the reason for the ghost's appearance and its motives. Shakespeare effectively engages his audience's attention without their awareness using this technique. Furthermore, Hamlet's soliloquy utilizing disease imagery reveals his emotional state.

Hamlet is deeply disheartened by his mother's decision to marry his father's brother so soon after his father's funeral. This has brought about a strong repugnance in him that leads him to contemplate the idea of melting away, as expressed in his own words: "O that this too too sullied flesh would melt, Thaw and resolve itself into a dew." The image of a grieving and depressed Hamlet dissolving into nothingness highlights the disease-like state of mind he is in due to the circumstances. This emphasizes the extent of his emotional turmoil and sheds light on how upset he truly is about what has happened.

Another form of corruption may be directly linked to the fact that Hamlet's mother married her late husband's brother so soon after his death. The wedding feast was even able to use the leftovers from the funeral to feed everyone. As Hamlet said, "the funeral bak'd meats, Did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables." This quote suggests a small but significant form of corruption - the fact that Hamlet's mother didn't wait longer before remarrying,

giving those close to the king, such as Hamlet, more time to come to terms with his death.

The queen's decision was made hastily, causing upset among those around her. Only Hamlet expresses his feelings in his soliloquy, remarking "Frailty, thy name is woman."

"The queen's quick marriage to Claudius, who is the king's brother, suggests the possibility of a pre-existing relationship between them before the death of King Hamlet. However, this speculation forces readers to make assumptions as details have not been provided. This stimulates readers' imaginations as they try to determine the cause of present pain and suffering. The ghost appears a second time in front of Hamlet and this time speaks directly to him, divulging the immediate cause of his death which is corruption."

"The crown that now adorns the head of the one who took your father's life is proof of corruption," declares the ghost. The corrupt nature is evident in two ways. Firstly, the presence of a supernatural being on earth, a place meant for the living, suggests corruption. Secondly, the very act of regicide itself implies corrupt behavior.

Furthermore, the ghost has revealed to young Hamlet that the cause of his father's death was a murder committed by his uncle, who is now the current king. This act of regicide is considered to be the most significant example of corruption throughout the play. The fact that Claudius seized the throne by mercilessly killing his own brother elicits disgust from both the readers and audience, who hope that Hamlet will seek revenge on behalf of his father. In conclusion, the murder of the previous king by Claudius, the current king, is unequivocally the

most egregious form of corruption portrayed in the play.

The backbone of all subsequent events and the main cause of problems is Hamlet's situation. The murder of Claudius is essential since without it, Hamlet would not want to dissolve into a dew and his mother would not have married Claudius, causing everything to be fine. In the play, corruption is the main theme and disease follows on from that. However, disease imagery only arises from corruption. Had there been no corruption from the outset, there would have been no disease imagery and Hamlet would not feel like vanishing, melting or Francisco would not have felt "sick at heart."