Hamlet calls Denmark an unweeded garden. Discuss Shakespeares use of the image of rottenness throughout the play.
Hamlet calls Denmark “an unweeded garden.” Discuss Shakespeare’s use of the image of rottenness throughout the play.
Shakespeare’s Hamlet was written at the prime of Shakespeare’s greatness. Scholars and readers have been both thrilled and baffled by Hamlet. The rottenness of Denmark is at the core of the play, the corruption among the Danish royal family; the sin of regicide and the incestuous marriage. The Shakespearian audience would have been horrified about Gertrude’s marriage to Claudius, even though they were not related by blood, they also believed that the King had the divine right to rule and they were born into that position by the will of God. The political rottenness in England is mirrored by Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
Hamlet declared Denmark to be “an unweeded garden” in a soliloquy in act 1, scene 2, this is a metaphor for Denmark, Hamlet further goes on to say “Ere yer the of most unrighteous tears had left the flushing in her galled eyes, she married- O most wicked speed!”, contemplating on whether his mother’s tears were fake and whether she has the right to cry after her hasty marriage to Claudius. One of the most mysterious superstitions of the supernatural is the definite belief in ghosts. There is no doubt that Elizabethans truly believe in the existence of these spirits for they even have somewhat of a list as to the characteristics of ghosts. These characteristics are embedded within Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The first and foremost characteristic is that ghosts are considered evil spirits that impersonate the deceased. This characteristic helps to provide a plot such as in Hamlet where when the father’s ghost first appears, Hamlet does not know whether he is a good or evil spirit. Horatio says in act 1, scene 4, “which might deprive your sovereignty of reason and draw you into madness.” Horatio believe that the ghost was an evil spirit tempting Hamlet into a suicidal madness. Therefore, when the ghost seeks out Hamlet to do his bidding, Hamlet does not know if he should follow the ghost’s bidding or not. This dilemma begins the plot of the story while intriguing the audience with the theme.
