Hamlet’s anger towards the king is shown in his first words to the king “a little more than kin and less than kind”. But he is very unwise to completely trust the ghost, as it might be the devil, trying to cause trouble. But if it was the devil it is not succeeding in causing trouble. There is no evidence for the audience to see that Claudius had killed Old Hamlet at this part of the play. And as Hamlet hated Claudius even before he found out that he had killed his father, did he want to think that he did it anyway? The response of, “O my prophetic soul” suggests that he wanted or thought that it was Claudius all along. But the audience know that there is no way that he could be sure at this point in the play.
Claudius is viewed as good king by the other characters, mainly the ones in his court. They see him as a good character because they think he is doing a very good job knowing that he has only been crowned king recently. The people of Denmark are fond of Claudius because he wants to protect Denmark and avoid war. He has a plan so he sends the diplomats, Cornelius and Voltermand, to stop the war but if this didn’t work Claudius had thought ahead and mobilised the army. This shows that Claudius has a presence of mind. Because of this the audience sides with Claudius at the beginning of the play. He makes the court happy as he had married the old queen and so that means that the court doesn’t have to change; she is the “Imperial jointress of the state”. Claudius goes to a great effort to make people like him: he organises gatherings and social events to try and unify the court. In Act one Scene two Hamlet is depressed, so Claudius sends for his friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Claudius even gives advice and also makes him the heir to the throne. This seems that he has faith in Hamlet. Hamlet still doesn’t like him, so the people in the court will think that he is discourteous as Claudius is trying to help him out. This makes all the people in the court in favour of Claudius.
In Act two Scene two the audience can see, for the first time, that Claudius is a bad person as he is more worried about Hamlet than his country’s welfare. “Moreover, that we much did long to see you, The need we have to use you”, and “We shall shift him” suggests that he is devious and sinister. Also, the use of the word “remedy” sounds good but could have a sinister touch. Both types of audience may think at this point that he has something very serious to hide.
An Elizabethan audience would have believed in the “Divine Right Of Kings” which meant that they thought that the king was chosen by god and god spoke through him. So when the Elizabethan audience found out that Claudius killed the king the “Divine Right Of Kings” was broken. He has cut off God from Denmark. At this point the Elizabethan audience would have thought that Claudius is a villain and they would have sided with Hamlet.
In the “Nunnery Scene” Claudius was shown to have a conscience commenting in an aside “o heavy burden”, and shortly afterwards, in a solioque, he is trying to pray but his words are hollow. “My words fly up, my thoughts remain below, words without thoughts, never to Heaven go”. He also tries to argue his way out of hell “ Then I’ll look up, my fault past is past. But oh, what form of prayer can serve my turn? Forgive me my foul murther that cannot be, since I am still possess’d of those effects for which I did the murther, my crown, mine own ambition, and my queen. May one be pardon’d, and retain th’ offence?” Claudius shows that he doesn’t really love the queen his wife by letting Polonius spy on her and Hamlet; “Lawful espials” thus proving that he doesn’t trust the queen and that he isn’t such a good person after all.
But today’s audience would have agreed with Claudius, as we do not believe in the “Divine Right Of Kings” and we could see why he did what he did. Claudius had an overpowerful sense of ambition to become king. He is cheating the whole kingdom and God. And as he said in his soliloquy he is not prepared to give up his kingship.
After the king has said his soliloquy he really shows how deceptive he is. He treats Hamlet very badly and sends him to England so he can walk into his death. “He shall with speed to England” he also poisons Laerates’ mind and makes him want to kill Hamlet because he killed his father, “To cut his throat I’ th’ church.” Finally, Claudius had something to do with all the deaths at the end this links with “Something’s rotten in the state of Denmark” in Act one Scene five. I think that, overall, today’s audience would have been able to understand Claudius and sympathise with him but the Elizabethan audience would have definitely hated Claudius as they believed in the “Divine Right Of Kings”.