Revenge.One of the most famous English revenge tragedies written in the Elizabethan era was Hamlet, written by Shakespeare.

Revenge

Revenge is a frighteningly bloodthirsty emotion, which causes people to act blindly and without reason. Revenge is a theme that is cleverly built upon throughout the extent of the play; with it being the driving force behind two of the main characters in the play.(Hamlet and Laertes)

All revenge tragedies originally came from the Greeks, who wrote and performed the first plays. After the Greeks came Seneca(author of classical tragedies), who was very influential to all Elizabethan tragedy writers. Seneca who was Roman, basically set all of the ideas for all revenge play writers in the Renaissance era including William Shakespeare.One of the most famous English revenge tragedies written in the Elizabethan era was Hamlet, written by Shakespeare.

During the time of Elizabethan theater, plays about tragedy and revenge were very common and a regular convention seemed to be formed on what aspects should be put into a typical revenge tragedy. In all revenge tragedies first and foremost, a crime is committed and for various reasons laws and justice cannot punish the crime so the individual who is the main character, goes through with the revenge in spite of everything. The main character then usually had a period of doubt , where he tries to decide whether or not to go through with the revenge, which usually involves tough and complex planning. Other features that were typical were the appearance of a ghost, to get the revenger to go through with the deed. The revenger also usually had a very close relationship with the audience through soliloquies and asides. The original crime that will eventually be avenged is nearly always sexual or violent or both. The crime has been committed against a family member of the revenger. “ The revenger places himself outside the normal moral order of things, and often becomes more isolated as the play progresses-an isolation which at its most extreme becomes madness.” The revenge must be the cause of a disaster and the beginning of the revenge must start immediately after the crisis. After the ghost persuades the revenger to commit his deed, a hesitation first occurs and then a delay by the avenger before killing the murderer, and his actual or acted out madness. The revenge must be taken out by the revenger or his trusted accomplices. The revenger and his accomplices may also die at the moment of success or even during the course of revenge. And this what exactly happened in Hamlet.

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In Hamlet, Shakespeare follows regular convention for a large part of the play. In the beginning, Shakespeare sets up the scene, having a ghost on a dark night. Everyone is working and something strange is happening in Denmark. It is as if Shakespeare is saying that some kind of foul play has been committed. This sets up for the major theme in the play which is of course revenge. The ghost appears to talk to Hamlet. It is quite obvious that the play had a gruesome, violent death and the sexual aspect of the play was clearly introduced when Claudius married Hamlet’s mother Gertrude. The ghost tells Hamlet that he has been given the role of the person who will take revenge upon Claudius,and that it is part of every man’s honour to avenge his death. This is the beginning of a corrupt cycle of hatred, death and revenge that destroys many lives. Hamlet must now think of how to take revenge on Claudius, although he doesn’t know what to do about it. He ponders his thoughts for a long period of time, expecting to do the deed immediately, but instead he drags it on until the end of the play. Although what was important to note was that all tragic heroes of plays at that time delayed their actual revenge until the end of the play.

The play is introduced by the appearance of the ghost of Hamlet’s father in the first scene, which automatically gives the impression that something is amiss. This is later clarified by the statement that “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (Act1 Scene 4 Line 90). The ghost emerges before Hamlet and insinuates that his death was not as nocent as it may seem. The ghost urges Hamlet to “Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (Act1 Scene 5 Line25) and informs him that “The serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown “(Act1 Scene5 Line 38). This appears to indicate that Hamlet’s father’s death was actually murder, and that the deed was committed by King Hamlet’s brother,Claudius, who had now taken over as King of Denmark. Hamlet then becomes a part of Denmark’s foulness and wretchedness when he agrees to avenge his father’s death.

Hamlet’s delay of killing Claudius takes on three distinct stages. Firstly he had to prove that the ghost was actually telling the truth, and he did this by staging the play “The Mousetrap” at court. When Claudius stormed out in rage, Hamlet knew that he was guilty. The second stage was when Hamlet could have killed Claudius while he was confessing to god.Hamlet had a perfect chance to kill Claudius whilst he was praying but chose not to because doing so would have meant that Claudius would be sent to heaven, rather than hell. Hamlet ponders that idea, saying that “Now he is praying…a villain kills my father and for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send to heaven”. (Act 3 Scene 3 Line 76). Perhaps Hamlet thinks that patience will pay off for him in the long run, but unfortunately this is not so. The third delay was the fact that he got side tracked. He accidentally killed Polonius which created a whole new problem with the fact that Laertes now wanted Hamlet dead. After he commit this murder he was also sent off and unable to see the king for another few weeks until he could finally do the job. “What makes Hamlet stand out from many other revenge plays of the period is not that it rejects the conventions of its genre but that it both enacts and analyses them.”

Finally, Hamlet has set the scene for the revenge that he has been craving. He attacks the King, pushing him over, and picks up the poisoned wine. He forces it down the King’s throat, yelling “Here, thou incestuous, murd’rous, damned Dane, Drink off this potion. Is thy union here? Follow my mother.” Laertes dies, content that justice has been served and Hamlet himself dies soon after, his father’s death finally avenged.

The obsession and need for revenge displayed by our two main characters eventually led them both to their downfall. Not only did it hurt themselves, but many others close to them. Ophelia’s death, for example could be blamed on Hamlet’s desire for revenge, whilst Hamlets death occurred as a result of Laertes quest to avenge his father’s death.

Hopefully, it is easy to see why it is believed that revenge is the major theme in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Revenge shapes the entire plot of the play and could be blamed for corrupting Hamlet and Laertes, making them almost evil in their final intentions. Shakespeare highlights the moral implications of revenge, and how a person can be corrupted by their need for revenge. The age-old saying ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’ is outlined perfectly in Hamlet. You cannot receive a punch, return a punch and then all sit down together for a lovely dinner. The second that you retaliate, it starts a horrible chain that is almost impossible to break.

Hamlet dies he mutters the words "...the rest is silence." (Act V, Scene v) These four

words let the audience know he has succeeded at accomplishing his revenge.