doubts, he carries through with his revenge quite rapidly. He, of course, being a man of perfect absolutes is disappointed with his efforts, for they are not and cannot be, in the real world, absolute and immediate. But one must look at others to get a true picture of his speed. Claudius, the proven intriguer, is caught almost completely off guard by the performance of "The Mousetrap." Polonius, representative of all that is confused in the world, is left completely in the dust. But as Hamlet strives for thoroughness in his revenge, he strives for thoroughness in all else as well. He is not governed or given justice by the legality and loopholes of mortal law. When contemplating his revenge, he worries not of earthbound justice, but of eternal consequences. He despises "the law's delay, / The insolence of office"(Act 3, Scene 1, 72,73) in his most famous soliloquy. And so, being at odds with the laws of the world, he comes to odds with the world at every corner. As Claudius points out, the most practical thing for Hamlet to do after his father's death is to get over it. There is no provision in the world that expressly demands that a son sorrow long for his father. In fact, the king is able to bring forth many reasons not to, including duty, precedence and even some parts of religion. But Hamlet does not see goodness in passing over such an event. Since he cannot wear white, he wears black. There is nothing legally wrong with the marriage of Claudius and Gertrude. Such practice was not uncommon with medieval royalty. Technically it is not true incest, the two are not really related by blood. But Hamlet dislikes "the uses of this world." His mother was his father's wife, is his father's wife and always will be. He remembers how "she would hang on him, / As if increase of appetite had grown / By what it fed on." (Act 1, Scene 2, 143,144) This immediately contrasts with reality and leaves him angry and disillusioned, but still he tries to...
