ion on his situation is through his famous soliloquy, “To be or not to be.” Hamlet’s dilemma of whether he should seek revenge on Claudius motivates the entire soliloquy. If he decides to do the deed, he is sure he will die himself. Hamlet fears the unknown, and since death is unknown, he fears death and is not yet ready for it. He admits this cowardice when he states, “Thus conscience does make cowards of us all.” He realizes that he has a responsibility to avenge his father’s death, but by doing this will relegate himself to his father’s fate. It is insight into his character that allows us to understand Hamlet’s motives and reasoning. Finally, Hamlet makes a very important decision not to kill Claudius at the Church. This resolution has a great effect on the course of the play and Shakespeare allows the reader to have great insight on why Hamlet acts as he does and his reflections on this action. When he sees Claudius praying at the altar, Hamlet does not attempt to kill him because Hamlet thinks that he is repenting and, “A villain kills my father, and for that,/ I, his sole son, do this same villain send/ To heaven.” Even though Claudius does not repent, one gains insight on Hamlet’s reasoning for not killing him. The reader also gains insight to how he feels later about this decision. Hamlet observes thousands of Norwegians and Poles giving their lives over a worthless piece of land in Poland. He then says, “How stand I, then,/ That have a father killed, a mother stained.” This turning point in Hamlet’s attitude leads him to a Machiavellian outlook on revenge. With this perception, he obviously sees the flaw in his reluctance of the Church a mistake. These displays of reflection and insight of his situation shines light on Hamlet the character and helps secure the play as one of the greatest pieces of works ever written.Without a do...
