cowardice, but a result of evil nature of the society in which he lives. “Hamlet himself is a moral man in an immoral world, a sensitive man in a cruel society, society which accepts the concept of revenge as perfectly moral. (Aichinger, criticism, Vol. 35). This social roles tell him to take revenge, but the socially created urges to revenge, force him to do something against his real nature. Hamlet’s rejection of the moral standards of his society is crystallized by his father’s death, his loss of the election to the throne, Gertrude’s casual acceptance of her husband’s death, and her hasty marriage. These events serve to heighten his awareness of the condition of society (Aichinger, criticism, Vol. 35). One can say, that they could go their way and he his, but the problem and the tragedy is that this society and this individuals make a specific demand upon him. Hamlet thinks about rejecting these standards of his society but, on the other hand, he also thinks about dishonor and shame.But this is not the only reason for which Hamlet delays in killing the king. The other reason is, that he is not sure of the Ghost’s origins and its reality. Critic E. E. Stoll says: “The doubting of the Ghost is not moment of weakness; this is Hamlet as a typicalElizabethan, knowing that the Ghost could be the devil rather than his father’s spirit.”(Weitz, Hamlet, p. 52) “The spirit that I have seen /May be the devil” (Guth, Hamlet, p.828, v.616-618). Horatio`s comment that the ghost disappeared because of the rooster crowing which, in Hamlet’s times, was considered as a God’s sign, makes Hamlet wonder even more. If this is the God’s sign, and if the ghost is not evil, then why the Ghost disappeared after hearing it? Sidorowicz-5Hamlet also wants to find out whether...
