Final Document Assignment

Loosing a father is one thing, but knowing that they were murdered is another. In the play, Hamlet by Shakespeare, Hamlet and Laertes are both very similar in some major areas. Hamlet and Laertes get very angry at the fact that their fathers got murdered, they both wanted to kill the murderer and they both lost someone else they strongly loved. This comparison will show you how both of the characters can relate to one another but don’t realize it till near the end, when both of them die after all the tragedies.

Hamlet and Laertes both get mad when they hear about their father’s deaths because they think the murderer was corrupt and the reasons show that the actions were selfish and unnecessary. Claudius, who then married Hamlet’s mother not long after, murdered Hamlet’s father. He committed this wrong-doing because he wanted to be king of Denmark and thought that Old King Hamlet was in the way. Claudius got his wish but then once Old King Hamlet’s ghost appeared in the towers of the castle and talked to Hamlet, Claudius was in for an awakening. Laertes was away when his father got murdered. Strangely enough, Polonius (Laertes’s father) was murdered by Hamlet, whom you would think wouldn’t want to hurt the innocent. This was in an act of selfishness because Hamlet was talking to his mother about how she betrayed his father and went with Claudius. Hamlet thought that it was Claudius in the curtain when he heard the noise, but didn’t think to check before he attacked. Laertes didn’t know the reasoning behind Hamlet’s act and listened to Claudius when he said Hamlet was crazy. Both these acts drove Hamlet and Laertes to become very violent and angry. In this case, anger drove them to wanting to avenge their father’s deaths. Hamlet wanted to kill Claudius for his selfish acts, mostly because the ghost had told him to. After the ghost talked to him, he was confused but then he really started to hate Claudius which he thought made it easier to kill. Laertes on the other hand, got told who the murderer was and that he should avenge his father’s death. He first thought it was Claudius who killed him, but when he approached Claudius, he got told it was all Hamlets fault. They then started a battle to the death where Laertes, Claudius, Hamlet, and Gertrude all died. During all the commotion, Ophelia got very depressed, and started to go insane, and then she killed herself. She was very upset at being told that she can’t see the man she truly loves (Hamlet), and then when her father got murdered by Hamlet, she just couldn’t take it. Ophelia was Laertes’ sister, and when she killed herself it drove him to madness. Hamlet as well, because he really did love her dearly no matter what he had said to her. They both had jumped into the grave and were starting to fight. This is the leading event that made Claudius suggested the fight to the death.

As you can see, certain actions done by one person can affect another person’s life. In the play, Hamlet by Shakespeare, Hamlet and Laertes are both very similar in some major areas. This was proven when they both got very angry at their father’s deaths, they both wanted to kill the murderer and they both lost someone they loved. Even if you do not notice, someone you really hate might just be going through the same feelings and tragedies as you are.

Word Count: 591

Act 4~ Good Copy

Dear Laertes,

I was just recently told about poor Ophelia’s death. I give my greatest sympathy and wish the best in the future for you. I have been thinking about her death, and why someone would want to kill her. I have come to the conclusion that it was a suicide and not a murder.
She had talked to me a day or so before it all happened. We were talking about her father and his murder. She loved her father dearly, but she also loved Hamlet, no matter what anyone told her to do. I think the mix of her father’s death and Hamlet doing the killing, really hurt her inside. Ophelia was explaining to me how her father was telling her all the reasons for her not to be with Hamlet. She was very upset and frustrated with all the orders she was being given to avoid Hamlet. It was driving her crazy that she couldn’t see the man she truly loved, insane or not. She was saying how he has the most beautiful eyes, the most passionate words, and a heart of gold. She really had a true love for Hamlet.
When her father died, it devastated her. Not long after, she found out that Hamlet was the one who murdered him. Accident or not, it broke her heart and she could not think straight. I heard news after her death that she had been singing songs and dancing around. I think that her going crazy was understandable because of all the events that had occurred in such a short period of time. You weren’t there with her to comfort her and she couldn’t go to Hamlet because he was the murderer.
How would you feel if the girl you loved killed your father and you had no one to go to? Yes, she did come and talk to me but that was before she really thought about everything. She was quite sane when she visited me, and I was very shocked. Even though she did break down in tears, she held herself together pretty well.
I do not think that weak Ophelia could handle everything she had to encounter. It was very hard on her and since she wasn’t thinking straight and had no one to tell her otherwise, she probably thought that death was the only way out. Ophelia also might have thought that she could join her father in heaven and be happier there, instead of where we are with everything going on.
God rest her soul and god rest your father’s.

All the best,

Rosie

Act 3~ Good Copy

Journal Entry:
Things are getting worse here around the castle. I thought everything was going well, until Hamlet put on the play “Mousetrap”. I could not stand to sit there and watch actors act out how I killed my own brother. Somehow Hamlet found out exactly what happened and told the actors to show it in the play. Hamlet is getting too smart and knowledgeable of the sin I committed. How is he getting this information? Will he just try to make me feel overly guilty, or will he try to kill me? What about my dear wife… I wonder how she is taking this. After Hamlet met with Ophelia, I am starting to think Polonius was wrong. I do not think that it is lovesickness that is making Hamlet act this way. I think it is me and my sin of killing his father. I am happy as king, and happy being the husband of dear Gertrude. What if I did not commit a sin, I would not be sitting in the chair I do now, with the crown upon my head. If I did not commit this sin, Hamlet would not be crazy and he would not want to kill his own uncle. Part of me is glad that I killed my brother, because I got what I wanted out of it and Hamlet can not prove anything. All he can do is try to get revenge, but my sending him off to England might help get rid of that horrible thought. Hamlet is not who he used to be and if he turns on the two people I know he loves the most, then he will have no trouble turning on me, which I think he has. He murdered Polonius in front of poor Gertrude, but could he do the same to me? What am I supposed to do without Polonius? How can I trust anyone who does not know what Hamlet is like around Ophelia and his own mother. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are watching over Hamlet and going with him to England, but can I trust them? Will they obey me or will they be a loyal friend to Hamlet? The only person I have left who feels my pain and regret is dear Gertrude. She is in so much pain, even after her discussion with Hamlet. What am I to do? How can I keep myself and my wife safe from our mad son? Things have to get better or the whole kingdom might start asking questions of my son and the cause of his behavior. If that happens then who knows what else they might find out, or if Hamlet will go and tell them himself. Please lord help me in this terrible situation.