Hamlet Tragic Hero Research Essay Example

Hamlet is a truly tragic piece written by William Shakesphere in the early 1600s. Through the centuries, this playwright has been read and interpreted by millions of people, all of them deciphering the play in their own ways. “Enjoying Hamlet by William Shakesphere,” is an article written by Ed Friedlander that shows just one of the ways that this novel’s meaning might be portrayed. Friedlander sees this work as one of heroes being thrown into an unjust world.  His views paint the tragedy in a much softer, brighter light when there are still many shadows in every hero of this story. In contrast to Friedlander's views, Hamlet is a true tragedy, one where even the heroes have their dark sides. 

Perhaps one of the most controversial points in this article is that, “Hamlet chooses not to compromise with evil.” This point, while it may have some truth, is ultimately quite misleading. Hamlet was a good man, but when things got bad, he simply turned bad as well. There is a saying that we know someone is a good person when the world around them is bad and yet they still choose to be good. Yes, Hamlet is the better character of this story, but when things turned sour, so did he. A great example of this is when Hamlet kills his past friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstien. Hamlet felt rightfully betrayed by his friends, even going as far as comparing them to a sponge. “When he needs what you have gleaned it is but squeezing you and, sponge, you shall be dry again” (Ham IV.ii.19-21) Rosencrantz and Guildenstien were weak individuals who only focused on their own standing, but to have them killed for simply obeying the king was petty and cruel. These used to be Hamlet's best friends and no matter how a friend betrays you, you shouldn’t want to have them killed. Hamlet did compromise with evil, some might say he even embraced it, and he was swayed by the harshness of the world. He is no better than Claudius. 

Hamlet's actions towards Ophelia were also confusing and in their own ways cruel. Ophelia harbored a deep love for Hamlet and felt that these feelings were mutual but Hamlet eventually treated her more as just a girl in passing. At one point he becomes infuriated with Ophelia after guessing that her father was spying on their conversation. Hamlet's attitude towards her immediately shifts as he becomes enraged and starts yelling and cursing her. “It hath made me mad. I say we will have no more marriages. Those that are married already—all but one—shall live. The rest shall keep as they are. To a nunnery, go” (Ham III.i.142-148) In the movie, Hamlet was much more rough and constantly threw Ophelia around which made the whole scene even worse. His hot and cold behavior towards her was both harsh and confusing.

Despite Friedlanders more positive view on the novel, Hamlet is a true tragedy, one where even the heroes have their dark sides. Hamlet let his need for revenge overtake him, this made him a cruel, cynical, and skeptical person to the people he was close to. While Friedlanders' take on the novel is showing the better sides of Hamlet's character, he is definitely exaggerating Hamlet's integrity and heroity. All of this is what makes Hamlet the tragic hero.