William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is full of talk about death, dead bodies, murder, suicide, disease, graves, and so forth. And there is no traditional Christian comfort or promise of eventual justice or happiness for the good people. But the message is ultimately one of hope. Hamlet is also definitely no saint, however, unlike most of the other characters in the play, he chooses not to compromise with evil. Near the end of Act I, Scene IV, as Marcellus and Horatio are deciding to secretly follow Hamlet and the ghost, Marcellus remarks “something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” Death, illness and decay are one of the central themes throughout the play.
Hamlet begins with some of the guards on watch seeing an apparition of the recently deceased king, father of Hamlet, in Act I, Scene I. Soon afterwards, in Scene V, we learn that according to the ghost, King Claudius killed his own brother, and married his sister-in-law to gain the crown of Denmark. The ghost then asks Hamlet to revenge this death. From the beginning of Act II, Scene I, Hamlet sets about faking mental illness and insanity, as part of his plan for revenge against Claudius.
In Act III, Scene II, there is going to be a play performed for the King, Queen, and nobles. Hamlet slightly modifies the play, altering the lines for some of the actors, in his continuing quest to find out the truth about his fathers death and seek revenge. The play begins with a story that is pantomimed. The king and the queen profess their love for one another, the king falls asleep, and a villain pours poison into the king's ear and seduces the queen. During this time, Hamlet cracks dirty jokes and the king mentions that the story is "offensive.” When the villain pours the poison in the victim's ear, and Hamlet shouts, "You will see anon how the murderer gets the love of Gonzago’s wife,” the king stands up; shouts "Give me some light! Away!” Polonius calls for torches, and everybody except for Hamlet and Horatio run out.
In Act III, Scene IV, during a shouting match between Hamlet, and his mother, the Queen, Hamlet accidentally kills Polonius by stabbing him. It is also during this time in which the Queen is beginning to realize that Claudius murdered her former husband. At this point, the ghost enters, and speaks to Hamlet, but the Queen is unable to see the ghost, and thinks Hamlet has gone truly insane. Hamlet reveals to his mother that he is only pretending to be mad, as part of his plan. He also tells her that he knows the spies are after him, but he is also preparing to deal with them. Now that Hamlet has killed Polonius, he has become himself a murderer and the object of Laertes’ just quest for revenge.
In Act IV, Scene V, the Queen learns that it is Ophelia’s turn to go insane. Just at this moment, Ophelia enters and sings a morbid, distracted song about a dead lover. Also, a messenger informs the King and Queen that Laertes has been greatly angered to hear about the murder of his father Polonius, and wants an explanation. Claudius uses the opportunity to enlist the services of Laertes, in a plot to kill Hamlet In Scene’s VI and VII, Claudius and Laertes conspire to kill Hamlet during a "sporting" duel using a sharpened and poisoned fencing sword. Not fully trusting in Laertes’ ability, King Claudius also has a back-up plan, to offer Hamlet a poisoned glass of wine during the match. Also, we learn of Ophelia’s death, or “suicide” at this point.
The final act begins in a graveyard, a place clearly representative of death and decay, and possible foreshadowing of things to come in the near future. Laertes and a funeral procession arrive with Ophelia's corpse. Hamlet and Laertes grapple with each other, literally falling into the grave. In the final scene, there is a swift succession of events. Hamlet informs Horatio that he has altered the King's sealed document so that it asks for the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, his two friends which spied and betrayed him. Hamlet is challenged to a duel with Laertes. Hamlet suspects foul play from the onset, but expresses his willingness to take part in the fight anyway, even if it means his own death. During the match, Hamlet is mortally wounded, as is Laertes, The Queen accidentally drinks from the poisoned cup and dies, and a dying Hamlet first wounds Kings Claudius and then forces him to drink from the same lethal cup. Hamlet and Laertes forgive each other, Laertes dies, and Hamlet then names Fortinbras, the prince of Norway, as his successor to the throne after dissuading Horatio from joining him in death. The play ends with Fortinbras arriving, accepting the throne, and ordering a hero’s funeral for Hamlet.
