Honor In Hamlet Essay

What is honor? By definition, the word honor means high respect and is something that can be achieved in many ways. The play Henry IV, part 1 by William Shakespeare dives into this idea of honor and the many ways to achieve it. The play shows this idea from the characters fighting for honor and the discussion of whether or not they deserve it. Honor is something an individual must earn, but the characters in Henry IV, part 1 believe they can fool others rather than work for it, to gain honor.

Honor means to me that you did something for you or someone else. The definition of honor is being high in royal and to be respect for something you did or be esteemed or honorable. Some synonyms are glory which means to have given something really cool for something you did another one is privilege is where you are given a privilege for what you have done. Some antonyms are dishonor which is the exact opposite of honor which means you did something horrible. Another antonym is shame which means you did something even worse than dishonor for example you attempted to murder someone.

In the play “Hamlet”(1603), William Shakespeare emphasizes the acts of betrayal to display the overall theme of the play. Mr. Shakespeare is able to imply this by creating two characters Gertrude and Hamlet to turn against each other in a family against family relationship throughout most of the play. Shakespeare’s purpose in this play is to show how betrayal produces conflict amongst individuals, in order to show how a relationship based off of betrayal is a source of deadly revenge for everyone around. Queen Gertrude betrays the family when she marries soon after her husband’s death, not only does she do that, but she marries her own husband's brother. This causes Hamlet a feeling of betrayal due to the fact that, he feels like his mother

“But in my terms of honor I stand aloof, and will no reconcilement. Till by some elder masters, of known honor, I have a voice and precedent of peace. To keep my name ungored.” (V, ii, 3882-3889) This quote reflects the honor that all of the sons have to do the best they can to avenge the death of their father.

Such actions elaborate on the fact that Hamlet is channeling his inner anger in hopes to frighten his mother. Betrayal does not benefit either party, so Hamlet attempting to act in a way that could mentally harm his mother is not necessary. This hurts his mother’s feelings, as well as going against his father’s

Firstly, Hamlet is a play of a man by the name of Hamlet, whose father was murdered by Claudius, his uncle. Claudius murdered the king by pouring poison in his ear to claim the throne for himself. Hamlet is then told by a ghost to murder Claudius for revenge, and he struggles within himself for the length of play whether to do it or not. When Hamlet begins to hesitate it does more damage than good and causes a chain reaction of tragic events, and makes the readers question whether Hamlet is truly sane or not. Claudius’s corruptness begins to show when he uses his authority to order those around him to rid of Hamlet.

The uncle that took his crown and now his father’s ghost who tells him Claudius murder his father. Will he get avenge for his father’s death? So now Hamlet begins to question his life is it worth the living “To be, or not to be?

In Act two of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, honor and heroism plays a big role. Obviously because Shakespeare was writing in the Elizabethan era, a time where there were different ideas about what honor was and how it plays into the lives of royalty. In this act there’s a bit less of traditional “heroic” action (like, jousting and saving maidens in distress or something) and a lot of talk that could be less than heroic and honorable (hello medieval espionage!). In most classical traditions, Hamlet would occupy the role of the hero.

When Hamlet meets with the ghost King Hamlet in the opening scene, he realizes that his father is murdered by Claudius. From Act I scene 5, the ghost King Hamlet is asking Hamlet to seek for revenge, “So art thou to revenge, when thou shalt hear” (1.5.12). By knowing this, Hamlet starts the revenge for his father and sets the tone of the entire play where death, revenge, murder, and suicide become the symbols of the whole play, and leads to the deaths of almost all the characters, including Claudius, Laertes, Polonius, Ophelia, Queen Gertrude, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Hamlet himself. Also, because of his father’s death and his mother’s quick marriage with Claudius, Hamlet has the idea of committing suicide. From Act I scene 2, "O, that this too sullied flesh would melt,Thaw, and resolve itself to dew" (1.2.133-134).

Before the ghost leaves, he said to Hamlet to remember him. After Hamlet had his speech with his dead father, his goal was to avenge the King Hamlet’s death. Hamlet had many chances to kill Claudius and get over with his revenge, but he hesitated most of the times. The first time that Hamlet had the opportunity to kill his dad’s murderer was after the “Mousetrap”, which was the play that presents the true story of a murder carried out in Vienna.

To me honor is about high morals and kindness, as well as pride as from whence you have come. All of the different versions of this "honor" aforementioned are discussed in Shakespeare's Henry IV, honor of fame, the honor of sinful desire and honor of virtuous acts are all major types of honor that are mentioned in this literary work. The honor that gains fame and fortune often seems a very popular type of honor, this is discussed in lines one hundred ninety five through one hundred ninety seven by Hotspur, the nobleman. Hotspur begins to describe honor in this way, "So honor cross it

The story of a young man by the name of Hamlet has been told since it was first written in the early 1600s. The timeless classic tells the tale of Prince Hamlet, who discovers that his mother had wed his uncle, two months prior to his father’s passing. He visits the throne in Denmark because he is disgusted at the act of incest, where the ghost of his deceased father confronts him, insisting that he was murdered by Claudius, the new king. Hamlet is enraged, and he becomes obsessed with the idea of proving the crime so that he can obtain revenge against Claudius (Crowther). Despite the myriad of themes that circulate throughout the Shakespearean play, many do not realize one hidden yet extensive theme: actions and their consequences.

Everyone has different ways to define honor, as there is different ways to use honor. Some could see honor as your rank in society or a certain subject in your life. Honor could be defined as keeping your image or fulfilling what you were bound to do. Or it could be seen as a privilege. I define honor as having pride in who you are and what you do, so you constantly do your best and never put your head down.

Hamlet is a moral character struggling to find his way in an immoral world. He wants what is best for his family and kingdom, and is greatly disturbed by his mother’s marriage and father’s death. While speaking with the ghost, Hamlet wrestles with the conflicting ideas of Christianity and familial loyalties. The ghost tells him he needs to kill Claudius, but Hamlet can not figure out if that is the moral thing to do. His religion tells him that he cannot kill Claudius no matter the circumstances.

“When we treat people merely as they are, they will remain as they are. When we treat them as if they were what they should be, they will become what they should be.” -Thomas S. Monson. All people are deserving of respect. This life lesson can change someone 's entire life for the better.