Escapism In Brideshead Revisit

A detailed Summary of Escapism In Brideshead Revisit

The Obligation To Avenge Is Truly A 'Cursed Spite' He Who Ignores It Is A Coward He Who Accepts It Is A Murderer

Whilst an audience would feel Hamlet must follow his visceral feelings and exact a bloody revenge, there is also the moral issue that both a viewer and Hamlet must wrestle with in order to make a decision over whether the death of a murdering, 'incestuous' Uncle is necessary. From the time the audience hears of his intentions they feel sympathetic towards his cause even though he is to commit a chilling crime. This is best explained by Francis Bacon, the writer of 'Of Revenge' who states that 'revenge is a kind of wilde justice' and:

'The most tolerable sort of revenge, is for those wrongs, which there is no law to remedy'

There are surely no greater wrongs than killing a brother and a King in one fell swoop, but there are other motives for this revenge, primarily honor. It is the ghost of Hamlet's father whom fuels revenge in the early stages of the play, he urges Hamlet to abandon all 'nature', a euphemism for morality, and kill Claudius in order to release the spirit from 'purgatory' in a similar manner to Claudius the ghost asks Hamlet to turn his love into actions:

This is evidence that the courts were a source of great pleasure and that the fate of the criminals was of interest to the people of London, where Shakespeare lived. In Hamlet's case it would have been viewed as an unavoidable inevitability that Claudius would be killed due to the strong bond between families. He gave his word to his father and a father's wish was to be exacted perfectly. G.B.Harrison states that there was 'a significant sense of loyalty and devotion amongst families', if Hamlet had not killed Claudius he would have been viewed in a similar light to Polonius whom abandoned his integrity by discussing his son's exploits with somebody outside the family, he accused his own blood of visiting 'brothels' which were frowned upon, although quite popular amongst the Elizabethan people.

'O good Horatio, I'll take the ghosts word for a thousand pounds. Didst perceive?

'Apart from the excellent shops, the great single magnet was the law courts... During each of the law terms, especially the autumn term of the michaelmas, the population of London swelled like the tidal flow of its own Thames'

However Hamlet is an introspective character who does not know whether to trust the ghost of his father, which, according to Sir Walter Murdoch leads to 'intense psychological pain through his obsession for gathering information to prove or disprove Claudius' guilt.' However it can also be argued that Hamlet, despite his desire to extract revenge against Claudius, is also actively looking for means with which to relieve himself from the stress and protect his morale and religious principles that harboring this obsession causes him, even if seeking psychological refuge in such ways might mean forfeiting this endeavor. This would relieve him from an impossible dilemma and free him from the feeling of cowardice.

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Walter Murdoch, Tragedy Vindice, Bernard Shaw, Francis Bacon, London Shakespeare, Horatio I'll, Rosencrantz Guildenstern, Marchette Chute, Murderer Whilst, Elizabethan Laertes', walter murdoch, sir walter murdoch, according sir, sir walter, according sir walter, title suggests, religion appear, elizabethan people, moral implications, hatred uncle, crime murder, claudius ghost,

Approximate Word count = 1543
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English