Claudius killed his father, and he knows it is his duty to avenge his fathers death. He does not

know when he should act. Therefore a major conflict arises within him, the conflict of passion vs.

reason. The theme of passion vs. reason is prevalent throughout the play, and Hamlet is drawn to

both sides of his reason and passion: reason being that he should wait to achieve revenge until a

perfect time, passion being that he should revenge his father immediately, and face the

consequences later. Throughout the play, Hamlet's passion almost overtakes his reason. Seeing

Fortinbras and Laertes act on their passions, he is continuously distraught. He thinks himself a

coward and goes as far as to say he should not live. Amidst Hamlet's confusion and passion

comes Horatio. Being the only trustworthy person in Hamlet's life, Horatio is able to reign in

Hamlet's passion with his reason, inciting Hamlet to act more logically, and therefore be able to

In the first scene Hamlet and Horatio are in together, Horatio shows that his reason is able

to win over Hamlet's passion. When Hamlet is conversing with the ghost a

Hamlet is obviously very conflicted about whether he should wait to kill Claudius or act

saying that he must "like a whore unpack my heart with words/And fall a-cursing like a very

challenge him. He is in Hamlet's situation, and Hamlet sees that he is trying to avenge his fathers

guided by Horatio's reason, throughout the play, when Hamlet wrestles with his feelings, his

believe that he will without a doubt kill Claudius, because he is so set on it.

on it quickly, as he thinks any brave man would. In one of his first speeches, Hamlet lets passion

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1647
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)