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Essay on The Moral Corruption of Hamlet

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." When Marcellus realized this, the corruption of Denmark was just beginning. From the time that Cladius murdered King Hamlet and took control of the throne, Denmark was changed forever. It may not have seemed different at a glimpse, but Denmark began to crumble that very day. The scheming and deceitful ways of Cladius led to suffering, corruption and eventually the downfall of Denmark. This can be seen by examining the moral corruption of Denmark, Cladius lies and deceit and finally the sudden presence of death brought to Denmark by Cladius.

The moral corruption of Denmark can be directly linked to Cladius' arrival as the new king. The first example of this is the act of incest involving Cladius and Gertrude, who were brother and sister-in-law before the death of King Hamlet, but then marry after his passing. As Hamlet so bitterly observes about their morally objective marriage:

"...married with mine uncle, my father's brother..."

It can be seen that the marriage of Cladius and Gertrude is the beginning of moral breakdown throughout Denmark, as it has a direct and profound effect on Hamlet's morals and beliefs.

The moral corruption of Hamlet is initially instigated by the marriage of Cladius and Gertrude, which he is disgusted by. He falls victim to "incestuous desire" with his mother, as he seems overly interested in the sex life of his mother with Cladius, which is exemplified when he states:

"She married: - O, most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to incestuous sheets."

Hamlet just seems to be strangely preoccupied with all his mother's action, which leads to the next stage of his moral breakdown, which stems directly from Gertrude and her marriage to Cladius.

Hamlet is so disgusted with Gertrude's hastiness to marry so soon after his father's death, and then to marry into incest, that he develops an unhealthy hatred towards women. From this point onward, Hamlet seems to connect female sexuality to moral corruption


Quotes talked about in this paper

  • Cladius finally persuades Laertes, the son of Polonius, to help him kill Hamlet by "accident" in a set up sparing match. Time and time again, Cladius uses his persuasive skills to put other people at risk, while he sits back and hopes all his planning will work out in his favour. An interesting symbolic reference is made between Cladius' skill to manipulate people and ears/hearing. The significance of this is that Cladius murdered King Hamlet by pouring poison into his ear, which is a fitting method of murder for Cladius as he uses he uses another form of "ear poison" ...
  • Cladius and that is that lies and lack of moral good may pay off in the short term, but eventually "what goes around comes around" and it finally "came around"

Names mentioned in this research paper
King Hamlet, Cladius, Gertrude, Ophelia,

Locations talked about in this paper
Denmark.,

Keywords mentioned in this paper
Denmark, King Hamlet, moral, Laertes, poison, royal family, rosencrantz and guildenstern, ghost, Ophelia, the royal family, physical strength, female sexuality, a vicious cycle, Polonius, sex life, deceit, incest, Yorick, This side, disgusted, incestuous, skill, suicide, trust, my father, crumble, sister in law, shows, dishonesty, unhealthy, nunnery, dexterity, Frailty, the next stage, persuasive, spying, glimpse, hatching, corpse, re marry, persuasion, other people, hastiness, persuades, skeleton, drinks, evil, dust, accident, quest,

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The Moral Corruption of Hamlet. (1969, December 31). In DirectEssays.com. Retrieved 20:50, May 23, 2013, from http://www.directessays.com/viewpaper/97202.html
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