Unadmirable Relationships Hamlet

"Hamlet shows us no admirable human relationships." Discuss, supporting your views with detailed evidence from the play.

"We are arrant knaves, all..." Hamlet, written by the ever observant William Shakespeare, certainly seems to prove this true. Embroiled in corruption, Denmark the "prison" is barely the place for admirable relationships to flourish. Any claim that "Hamlet shows us no admirable human relationships," would therefore, on the surface, be mostly justifiable. The play's four kinds of relationships: in blood, in name, in romance, and in friendship, reflect the rotten state from which they spring. Hamlet's mother disregards his grief, Polonius disregards his daughter's love for Hamlet, Hamlet uses Ophelia, Claudius values power over his wife, and Hamlet plots his friends' deaths. Admirable relationships where mutual trust, respect, loyalty, and selflessness are key values shared between human beings are few and far between in Hamlet. The only relationship which comes close in Hamlet is the friendship between the Danish prince and humble Horatio. This gloomy reality not only reinforces central thematic concerns such as corruption, but also justifies Hamlet's brutal actions. Most importantly however, Shakespeare makes the concerns in the play relevant and important to our own lives. We learn to value and nurture the admirable relationships we do have, for the improvement of our own lives and the wellbeing of a society.

One of the closest and most impacting relationships that we have is that with our family. There is often no stronger bond than between a parent and a child. At the beginning of Hamlet, however, Shakespeare hits us with a mother and son whose relationship is far from admirable. Hamlet's first line refer to his Uncle and new step-father as "a little more than kin, a little less than kind," showing no respect for his mother's second choice of husband. Referring to his mother when proclaiming "frailty, thy name is woman!" simply confirms his lack of respect for her. Gertrude, however, is also guilty of failing to be loyal to her son with sweeping, ignorant comments about his grief. She tells him "do not forever with thy veiled lids seek for thy noble father in the dust. Thou know'st 'tis common - all that lives must die." Hamlet, however, simply cannot accept his mother's hasty marriage - "a beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourn'd longer." Her lack of respect and empathy here, and "dexterity to incestuous sheets," infuriate and sadden Hamlet to the point where he contemplates suicide, exclaiming "O, that this too too solid flesh would melt, thaw and resolve itself into a dew!" His mother's marriage has plunged Denmark into a hotbed of corruption, which Hamlet believes is "an unweeded garden, that grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature." The garden was an Elizabethan symbol of order, and even from the first Act Hamlet speaks of the "rank and gross" garden as a metaphor for the corruption destroying Denmark. Hamlet's threatening behaviour towards his mother in Act 3 cause her to question "thou wilt not murder me?" and as a result, lose trust and faith in him. Hamlet on the other hand disrespectfully asks her "where is thy blush?" and Gertrude fails to understand her son, instead thinking he's "mad as the sea and wind." It is the lack of admirable relationships, even between mother and son, which create a morally defunct society.

Hamlet and Gertrude are not alone, however. Polonius' total disregard for his daughter's relationship with Hamlet is patronising and shows he has little trust for her judgement - "you have ta'en these tenders for true pay which are not sterling." In Act 3, Polonius also uses his daughter to help Claudius find the cause of Hamlet's madness, treating her like a puppet "walk you here...read on this book..." Ironically his advice to Laertes - "to thine own self be true" - contradicts his attitude towards his daughter, who he typically directs like most fathers would have done in the patriarchal Elizabethan period. This relationship between daughter and father, again lacking in admirable qualities, shows us a different kind of corruption. Hamlet's feeling of Denmark being "a prison" is shown through the dishonest and secretive spying that takes place within the Castle. Together with the imagery of the corruption in Denmark being an illness, this idea of the prison extends to painting each character as criminal in some way. With morally tainted characters, the relationships between them turn sour (as with Hamlet & Gertrude).

Of course, Denmark was not always so corrupt. It is the "foul and most unnatural murder" committed by Claudius and his "incestuous" marriage with Gertrude, which begins his reign of corruption. The relationship would have been considered repulsive by Early Modern England Society standards and still would be by most today. It is established as corrupt, as both characters are sinners - Claudius kills his brother, and Gertrude betrays her husband by marring the killer within two months. Gertrude is also tainted by adultery - Old Hamlet refers to her as his "seemingly virtuous Queen." Hamlet's disgust with this is obvious, and Shakespeare's clever use of impassionate consonants "Oh most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to incestuous sheets" bring to light the intensity of Hamlet's emotions. It is because of the nature of this relationship that the audience finds it acceptable when Hamlet murders Claudius, as he is defeating the corruption which overtook Denmark. He is therefore able to retain the status of the tragic hero, the "noble heart" in the play.

Hamlet compares his father, the "Hyperion" to Claudius, the "Satyr," and also hints of the "loving" relationship that Claudius destroyed by murdering Old Hamlet. Denmark not only lost their King, but also an admirable relationship between the King and his wife which had ensured stability throughout the realm. The lack of loyalty and selflessness from Claudius towards Gertrude, and his inability to repent for want of power means he lets his wife die. This is obviously not admirable and leads to Claudius' death, which ends up being a similar fate for all those who do not have admirable relationships. This is also a timeless lesson about the importance of admirable relationships for the long-term well being of our lives. Shakespeare makes a pressing point about the ability of corrupt relationships to do damage to a society, and the importance of admirable