Lauren Guy

Mr. Palcsey

Honors English 10

October 7, 2017

Examination of a Conscience

“Conscience is but a word that cowards use, devised at first to keep the strong in awe.” When

William Shakespeare said this, he was trying to portray the message that without a conscience,

humanity would be incapable of feelings in its entirety. Throughout the Tragedy of Hamlet,

written by Shakespeare, it is made prominent that one’s conscience is able to prevent them from

making certain choices based on how they think they will feel after the action is

completed. Many characters go through the process of examining their conscience during the

play. King Claudius is a megalomaniac who becomes bounded with guilt transitioning into

resentment towards one common factor, Hamlet.

King Claudius wanted nothing more than to have complete control over the land of

Denmark. Nothing could stop him from getting what he wanted, including his brother. Claudius

had to internalize his thought process before acting upon it. Once devising a scheme based on

pure envy and his unquenchable desire for power, he poured poison into the ear of King Hamlet.

In scene one act five, The Dead King Hamlet appears to his son. He says, “Upon my secure hour

thy uncle stole, with juice of cursed hebenon in a vial, and in the porches of my ears did pour the

leprous distilment…And with a sudden vigor, it doth posset and curd, like eager droppings into

milk, the thin and wholesome blood.” This proves to Hamlet that his father did not die a natural

death and that it was indeed his uncle who was the cause of it. Once the death of the King was

covered up, it is made known that the queen has taken Claudius’ hand in marriage. This would
result in the thrown being passed down to Claudius, giving him exactly what he wanted.

Once Hamlet acquired this information, he plots to kill Claudius in order to fulfill the

prophecy of his father. Flashing forward, Hamlet tests Claudius to see if he was truly capable of

murdering the dead King Hamlet. He did this by conducting a play that was loosely related to

the story of Claudius and how the character in the play married his dead brother’s wife. Once

Claudius comes to the realization that this is his current standing in his personal life, he shuts the

play down. Once everyone leaves the theatre, Claudius takes the stage. Hamlet is lurking

around in the back waiting to see what he will do. Claudius then falls to his knees and begins to

pray. Guilt and sorrow has now taken over his whole body. His examination of conscience led to

his mental agony and submission to the greater being in which he prays to.

Within the text of Hamlet, there are several tragedies. One happens to be the Lord

Chamberlin’s death. After his death, his son, Laertes, comes to seek revenge for his father’s

murder. It is soon revealed that Hamlet was in fact his killer but it was not intentional. Claudius

works under the table with Laertes creating a strategy to eliminate Hamlet for good. Claudius’

burning passion for revenge is slowed when his conscience relays to him that this is his wife’s

favorite person. Gertrude is charmed by her son and would not be able to forgive Claudius if he

went through on a plan so absurd. His mind causes him to hesitate until he finally gives in to his

personal dark side and attempts to kill Hamlet.

Claudius scrutinizes himself and the well-being of his soul all the while planning to kill

his nephew. The plethora of thought that he put into his decision still led him to make the wrong

choice. Claudius died with an unclean soul therefore his fate remains unknown. His rash

decision making and acting on impulse truly caught up to him in the end. To avoid an unhealthy

conscience: make wise decisions, be open to opportunity, and NEVER let envy get in the way.