Hamlet is a revenge tragedy written in the line of Roman Senecan tragedy.

It is
the tragedy of reflection and moral sensitivity. The protagonist is very reflective
and too sensitive, thus unfit for taking revenge through action. He has to undo
the past, but the paradox of guilt and justice baffles him.

William Shakespeare

The soliloquies of Hamlet help to bring out his complex mental state. When the

play ends all the major characters are dead making the tragedy an absolute one.

Hamlet's father has been murdered by his uncle and his mother marries the

criminal after her husband's death. As suggested by the ghost Hamlet has to

take revenge on his father's murderer. As he is a person with a high degree of

moral sensitivity and a philosophic bent of mind, he thinks about whether evil

can undo evil and not remain evil. He wants to find out whether the ghost has

told the truth or not. He thinks too much and cannot go into action without which

revenge cannot be taken and the tragedy occurs. The soliloquies are given to

him to help reveal his complex psychological state. It's the tragedy of moral

frustration. The tension between Hamlet's need for revenge and the question of

morality, guilt, justice as well as his uncle and mother's position is vividly

dramatized. Inaction is the major tragic flaw which hastens his tragic downfall.

Had Hamlet been Othello the tragedy wouldn't have occurred. His philosophical

soliloquies make it a poetic play rather than a realistic one. Ophelia, her father

and brother die primarily because of Claudius's conspiracy and Hamlet's

1|Page
impulsiveness. Though the conspirator is killed many other innocent people lose

their lives. It is a great disintegration. Since all the characters die at the end of

the play the throne has to be given to a foreigner. It is an absolute tragedy in a

way. The horror, violence and bloodshed on the stage create a kind of unnerving

scene. The readers cannot help feeling pity and fear for what has happened.

David has a Master's in English literature. He has taught college English for 5+ years.

''Hamlet'' is one of the most famous tragedies in literature, but one where Shakespeare bends
or outright breaks many of the rules of the genre. This lesson will examine ''Hamlet'' as a
tragedy and how it follows, and does not follow, the rules.

Tragedy as a Genre
When most people think of tragic plays, they think of William Shakespeare. Many of

Shakespeare's most famous plays, such as Hamlet, Othello, and King Lear are tragedies that end

in the sad and often gruesome deaths of their main characters.

However, if your only exposure to tragedy as a genre is through William Shakespeare, you

might have some skewed ideas about what defines a tragedy. That's because Shakespeare was

a writer who liked to play with the genre rules. His plays follow some of the rules of a typical

tragedy, but invert or ignore many others. No play better demonstrates this than Hamlet. When

considered as a stand-alone play, Hamlet is one of the great works of English literature, a

penetrating study of ambition, jealousy, and lust, and an exploration of the mental state of an

endlessly complex young man. But when looked at in the context of tragedy as a genre, Hamlet

is a peculiar tragedy indeed.

Classical Roots
Drama, the performance of a scripted story by a group of actors, traces its history back to

Ancient Greece, where dramatic competitions were a major part of religious festivals. Many

Greek plays featured ancient heroes such as Oedipus and Agamemnon, and focused on

particularly terrible moments in these heroes' lives. This helped the actors form an emotional

2|Page
connection with the audience and show how powerless humans were against the gods. It's in

this context that the tragedy was born.

Though tragedies had already been around for many years, they were not viewed as a distinct

genre, or category of literature, until the Greek philosopher and part-time drama critic,

Aristotle, expounded on it in his book, Poetics. In this book, Aristotle formulated a theory of

tragedy, based on his observations of the most successful ones, that would be influential for

centuries. Perhaps the two most famous tenets of Aristotle's definition of tragedy were that:

1. It focused on a great man brought down by a tragic flaw such as greed or jealousy
2. It caused a catharsis, or emptying out of emotions, in an audience

In mimicking the Greeks, Ancient Romans continued to produce tragedies while introducing

many new elements to the genre. Perhaps the most important was the invention of the

subgenre known as the Senecan tragedy. Named for the playwright Seneca, this type of

tragedy is distinguished by its focus on revenge and use of gruesome violence. By contrast,

Greek tragedy typically kept its violence off stage.

Revenge Tragedy
In the burgeoning theater scene of London in the 1580s and 1590s, one of the most popular

genres quickly became the revenge tragedy, which borrowed elements from both classic

Greek and Senecan tragedy. Revenge tragedies typically focus on a flawed hero who takes

revenge for a wrong done to him or his family, before eventually being killed himself.

After the massive success of The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd, first performed in 1587,

revenge tragedies became all the rage on the English stage, with many plays borrowing

elements from Kyd's work. In a lot of ways, The Spanish Tragedy set the template for the revenge

tragedies that followed, including Shakespeare's first attempt at tragedy, the violent and brutal

Titus Andronicus.

3|Page
Hamlet, by contrast, was written around 1600, a few years after the vogue for revenge tragedy

had faded. Hamlet displays many elements of revenge tragedy, but also breaks the genre rules

in some important and interesting ways.

Hamlet as Revenge Tragedy

It's easy to say that Hamlet is a revenge tragedy because it's about a character trying to exact

revenge. In Hamlet's case, he's plotting to murder his uncle Claudius in retribution for Claudius'

murder of Hamlet's father, which allowed Claudius to become king of Denmark and even marry

Hamlet's mother.

David has a Master's in English literature. He has taught college English for 5+ years.

''Hamlet'' is one of the most famous tragedies in literature, but one where Shakespeare bends
or outright breaks many of the rules of the genre. This lesson will examine ''Hamlet'' as a
tragedy and how it follows, and does not follow, the rules.

Tragedy as a Genre
When most people think of tragic plays, they think of William Shakespeare. Many of

Shakespeare's most famous plays, such as Hamlet, Othello, and King Lear are tragedies that end

in the sad and often gruesome deaths of their main characters.

However, if your only exposure to tragedy as a genre is through William Shakespeare, you

might have some skewed ideas about what defines a tragedy. That's because Shakespeare was

a writer who liked to play with the genre rules. His plays follow some of the rules of a typical

tragedy, but invert or ignore many others. No play better demonstrates this than Hamlet. When

considered as a stand-alone play, Hamlet is one of the great works of English literature, a

penetrating study of ambition, jealousy, and lust, and an exploration of the mental state of an

endlessly complex young man. But when looked at in the context of tragedy as a genre, Hamlet

is a peculiar tragedy indeed.

4|Page
Classical Roots
Drama, the performance of a scripted story by a group of actors, traces its history back to

Ancient Greece, where dramatic competitions were a major part of religious festivals. Many

Greek plays featured ancient heroes such as Oedipus and Agamemnon, and focused on

particularly terrible moments in these heroes' lives. This helped the actors form an emotional

connection with the audience and show how powerless humans were against the gods. It's in

this context that the tragedy was born.

Though tragedies had already been around for many years, they were not viewed as a distinct

genre, or category of literature, until the Greek philosopher and part-time drama critic,

Aristotle, expounded on it in his book, Poetics. In this book, Aristotle formulated a theory of

tragedy, based on his observations of the most successful ones, that would be influential for

centuries. Perhaps the two most famous tenets of Aristotle's definition of tragedy were that:

1. It focused on a great man brought down by a tragic flaw such as greed or jealousy
2. It caused a catharsis, or emptying out of emotions, in an audience

In mimicking the Greeks, Ancient Romans continued to produce tragedies while introducing

many new elements to the genre. Perhaps the most important was the invention of the

subgenre known as the Senecan tragedy. Named for the playwright Seneca, this type of

tragedy is distinguished by its focus on revenge and use of gruesome violence. By contrast,

Greek tragedy typically kept its violence off stage.

Revenge Tragedy
In the burgeoning theater scene of London in the 1580s and 1590s, one of the most popular

genres quickly became the revenge tragedy, which borrowed elements from both classic

Greek and Senecan tragedy. Revenge tragedies typically focus on a flawed hero who takes

revenge for a wrong done to him or his family, before eventually being killed himself.

5|Page
After the massive success of The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd, first performed in 1587,

revenge tragedies became all the rage on the English stage, with many plays borrowing

elements from Kyd's work. In a lot of ways, The Spanish Tragedy set the template for the revenge

tragedies that followed, including Shakespeare's first attempt at tragedy, the violent and brutal

Titus Andronicus.

Hamlet, by contrast, was written around 1600, a few years after the vogue for revenge tragedy

had faded. Hamlet displays many elements of revenge tragedy, but also breaks the genre rules

in some important and interesting ways.

Hamlet as Revenge Tragedy

It's easy to say that Hamlet is a revenge tragedy because it's about a character trying to exact

revenge. In Hamlet's case, he's plotting to murder his uncle Claudius in retribution for Claudius'

murder of Hamlet's father, which allowed Claudius to become king of Denmark and even marry

Hamlet's mother.

David has a Master's in English literature. He has taught college English for 5+ years.

''Hamlet'' is one of the most famous tragedies in literature, but one where Shakespeare bends
or outright breaks many of the rules of the genre. This lesson will examine ''Hamlet'' as a
tragedy and how it follows, and does not follow, the rules.

Tragedy as a Genre
When most people think of tragic plays, they think of William Shakespeare. Many of

Shakespeare's most famous plays, such as Hamlet, Othello, and King Lear are tragedies that end

in the sad and often gruesome deaths of their main characters.

However, if your only exposure to tragedy as a genre is through William Shakespeare, you

might have some skewed ideas about what defines a tragedy. That's because Shakespeare was

a writer who liked to play with the genre rules. His plays follow some of the rules of a typical

tragedy, but invert or ignore many others. No play better demonstrates this than Hamlet. When

6|Page
considered as a stand-alone play, Hamlet is one of the great works of English literature, a

penetrating study of ambition, jealousy, and lust, and an exploration of the mental state of an

endlessly complex young man. But when looked at in the context of tragedy as a genre, Hamlet

is a peculiar tragedy indeed.

Classical Roots
Drama, the performance of a scripted story by a group of actors, traces its history back to

Ancient Greece, where dramatic competitions were a major part of religious festivals. Many

Greek plays featured ancient heroes such as Oedipus and Agamemnon, and focused on

particularly terrible moments in these heroes' lives. This helped the actors form an emotional

connection with the audience and show how powerless humans were against the gods. It's in

this context that the tragedy was born.

Though tragedies had already been around for many years, they were not viewed as a distinct

genre, or category of literature, until the Greek philosopher and part-time drama critic,

Aristotle, expounded on it in his book, Poetics. In this book, Aristotle formulated a theory of

tragedy, based on his observations of the most successful ones, that would be influential for

centuries. Perhaps the two most famous tenets of Aristotle's definition of tragedy were that:

1. It focused on a great man brought down by a tragic flaw such as greed or jealousy
2. It caused a catharsis, or emptying out of emotions, in an audience

In mimicking the Greeks, Ancient Romans continued to produce tragedies while introducing

many new elements to the genre. Perhaps the most important was the invention of the

subgenre known as the Senecan tragedy. Named for the playwright Seneca, this type of

tragedy is distinguished by its focus on revenge and use of gruesome violence. By contrast,

Greek tragedy typically kept its violence off stage.

7|Page
Revenge Tragedy
In the burgeoning theater scene of London in the 1580s and 1590s, one of the most popular

genres quickly became the revenge tragedy, which borrowed elements from both classic

Greek and Senecan tragedy. Revenge tragedies typically focus on a flawed hero who takes

revenge for a wrong done to him or his family, before eventually being killed himself.

After the massive success of The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd, first performed in 1587,

revenge tragedies became all the rage on the English stage, with many plays borrowing

elements from Kyd's work. In a lot of ways, The Spanish Tragedy set the template for the revenge

tragedies that followed, including Shakespeare's first attempt at tragedy, the violent and brutal

Titus Andronicus.

Hamlet, by contrast, was written around 1600, a few years after the vogue for revenge tragedy

had faded. Hamlet displays many elements of revenge tragedy, but also breaks the genre rules

in some important and interesting ways.

Hamlet as Revenge Tragedy

It's easy to say that Hamlet is a revenge tragedy because it's about a character trying to exact

revenge. In Hamlet's case, he's plotting to murder his uncle Claudius in retribution for Claudius'

murder of Hamlet's father, which allowed Claudius to become king of Denmark and even marry

Hamlet's mother.

David has a Master's in English literature. He has taught college English for 5+ years.

''Hamlet'' is one of the most famous tragedies in literature, but one where Shakespeare bends
or outright breaks many of the rules of the genre. This lesson will examine ''Hamlet'' as a
tragedy and how it follows, and does not follow, the rules.

Hamlet as Revenge Tragedy

It's easy to say that Hamlet is a revenge tragedy because it's about a character trying to exact

revenge. In Hamlet's case, he's plotting to murder his uncle Claudius in retribution for Claudius'

8|Page
murder of Hamlet's father, which allowed Claudius to become king of Denmark and even marry

Hamlet's mother.

How far can it be argued that shakespeare’s play Hamlet is a tragic play?

Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a complex and multifaceted bringing together many aspects into minds
of its audience. In his writing of Hamlet, it is evident that Shakespeare adopted the dramatic
conventions of a tragic play. In this paper, an attempt is made to discuss the extent to which
Hamlet qualifies to be a tragic play. To achieve this aim, the paper looks at elements of drama
that makes it to be a play.

In order to understand Hamlet as a tragic play, it is important to understand tragedy from

Shakespearian point of view. Point to note is that the tragedy is a work that has unhappy ending.
The ending must include the main character’s downfall [ CITATION Val09 \l 1033 ] . The
Shakespearean tragedy is a specific type of tragedy or a written work with a sad ending where
the hero either dies or ends up mentally, emotionally or spiritually devastated beyond recovery
[ CITATION Pow12 \l 1033 ].

Generally speaking it is commonly said about every Shakespearean tragedy, "A Shakespearean
tragedy is a five act play ending in the death of most of the major characters" [ CITATION Woo99 \l
1033 ]. But if we are looking for the essence of Shakespearean tragedy we must look in an
entirely different realm. We cannot merely list the literary devices used, find the ones common to
all of Shakespeare's tragedies, and call this collection their essence. We recognize tragedy in
literature because we find that it corresponds to a sense of the tragic within us. The essence of
Shakespeare's tragedies is the expression of one of the great paradoxes of life. We might call it
the paradox of disappointment. Defeat, shattered hopes, and ultimately death face us all as
human beings. They are very real, but somehow we have the intuitive feeling that they are out of
place. They seem to be intruders into life. Tragic literature confronts us afresh with this paradox
and we become fascinated by it. Having highlighted the essential arguments about

9|Page
Shakespearean tragedy, let us now focus on why and the extent to which Hamlet qualifies to be a
tragic play.

Firstly, tragedy is concerned primarily with one person –the tragic hero. Hamlet is the perfect
example of the tragic hero. Hamlet has all the good traits needed to be a tragic hero. According
to [ CITATION Gre11 \l 1033 ] he is brave and daring. One example of this is that when he went to
England, he was taking a big risk. If his plan did not work, he would have been executed. He
also is also loyal. His loyalty to his father, was the reason he was so angry at Claudius and his
Mother. Another trait was that he was intelligent. He was able to think up the idea of faking
insanity, in order to get more information about Claudius.

However, Hamlet like all other tragic hero's had a flaw. He could not get around to doing
anything, because he couldn't move on. He was a full grown adult, yet he still attended school in
England, because he could not move on. Also, it took him a long time to stop grieving about his
father, because he didn't want to move past that part of his life. And after he finally did, Hamlet
could not get around to killing Claudius. He kept pretending he was insane even after he was
sure that Claudius killed his father. The final example of Hamlet's inability to get around to do
anything was that he was dating Ophelia for a long time, but never got around to marrying her.
The audience was able to feel sympathy for Hamlet too. He had just lost his father, and his
mother remarried so quickly that according to him they could have used the leftover food from
the funeral in the wedding reception. Also, the audience could feel that Hamlet loved his parents
and this sudden change was hurting him [ CITATION Coo00 \l 1033 ].

A tragic hero also must have free will or his fate would be decided for him, and his death could
be avoided. Finally, the audience must have sympathy for the tragic hero, or it wouldn't seem so
tragic [ CITATION Val09 \l 1033 ]. Hamlet is a perfect example of a tragic hero. He was brave,
loyal, and intelligent, but he couldn't move on past one thing, which led to his death. He had a
choice of how he would deal with Claudius, and like other tragic hero's made a decision. Also,
the audience was able to feel sympathy for the position Hamlet was in. These attributes made
Hamlet the perfect example of a tragic hero.

Hamlet’s suffering and misfortunes are so extraordinary that his fall causes pit and terror in us.
Hamlet feels deeply agonized at the marriage of his mother. He is ashamed of the act of his

10 | P a g e
mother. The ghost tells him to take revenge for the murder of his father. But he is unable to take
action and he meets his tragic death in taking revenge against his uncle Claudius. The tragic hero
must be an exceptional being - a person of high degree or public importance. His actions and
sufferings must be of an unusual kind. Hamlet is an important person. He is a prince, son of the
previous king. This reversal excites and arouses the emotions of pity and fear within the
audience.  The reversal may frighten and awe, making viewers or readers of the play feel that
man is blind and helpless.  The audience will regard the tragic hero as an individual who is up
against an overwhelming power that may treat him well for a short period of time, but will
eventually strike him down in his pride [ CITATION Gre11 \l 1033 ].

Secondly, the tragic fate of the hero is often triggered by a tragic flaw in the hero’s character. 
The hero contributes in some way, shape, or form to the disaster in which he perishes [ CITATION
Woo99 \l 1033 ]. In some ancient tragedies the hero’s destruction is caused by Fate – forces
outside the control of the hero, and so in a sense the hero cannot be blame. However, in
Shakespeare the hero makes choices that cause his downfall. Hamlet is conscious of the role of
Fate in his life. He will not allow his friends to keep him away from seeing the ghost: ‘My fate
cries out (Act 1 Scene 4 line 83). Just before the sword fight he seems resigned to what fate has
in store for him: yet fate does not prevent him from killing Claudius when he had a chance he
chose not to do it.

On the other hand, if he had been less resigned to Fate and more suspicious, he might not have
been tricked in the sword fight. Fate always seems to take a hand and restore stability, so we
have Fortinbras set up to rule Denmark and presumable restore order. The state isn’t left
leaderless.

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Hamlet's state of mind has spurred out of control, leading us to believe

that he is truly insane. Early on, we can infer that Hamlet appears distraught over his father's
death and his mother's hasty remarriage [ CITATION Woo99 \l 1033 ]. Despite these
hardships, Hamlet still appears sane although he is deeply mourning and even contemplating
suicide when he says:"O, that this too, too sullied flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into
dew." As the play advances, however, Hamlet's sanity diminishes, most noticeably following the
meeting with his father's ghost. Hamlet's run-in with Ophelia is one of the first indications of his

11 | P a g e
madness. In Act 3, Scene 1, Hamlet lashes out against Ophelia saying "Get thee {to} a nunnery"
and "If thou dost marry, I'll give thee this plague/for thy dowry" [ CITATION Sha99 \l 1033 ] .
Hamlet's mad behavior is further displayed during his confrontation with his mother. Upon
entering the room, Hamlet expresses his disgrace in Gertrude.

Following this, Hamlet proceeds to kill Polonius who he had mistaken for the King. Because he
has yet to get revenge, Hamlet's state of mind becomes even more distorted. Whether he is insane
or merely carrying out his father's will is unclear. However, Hamlet's rash behavior strongly
suggests that his father's death coupled with his failed revenge has driven him to insanity
[ CITATION Coo00 \l 1033 ].

In addition, besides the outward conflict between individuals or groups of individuals, there is
also an inner conflict(s) and torment(s) within the soul of the tragic hero. An individual’s
response to conditions of internal and external conflict is explored throughout literature
[ CITATION Gre11 \l 1033 ]. In his play, Hamlet, Shakespeare delves into the themes of appearance
versus reality, lies versus deceit, rejection versus self doubt and tragedy, and in doing so attacks
the frivolous state of humanity in contemporary society. In order to explore these themes,
however, he uses several forms of conflict to project his opinions and expand his ideas relating to
the themes of the play. Internal conflict, as well as external conflict are dominant features of his
works, and in Hamlet are made evident through a succession of dire events which can attack and
destroy someone. However perhaps the most captivating form of conflict Shakespeare uses to
expand and explore the ideas presented within the text is the conflict between the self and the
universe.

Talking about the tragic hero, it is necessary that he or she should contain so much greatness that
in his fall the audience may be vividly conscious of the individual’s potential for further success,
but also the temptation of human nature [ CITATION Coo00 \l 1033 ].  Therefore, a Shakespearean
tragedy is never depressing because the audience can understand where the hero went wrong.
There are probably many different Hamartias exhibited by Hamlet, the one that seems most
obvious would have to be his indecisiveness. Hamlet seems to have trouble making up his mind
about a couple of different dilemmas that he is faced with.   A good example is his struggle with
whether or not he should kill Claudius.   Hamlet's flaw was that he ruined his life by not

12 | P a g e
confronting the problem earlier, instead he wanted to obtain proof beyond a reasonable doubt to
justify what he wanted to do to Claudius, and nothing less would suffice.   Hamlet not only
wanted to kill Claudius, he wanted to damn him to hell. However, during his mental battle he
was not seeing the damage he was doing to himself.   By Feigning madness he almost got
himself killed a few times, he destroyed the relationship he had with his mother, and he sent
Ophelia into a downward spiral of depression that ended with her suicide, and her suicide led to
the final bloodbath at the end which saw nearly everyone killed.  

Also, Claudius causes his own ruin because of his evil behavior.   He murders the queen because
he has a lust for power, and perhaps for Gertrude, he spied on Hamlet and concocted several
plans for his murder.   His death would have been avoided if he didn't have the kind of
personality that allows him to kill everyone in the way of getting what he wants.

Another factor in this play is the central impression of the tragedy is one of waste. This is an
Aristotelian term used to describe the ‘pity and fear’ felt by the audience at the end of the play.
These feelings are united with a profound sense of sadness and mystery in the face of such waste.
However, at the end, the restoration of stability provides a sense of safe relief [ CITATION Val09 \l
1033 ]. Also, the state has been purged of evil where justice is done, Claudius, the villain, is dead.

In conclusion, William Shakespeare’s Hamlet conveyed an example of the complex workings of

a person’s mind through the main character, Prince Hamlet. Because of the complex emotions of
the character, there are many was to interpret his actions and thoughts throughout the play. This
complexity of Hamlet helps to make the play very appealing to the audience and therefore
remains a popular piece of a tragic play.

13 | P a g e
REFERENCES
Cooper, H. (2000). Hamlet and the invention of Tragedy. Oxford: Oxford University College.

Greenblatt, S. (2011). The Death of Hamnet and the Making of Hamlet. New Jersey: Prentice
Hall.

Powell, C. (2012). Shakespearean legacy on tragedy. International journal of literature .

Shakespeare, W. (1999). The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Jonn Bosak.

Valera, P. (2009, July 4). Hamlet” as a typical Shakespearean tragedy.

Woodward, G. (1999). An insight into Shakespearean literature. Manchester: Manchester

University.

14 | P a g e