"The purpose of war is not to destroy those who brought it on, but to make them repent; not to ruin both the innocent and the guilty, but to save both" (Polybius). Since the beginning of man's political consciousness, war has become almost a necessity for humanity, and therefore part of its nature, and although it is not the object to be killed, it is an immediate mechanism for it. In Shakespeare's 17th century play, Hamlet, the writing not only uses themes of tragedy and indecision, but also themes of revenge, espionage, mystery, and death. In this sense, Hamlet can also be defined as a play about war, regardless of whether the war themes are literal or metaphorical. Indeed, they are both literal and metaphorical, and the metaphorical civil war plotted within the royal family is perhaps the greatest aid in Hamlet's plot development and mystery. Between the first and last deaths of this tragic revenge drama, a critique of the nature of man is evident as neither the guilty nor the innocent are saved, and each character's primary goal of annihilation is achieved in a horrible and unnecessary way. bloodshed. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In the opening scenes of the play, the allusion to war is already evident, as the plot focuses on a recent change in kingship, and most know that change in royal power is a possible outcome of the battle. In this case, the first metaphorical battle is between the former King Hamlet and the new King Claudius, for the crown of Denmark and marriage to Queen Gertrude, in which Claudius wins. This battle thus begins the plot of the entire play, as Hamlet returns to Denmark, the land "where all his sorrows and all other sufferings shall be buried" (Kerrigan), and what will become his metaphorical battlefield. Furthermore, the introduction of the idea that his uncle Claudius killed his father further complicates the plot, bringing out a sense of hatred and need for revenge in Hamlet. Early in the story, the reader learns of a secret vendetta between Claudius and Hamlet, which makes lies, deceit, and espionage almost inevitable factors in their success. In his attempt to gain royal recognition through his advice to Claudius, Polonius becomes an important character for themes of espionage and deception. Nothing more than a naive busybody, Polonius chooses to learn about royal affairs by spying on Hamlet for the king, and ultimately pays the price of death for something he himself wasn't even fighting for. For example, to demonstrate Hamlet's mad love for Ophelia, Polonius hides himself and the king and queen behind the tapestry to spy on Hamlet during his meeting with Ophelia (III, ii). Although this act of espionage had relevance to Polonius' daughter, giving him reason to take part in it, in a later scene his espionage goes to the extreme, and he is punished for it. Hiding behind a curtain in Gertrude's room to listen to the conversation between her and Hamlet, he clumsily reveals his presence to Hamlet and is mistaken for Claudius, then killed instinctively without mercy (III, iv). While most of Polonius' espionage concerns his advice to Claudius, he also shows distrust for his son by sending a servant, Raynald, to secretly watch over Laertes when he is away (II, I). Therefore, while Polonius represents the innocent busybody within the main plot, within his own family he takes on a more treacherous role. Furthermore, his death represents the eminent point at which Hamlet brings the dissolution beyond his ownmetaphorical terms and the way he ultimately fixates on the facts of death (Kerrigan). Hamlet himself participates in investigations and deceptions to discover the truth behind his father's murder and to take revenge on those who try to harm him. To find the truth about his father's murder, he resorts to trapping his uncle in his own guilt. By forcing Claudius to watch a play that closely resembles King Hamlet's murder, Hamlet decides that he can "capture the king's conscience" (II, ii, 634). With this trap he manages to bring out the King's guilt, but this proof is not enough to lead Hamlet to follow his instinct for revenge. Immediately after the incident, Hamlet catches Claudius vulnerably praying to God, but refuses to kill him while he is in a state of grace, because Hamlet believes Claudius is unworthy of going to heaven while his father is abandoned in a state of purgatory (III , ii). This is a fine example of the art of revenge, according to Kerrigan, who states that the revenge must far surpass the original crime, a characteristic that often turns genre heroes into vengeful villains. This could also be considered a feature of the war itself. Later in the play, Hamlet overkills in killing for his original purpose when he orders the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (IV, vi); a punishment for their betrayal of his friendship and their devotion to Claudius' proposal to kill Hamlet. The final battle and the final bloodshed occur in the frantic final scene of mass annihilation. This scene is preceded by extremely deceitful actions on the part of Claudius, who embraces Laertes sad and thirsty for revenge to carry out his plan for Hamlet's death. The plan between the two is to trick Hamlet into a one-on-one duel with Laertes, whose sword will be imbued with poison, so that "where blood flows no poultice so rare can save the thing from death" (IV, VII, 163). The holder is a cup of poison, which Claudius is supposed to ask Hamlet to drink for his victory (IV, vii). However, not even this completely deceptive plan can lead Hamlet to his death successfully (or at least not alone). In the final scene of Act V, the duel occurs and a series of flashbacks ensue from the plan. First, Gertrude drinks the poison which Hamlet rejects thinking it is just a glass of wine. Afterwards, Hamlet is scratched with Laertes' sword, however, he returns by stabbing Laertes with the tip of his own poisoned blade. Laertes, "justly killed by [his] treachery" (V, ii, 337), informs Hamlet that both have been poisoned, leading Hamlet to the instinct to kill Claudius within seconds. The war ends here, with the death not only of the guilty and responsible, but also of the innocent and the unaware. In a sense, Shakespeare may be criticizing the victimization of war in his writings about the murders of seven major characters. In addition to Shakespeare's metaphorical war analogy, there is a literal war threatening Denmark. The threat is instigated by Fortinbras, who rashly demands from Claudius the lands that King Hamlet took from his father in battle (I, ii). This is a risk for Denmark only during the first part of the play, because in Act II, Claudius learns that Fortinbras has declared peace with the Danes, on the condition that he can use their land as a passage to enter Poland ( II, ii). Although this seems like a tiny part of the plot, Fortinbras' attack on Poland prompts a strong reaction from Hamlet, regarding the soldiers' ability and willingness to go into battle on "a little piece of ground / Which he has not in itself no profit except profit." name" (IV, iv, 18), while he cannot even act to avenge., 1992.