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Suicide In Hamlet Research Paper

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Suicide, in today’s society is seen as a dreadful tragedy that no human should resort to, and this outlook was no different in Shakespeare’s time. Shakespeare introduces the theme of suicide in Hamlet by emoting a dark, and vengeance filled side of Hamlet, which is constantly brought up as he contemplates the idea of suicide. Hamlet considers the benefits of leaving the miserable life he was given, for an unknown life with the dead. Although, Hamlet’s repetitive thoughts of death make us question his sanity, the bigger picture is the powerful message that Shakespeare delivers about suicide. Essentially, through the idea of suicide Shakespeare discloses how poorly suicide has been looked upon over the years as it was not only considered a mortal …show more content…

At this point, it’s obvious that Hamlet wants to commit suicide as he shows his disgust at having to pretend that everything is well and that he’s pleased that his uncle is now married to his mother. This is made apparent when Hamlet says, “Oh that this too sullied flesh would melt, That and resolve itself into a dew” (Act 1 Scene 2 Page 27). In other words, he wishes that his flesh would melt and he would cease to exist, but he explains that suicide isn’t an option as it’s a vast sin toward God. He states, “Or that the Everlasting had no fixed His canon ‘gainst self-slaughter” (Act 1 Scene 2 Page 27). This comes as a surprise as suicide wasn’t as popular or something often done in this time period, in fact it hasn’t been until recent that suicide rates have been increasing. A New York Times Article proves this, “Suicide in the United States has surged to the highest levels in nearly 30 years, a federal data analysis has found, with increases in every age group except older adults” (The New York Times) Besides the interesting dynamics of Hamlet’s character he is only limited to pondering about suicide and isn’t able to actually commit suicide because of his religious beliefs and respect towards God. This allows Shakespeare to continue developing Hamlet's suicidal thoughts by explaining his reasoning against the actual decision of self

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