Hamlet's Decisions

Hamlet, upon hearing of his father’s murder, is torn between two decisions. The first is suicide. A quick and easy escape from his worries, however it is highly looked down upon by the church, in which much influence is held over Hamlet. Murder is Hamlet's second choice, but it is also foiled by his deep roots in Catholicism. However, Hamlet doesn't need to choose any of these options. Because of immaturity and the stress of the overall situation, Hamlet is blind to other options. Hamlet should instead seek to reveal Claudius through two options, both of which wash his hands of any murder. Hamlet can reveal his actions to the public and allow a system of law, if his nation has one, to take care of the situation, or Hamlet can challenge him to a duel, which was customary then and honorable.

Hamlet is the prince of a nation, the nation of Denmark. If it is a civilized nation, then Hamlet should seek to reveal his father through law. To do this Hamlet needs evidence. This would mean spending time in the graveyard seeking some proof of his father’s poison. After doing this, Hamlet would be able to retire his uncle from the kingship. Or if a proper set of laws is not found in the country, then simple witnesses and a good accusation could dispose of the king. However, due to Hamlet’s immaturity this would a very unlikely outcome.

Hamlet could also challenge his uncle to a duel. This was normal in the age that Hamlet was written in. Plus it is very honorable. By doing this Hamlet could solve to problems at once. If Hamlet wins the match, then he will be rid of his father, but if he loses, then he will be dead, which is what he wanted after all. All this can be done without the church being brought in over sinful actions.

Hamlet is a young boy who in a stressful situation is forced to two options. One is death the other is murder. Both hold negative connotations with the church and causes Hamlet to fear acting on either one. But Hamlet fails to recognize the other options available to him. The first is just simply revealing his uncle’s actions in a court of law if they exist. The second is to duel his uncle and kill him or be killed, which solves Hamlet’s two original problems. But due to Hamlet’s situation and ill mind from it, neither one of these options is likely to occur.