The Tragedy Of Hamlet Essays (902 words) - Shakespearean Tragedies

The Tragedy of Hamlet The Tragedy of Hamlet Arguably the best piece of writing ever done by William Shakespeare, Hamlet the is the classic example of a tragedy. In all tragedies the hero suffers, and usually dies at the end. Othello stabs himself, Romeo and Juliet commit suicide, Brutis falls on his sword, and like them Hamlet dies by getting cut with a poison tipped sword. But that is not all that is needed to consider a play a tragedy, and sometimes a hero doesn't even need to die. Not every play in which a Hero dies is considered a tragedy. There are more elements needed to label a play one. Probably the most important element is an amount of free will. In every tragedy, the characters must displays some. If every action is controlled by a hero's destiny, then the hero's death can't be avoided, and in a tragedy the sad part is that it could. Hamlet's death could have been avoided many times. Hamlet had many opportunities to kill Claudius, but did not take advantage of them. He also had the option of making his claim public, but instead he chose not too. A tragic hero doesn't need to be good. For example, MacBeth was evil, yet he was a tragic hero, because he had free will. He also had only one flaw, and that was pride. He had many good traits such as bravery, but his one bad trait made him evil. Also a tragic hero doesn't have to die. While in all Shakespearean tragedies, the hero dies, in others he may live but suffer "Moral Destruction". In Oedipus Rex, the proud yet morally blind king plucks out his eyes, and has to spend his remaining days as a wandering, sightless beggar, guided at every painful step by his daughter, Antigone. A misconception about tragedies is that nothing good comes out of them, but it is actually the opposite. In Romeo and Juliet, although both die, they end the feud between the Capulets and the Montegues. Also, Romeo and Juliet can be together in heaven. In Hamlet, although Hamlet dies, it is almost for the best. How could he have any pleasure during the rest of his life, with his parents and Ophelia dead. Also, although Hamlet dies, he is able to kill Claudius and get rid of the evil ruling the throne. Every tragic play must have a tragic hero. The tragic hero must possess many good traits, as well as one flaw, which eventually leads to his downfall. A tragic hero must be brave and noble. In Othello, Othello had one fatal flaw, he was too great. Othello was too brave, too noble, and especially too proud to allow himself to be led back to Venice in chains. A tragic hero must not back down from his position. He also has to have free will, in order to stand up for what he believes in. Finally, the audience must have some sympathy for the tragic hero. In MacBeth, although MacBeth commits many murders, one almost feels sorry for him and his fate. Hamlet is the perfect example of the tragic hero. Hamlet has all the good traits needed to be a tragic hero. 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 didn't 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. But Hamlet like all other tragic hero's had a flaw. He couldn't 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 couldn't 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 couldn't 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

Free Essays on Lakota Woman

Lakota Woman By: josh The book â€Å"Lakota Woman,† is an autobiography that depicts Mary Crow Dog and Indians’ Lives. Because I only had a limited knowledge on Indians, the book was full of surprising incidents after incidents. Moreover, she starts out her story by describing how her Indian friends died in miserable and unjustifiable ways. After reading first few pages, I was able to tell that Indians were mistreated in the same manners as African-Americans by whites. The only facts that make it look worse are, Indians got their land stolen and prejudice and inequality for them still exists. Just like other Indian kids on reservation, Crow Dog’s childhood was poor in everyway; didn’t have enough food, clothes, education, and parents’ love. She was kidnapped to boarding school where Indian children are imprisoned: only allowed to go home one week every year. Because Indians have very strong family tide, such as tiyospaye, being taken away from family was very hard for In dian Children. Crow Dog tried to fight against the school system and published newspapers, explaining how school is treating them like slaves. She quit school but she somehow managed to get her diploma. Despite the fact that she earned her diploma, Crow Dog was living aimlessly; drinking, drugs, stealing, and running away from home. Many Indians spend their ADC check on those things because of the given situation they are in. However, not every Indian spends the day boozed and stoned; like people of AIM are trying to fight against the wrong system. She joins AIM where she finds Indians, living their lives to the fullest to fight for their right. AIM changed her life in two big ways; she learned to fight not only for herself but also for her own people and met her husband Leonard Crow Dog. As an AIM person and Indian, she participates in many Indian activities such as BIA take over, the siege at Wounded Knee, and many peyote meetings. She fights against dicta... Free Essays on Lakota Woman Free Essays on Lakota Woman Lakota Woman By: josh The book â€Å"Lakota Woman,† is an autobiography that depicts Mary Crow Dog and Indians’ Lives. Because I only had a limited knowledge on Indians, the book was full of surprising incidents after incidents. Moreover, she starts out her story by describing how her Indian friends died in miserable and unjustifiable ways. After reading first few pages, I was able to tell that Indians were mistreated in the same manners as African-Americans by whites. The only facts that make it look worse are, Indians got their land stolen and prejudice and inequality for them still exists. Just like other Indian kids on reservation, Crow Dog’s childhood was poor in everyway; didn’t have enough food, clothes, education, and parents’ love. She was kidnapped to boarding school where Indian children are imprisoned: only allowed to go home one week every year. Because Indians have very strong family tide, such as tiyospaye, being taken away from family was very hard for In dian Children. Crow Dog tried to fight against the school system and published newspapers, explaining how school is treating them like slaves. She quit school but she somehow managed to get her diploma. Despite the fact that she earned her diploma, Crow Dog was living aimlessly; drinking, drugs, stealing, and running away from home. Many Indians spend their ADC check on those things because of the given situation they are in. However, not every Indian spends the day boozed and stoned; like people of AIM are trying to fight against the wrong system. She joins AIM where she finds Indians, living their lives to the fullest to fight for their right. AIM changed her life in two big ways; she learned to fight not only for herself but also for her own people and met her husband Leonard Crow Dog. As an AIM person and Indian, she participates in many Indian activities such as BIA take over, the siege at Wounded Knee, and many peyote meetings. She fights against dicta... Free Essays on Lakota Woman "Between 1870 and 1880 all Sioux were driven into reservations, fenced in and forced to give up everything that had given meaning to their life - their horses, their hunting, their arms, everything. But under the long snows of despair the little spark of our ancient beliefs and pride kept glowing, just barely sometimes, waiting for a warm wind to blow that spark into a flame again." Mary Crow Dog Lakota Woman tells the life story of Mary Crow Dog, a Native American woman who witnessed some of the most relevant events of the Native American movement during the late 60’s and 70’s. Crow Dog was born Mary Brave Bird on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota in 1953; she grew up in poverty, without running water or electricity, in a one room shack that she shared with her mother and six siblings. She was born to a Native American woman and a white man; her father disappeared shortly after. Not only did she grow up without a father, but she also grew up as a "half-breed," something that would play a big part in the socialization among her people. Crow Dog left her mother’s home at the age of eleven, her childhood was spent growing up in the streets, drinking and living "like a hobo." Fed up with the school system, Crow Dog left the boarding school on her own terms and began to resist her mother and the white man through learning about her Native American heritage from the older generations; she began to fight for her rights and those of her people along with many other Native Americans. Joining the AIM in 1971, Crow Dog began to lead the life of an activist, she joined marches for Native American rights, attended rallies held for and by various prominent figures in the Native American community. She was also involved in the siege of the Bureau of Indian Affairs building in Washington D.C., where AIM was to meet with government officials to discuss a list of "broken treaties" between Native American and the United Sta...