Hamlet Group

Question:

luisita
luisita
Student
College - Freshman

What evidence shows the kind of monarch Claudius is, and the kind of man he is?

What he shows is his appereance or is his true character?

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Posted by luisita on Thursday July 5, 2007 at 10:32 AM and tagged with hamlet.

Answers:


  1. pickjmh Teacher
    High School - 12th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    As a king, because he his new to the job, Claudius seems to need to prove himself to his new kingdom. In Act I, scene ii, we see Claudius make several key decisions that show what kind of king he will be. First, he attempts to move his kingdom past their state of mourning by throwing a party in honor of his new marriage. He shows us how he will deal with foreign threats and, in contrast to how his late brother dealt with the enemy, when threatened by young Fortinbras, Claudius attempts to avoid bloodshed and battle by asking Fortinbras's elderly uncle to deal with his nephew. This actually isn't all that far from the kind of man he is as well. Claudius is not a "hands on" conspirator and killer. He does things secretly and stealthily and, the elaborate nature of his plots become his undoing in the end of the play as it leads to the death of his wife, stepson, co-conspirator Laertes, and himself.

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    Posted by pickjmh on Thursday July 5, 2007 at 2:23 PM