Discussion Topic
Examples of pathetic fallacy in Hamlet
Summary:
In Hamlet, examples of pathetic fallacy include the turbulent weather mirroring the chaos in Denmark, such as the stormy night when the ghost of King Hamlet appears. Additionally, Ophelia's madness and subsequent drowning coincide with spring's blooming, reflecting her inner turmoil and the play's tragic events.
What are examples of pathetic fallacy in Act 1, Scene 5 and Act 2, Scene 1 of Hamlet? Is "Heaven secure him!" (115) an example?
Pathetic fallacy is when the weather, the climate, or the elements are used to reflect the mood of the story, or the mood of the characters. In romantic films, for example, there is often rain when the two lovers are separated. This is because the rain reflects the miserable, melancholy mood of the two lovers. In some films, there is often stormy weather when something frightening, dramatic, or chaotic is happening. The stormy weather reflects the chaotic, frightening mood of the story.
There are no obvious examples of pathetic fallacy in act 1, scene 5, but this scene does follow directly on from act 1, scene 4, where the weather is described several times. We can assume that the weather in act 1, scene 5, is much the same as it is in act 1, scene 4, and this weather would be demonstrated on stage throughout both scenes. In act...
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1 scene 4, the weather is described as "very cold."Hamlet says that the "air bites," and Horatio says that the air is "nipping." These descriptions of the climate reflect the mood at this point in the play. The climate is uncomfortably cold, and inhospitable, and reflects that something is, as Marcellus states at the end of act 1, scene 4, "rotten in the state of Denmark."
In act 1, scene 5, Horatio exclaims, "Heaven secure him!" This is not an example of pathetic fallacy because there is no description of the weather, the climate or the elements. Horatio is here simply asking heaven, and by implication the angels or God, to protect Hamlet, who at this point in the play is in a state of extreme emotional agitation. Hamlet has of course just been told by the ghost of his dead father that he was murdered by his own brother, Hamlet's uncle, who is now the king.
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What are some examples of pathetic fallacy in Hamlet?
A pathetic fallacy is a literary device whereby the author attributes human emotions and character traits to things that aren't human, such as animals or inanimate objects. In act 1, scene 4, the atmosphere is dark and brooding, establishing the perfect backdrop to what's about to follow. Hamlet states that
The air bites shrewdly. It is very cold.
It's quite common to express the air as biting cold during winter. Though here it has much greater significance, for soon the ghost of Hamlet's father will reveal how he came to die. The biting cold helps provide an appropriate setting for the appearance of a spirit from beyond the grave. Denmark isn't just rotten under Claudius; it's also as cold as the grave.
In his response to Hamlet, Horatio provides an additional example of a pathetic fallacy:
It is a nipping and an eager air.
The word "eager" implies a certain forcefulness about the chill wind that's descending upon the battlements of Elsinore. There's an air of menace about it; the cold wind attacks as it cuts right through Hamlet and Horatio. The almost supernatural quality of the inclement weather conditions points towards the imminent manifestation of the Ghost. Just as Hamlet cannot resist the elements, nor can he refrain from listening to what the Ghost has to say, despite Horatio's advising him to the contrary.
In Hamlet, much of Act I makes use of pathetic fallacy in order to instill in the audience a sense of fear, confusion, foreboding, and the supernatural.
A pathetic fallacy is an attribution of human emotions to inanimate objects (namely in nature) or an overly-ornate description of nature. For example, Francisco says:
The soldier is connecting the weather ("cold") with his fear ("sick at heart"). This use of drawing on the external weather to describe human emotions is a simple example of pathetic fallacy.
Here's another, Horatio says:
I have heard,The cock, that is the trumpet to the morn,Doth with his lofty and shrill-sounding throatAwake the god of day; and, at his warning,Whether in sea or fire, in earth or air,The extravagant and erring spirit hiesTo his confine: and of the truth hereinThis present object made probation.
First of all, there is no "trumpet to the morn," "god of day," or "extravagant and erring spirit." Horatio here is using poetic language to explain an otherwise common occurence--a rooster's crow--but he is doing so in order to heighten the sense of mystery surrounding the third appearance of King Hamlet's Ghost. So, he is attributing a sense of mystery to the cock's crow to say there is some spiritual connection between the human world and the natural one.