Character List

Character List

Hamlet

The son of Old Hamlet and Gertrude, thus Prince of Denmark. The ghost of Old Hamlet charges him with the task of killing his uncle, Claudius, for killing him and usurping the throne of Denmark. Hamlet is a moody, theatrical, witty, brilliant young man, perpetually fascinated and tormented by doubts and introspection. It is famously difficult to pin down his true thoughts and feelings -- does he love Ophelia, and does he really intend to kill Claudius? In fact, it often seems as though Hamlet pursues lines of thought and emotion merely for their experimental value, testing this or that idea without any interest in applying his resolutions in the practical world. The variety of his moods, from manic to somber, seems to cover much of the range of human possibility.

 

Hamlet has fascinated audiences and readers for centuries, and the first thing to point out about him is that he is enigmatic. There is always more to him than the other characters in the play can figure out; even the most careful and clever readers come away with the sense that they don’t know everything there is to know about this character. Hamlet actually tells other characters that there is more to him than meets the eye—notably, his mother, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern—but his fascination involves much more than this. When he speaks, he sounds as if there’s something important he’s not saying, maybe something even he is not aware of. The ability to write soliloquies and dialogues that create this effect is one of Shakespeare’s most impressive achievements.

Old Hamlet

The former King of Denmark. Old Hamlet appears as a ghost and exhorts his son to kill Claudius, whom he claims has killed him in order to secure the throne and the queen of Denmark. Hamlet fears (or at least says he fears) that the ghost is an imposter, an evil spirit sent to lure him to hell. Old Hamlet's ghost reappears in Act Three of the play when Hamlet goes too far in berating his mother. After this second appearance, we hear and see no more of him.

Claudius

 

Hamlet’s major antagonist is a shrewd, lustful, conniving king who contrasts sharply with the other male characters in the play. Whereas most of the other important men in Hamlet are preoccupied with ideas of justice, revenge, and moral balance, Claudius is bent upon maintaining his own power. The old King Hamlet was apparently a stern warrior, but Claudius is a corrupt politician whose main weapon is his ability to manipulate others through his skillful use of language. Claudius’s speech is compared to poison being poured in the ear—the method he used to murder Hamlet’s father. Claudius’s love for Gertrude may be sincere, but it also seems likely that he married her as a strategic move, to help him win the throne away from Hamlet after the death of the king. As the play progresses, Claudius’s mounting fear of Hamlet’s insanity leads him to ever greater self-preoccupation; when Gertrude tells him that Hamlet has killed Polonius, Claudius does not remark that Gertrude might have been in danger, but only that he would have been in danger had he been in the room. He tells Laertes the same thing as he attempts to soothe the young man’s anger after his father’s death. Claudius is ultimately too crafty for his own good. In Act V, scene ii, rather than allowing Laertes only two methods of killing Hamlet, the sharpened sword and the poison on the blade, Claudius insists on a third, the poisoned goblet. When Gertrude inadvertently drinks the poison and dies, Hamlet is at last able to bring himself to kill Claudius, and the king is felled by his own cowardly machination.

Gertrude

 

Few Shakespearean characters have caused as much uncertainty as Gertrude, the beautiful Queen of Denmark. The play seems to raise more questions about Gertrude than it answers, including: Was she involved with Claudius before the death of her husband? Did she love her husband? Did she know about Claudius’s plan to commit the murder? Did she love Claudius, or did she marry him simply to keep her high station in Denmark? Does she believe Hamlet when he insists that he is not mad, or does she pretend to believe him simply to protect herself? Does she intentionally betray Hamlet to Claudius, or does she believe that she is protecting her son’s secret?
These questions can be answered in numerous ways, depending upon one’s reading of the play. The Gertrude who does emerge clearly in Hamlet is a woman defined by her desire for station and affection, as well as by her tendency to use men to fulfill her instinct for self-preservation—which, of course, makes her extremely dependent upon the men in her life. Hamlet’s most famous comment about Gertrude is his furious condemnation of women in general: “Frailty, thy name is woman!” (I.ii.146). This comment is as much indicative of Hamlet’s agonized state of mind as of anything else, but to a great extent Gertrude does seem morally frail. She never exhibits the ability to think critically about her situation, but seems merely to move instinctively toward seemingly safe choices, as when she immediately runs to Claudius after her confrontation with Hamlet. She is at her best in social situations (I.ii and V.ii), when her natural grace and charm seem to indicate a rich, rounded personality. At times it seems that her grace and charm are her only characteristics, and her reliance on men appears to be her sole way of capitalizing on her abilities.

Horatio

Hamlet's closest friend. They know each other from the University of Wittenberg, where they are both students. Horatio is presented as a studious, skeptical young man, perhaps more serious and less ingenious than Hamlet but more than capable of trading witticisms with his good friend. In a moving tribute just before the play-within-the-play begins, in Act Two scene two, Hamlet praises Horatio as his soul's choice and declares that he loves Horatio because he is "not passion's slave" but is rather good-humored and philosophical through all of life's buffets. At the end of the play, Hamlet charges Horatio with the task of explaining the pile of bodies to the confused onlookers in court.

Surviving to Tell Hamlet's Story

Hamlet insists, however, that Horatio live to tell the tragic story, and he does. Critics often note that Horatio's name recalls the Latin term "orator," (meaning "speaker"), which is fitting given that Horatio promises to put the dead bodies up on a "stage" while he tells Prince Fortinbras and the rest of the world what went down in Elsinore:

And let me speak to the yet unknowing world
How these things came about: so shall you hear
Of carnal, bloody, and unnatural acts,
Of accidental judgments, casual slaughters,
Of deaths put on by cunning and forced cause,
And, in this upshot, purposes mistook
Fall'n on the inventors' reads: all this can I
Truly deliver. (5.2.18)

Hmm….that's interesting. This is sort of what Shakespeare the playwright does, isn't it? Wonder if it has anything to do with the play's overall obsession with the workings of the theater. Check out our discussion of "Art and Culture" for more thoughts about this.

Horatio's Skepticism

Aside from Horatio's survival at the play's end, the character is also notable for the way he's introduced at the play's beginning. When we first see Horatio, he's been called to the castle by the guards. But why? As Marcellus notes, Horatio is a "scholar" (he goes to school in Wittenberg with Hamlet), and therefore, is in a position to judge whether or not the apparition that's been appearing on the battlements is in fact a ghost. According to Marcellus, Horatio chides 'tis but [the guards'] fantasy, / And will not let belief take hold of him" (1.1.5).

Horatio, then, seems to be the embodiment of the Elizabethan skeptic, one who is well educated and doubtful of the legitimacy of ghosts. (Though many Elizabethans did believe in spirits, some viewed it as a superstitious and outdated belief. Check out our discussion of "Religion" for more on this.) Horatio is convinced of the spirit's legitimacy soon enough, but his initial skepticism introduces the first note of doubt in the play, one that will haunt his friend Hamlet for several acts. (Remember, Hamlet says he believes the ghost is his father's spirit but his delay in carrying out the ghost's orders for revenge suggests he's uncertain.)

Polonius

The father of Ophelia and Laertes and the chief adviser to the throne of Denmark. Polonius is a windy, pedantic, interfering, suspicious, silly old man, a "rash, intruding fool," in Hamlet's phrase. Polonius is forever fomenting intrigue and hiding behind tapestries to spy. He hatches the theory that Ophelia caused Hamlet to go mad by rejecting him. Polonius' demise is fitting to his flaws. Hamlet accidentally kills the old man while he eavesdrops behind an arras in Gertrude's bedroom. Polonius' death causes his daughter to go mad.

Ophelia

The daughter of Polonius and sister of Laertes. Ophelia has received several tributes of love from Hamlet but rejects him after her father orders her to do so. In general, Ophelia is controlled by the men in her life, moved around like a pawn in their scheme to discover Hamlet's distemper. Moreover, Ophelia is regularly mocked by Hamlet and lectured by her father and brother about her sexuality. She goes mad after Hamlet murders Polonius. She later drowns.

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Being a "Good" Girl

Ophelia is the quintessential obedient daughter, a role demanded of all young women in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. When her father orders her to quit seeing Hamlet, she complies – "I shall obey my Lord" (1.4.10). Later, when Polonius uses her as bait to spy on Hamlet for King Claudius, she has no choice but to do as she's told (3.1.4). As long as she's unmarried, she must live by her father's rules. (Of course, if she were to marry, she'd then have to live by her husband's rules.) Essentially, Ophelia has no control over her body, her relationships, or her choices. We think she definitely could have used the services of ImperialMatch.com.

Hamlet's Abuse

Ophelia's filial obedience leaves her vulnerable to the abuse of Hamlet, who accuses her of being unfaithful and deceptive. (Hamlet seems to know that Ophelia is a participant in her father's spying.) He accuses her (and all women) of being a "breeder of sinners" and orders Ophelia to a "nunnery" (3.1.9). Hamlet also says that if Ophelia were to marry, she'd turn her husband into a "monster" or, a cuckold (cuckolds were thought to have horns like monsters) because she would inevitably cheat on him (3.1.10). Ophelia is crushed by Hamlet's harsh behavior, especially when he says, "I loved you not" (3.1.8). She's also devastated that Hamlet, the man who once spoke to her with "words of so sweet breath" (3.1.4) seems to have lost his mind and turned on her:

And I, of ladies most deject and wretched,
That sucked the honey of his music vows
Now see that noble and most sovereign reason […]
out of tune and harsh (3.1.13).

Ophelia and Chastity

Hamlet's not the only one who defines Ophelia by her sexuality. Even her brother has something to say about it. In Act I Laertes dispenses advice to Ophelia on the pitfalls of pre-marital sex (for women, not men) in a lengthy speech that's geared toward instilling a sense of "fear" into his sister. In fact, he tells Ophelia no less than three times that she should "fear" intimacy with Hamlet.

Is Laertes just looking out for his little sister's best interests? Maybe, but his speech is also full of vivid innuendo, as when he compares intercourse to a "canker" worm invading and injuring a delicate flower before its buds or, "buttons" have had time to open (1.3.3). This graphic allusion to the anatomy of female genitalia turns his sister into an erotic object while insisting, at the same time, on Ophelia's chastity. Laertes takes a typically Elizabethan stance toward female sexuality – a "deflowered" woman was commonly seen as damaged goods that no man would want to marry.

Ophelia and Madness

That's a lot of pressure to put on a young woman and, as we know, Ophelia eventually cracks. When Ophelia goes mad, she sings a bawdy song about a maiden who is tricked into losing her virginity with a false promise of marriage (4.5.7), which you can read about by going to "Quotes" on "Gender." This is part of the reason why many literary critics see Ophelia's madness as a result of patriarchal pressure and abuse (when men hold all the power in society and abuse women). Shakespeare's portrayal of Ophelia is incredibly sympathetic and seems to register the unfairness of the way Ophelia is treated. It also seems that Ophelia's very real mental breakdown (which results in her drowning) serves as a point of contrast to Hamlet's feigned insanity or "antic disposition," which we talk about in "Madness."

Suicide?

Ophelia's death, like just about everything else in the play, is mysterious. Her drowning occurs off-stage and we're given an account by Gertrude, who may or may not have been present at the time.

When down her weedy trophies and herself
Fell in the weeping brook. Her clothes spread wide;
And, mermaid-like, awhile they bore her up:
Which time she chanted snatches of old tunes;
As one incapable of her own distress,
Or like a creature native and indued
Unto that element: but long it could not be
Till that her garments, heavy with their drink,
Pull'd the poor wretch from her melodious lay
To muddy death. (4.7.2)

Regardless of whether or not Gertrude was an eyewitness, the story of Ophelia's death is striking in a number of ways. First, her death seems to be passive: rather than straight-up committing suicide, as Gertrude tells us, she accidentally falls in the water and then simply neglects to save herself from sinking. This seems to be a metaphor for the way Ophelia lives her life toward the end of the play – going with the flow, doing what her father tells her to do, rather making decisions for herself. Ophelia's "garments" "pull" her down, as if they had a mind of their own.

We also notice that Ophelia is described as being "mermaid-like" with her "clothes spread wide." Even in death, Ophelia is figured as an erotic creature. Gertrude also suggests that Ophelia's drowning was natural when she describes Ophelia as being like a "native" creature in the water. This seems like a pretty dangerous and destructive way to describe a young woman's tragic death, don't you think?

Laertes

Polonius' son and Ophelia's brother. Laertes is an impetuous young man who lives primarily in Paris, France. We see him at the beginning of the play at the celebration of Claudius and Gertrude's wedding. He then returns to Paris, only to return in Act Four with an angry entourage after his father's death at Hamlet's hands. He and Claudius conspire to kill Hamlet in the course of a duel between Laertes and the prince.

Foil to Hamlet

Laertes's character is, perhaps, best known for being an obvious foil to that of Prince Hamlet. After Hamlet kills Polonius, Laertes faces the same problem that Hamlet does – a murdered father. Yet, Laertes's reaction to his father's death is very different from Hamlet's response to news of his own father's murder. While Hamlet lollygags and broods over the murder for much of the play, Laertes takes immediate action. He storms home from France as soon as he hears the news, raises a crowd of followers, and invades the palace. Then he starts asking questions – unlike Hamlet, who asks a whole lot of questions before he finally gets around to avenging his father's death. Laertes, of course, is manipulated by Claudius into a deadly duel with the prince and ultimately comes to the same tragic end as Hamlet. For more on Laertes's relationship to the play's theme of "Revenge," check out our "Quotes."

Big Brother: A little more than kin?

Laertes is also notable for his excessive "love" for Ophelia. So, what's the deal with Laertes and his little sis? Recall that Laertes makes a huge deal about Ophelia's "unpolluted flesh" at her funeral – that is, just before he screams at the priest to rot in hell and leaps into Ophelia's grave while shouting "Hold off the earth a while, / Till I have caught her once more in mine arms" (5.1.5). This, of course, happens just before Laertes fights with his dead sister's ex-boyfriend about who loved Ophelia the most. Clearly, there are traces of incestuous desire at work here, which isn't so surprising in a play that revolves around a young man (Hamlet) who's consumed with his mother's sexuality and marriage to her brother-in-law. Check out our discussion of "Family" for more on this.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

Friends of Hamlet's from the University of Wittenberg. Claudius invites them to court in order to spy on Hamlet. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are often treated as comic relief; they are sycophantic, vaguely absurd fellows. After Hamlet kills Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are assigned to accompany Hamlet to England. They carry a letter from Claudius asking the English king to kill Hamlet upon his arrival. Hamlet discovers this plot and alters the letter so that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are put to death instead. We learn that they have indeed been executed at the very close of the play.

Fortinbras

Fortinbras is a Norwegian prince who seeks revenge for his father's death. (Old Fortinbras, former King of Norway, made a bet with Old Hamlet and wound up losing his life and some important Norwegian territory in the process.) In the play, young Fortinbras attempts to reclaim the land his father lost.

Sounds like a familiar scenario, right? Fortinbras is an important foil for Prince Hamlet, who has also lost a father and now finds himself seeking revenge. But, while Hamlet sits around contemplating life and death, Fortinbras takes clear and immediate action by raising an army to reclaim Norway's lost territories. Though his uncle (the current king of Norway) diverts Fortinbras from attacking Denmark, in the end, prince Fortinbras helps himself to the Danish throne. (Remember, he conveniently arrives at the court in Elsinore immediately after the bloodbath in Act V, Scene ii.)

Lurking behind the stories of both Fortinbras and Hamlet is the question of why their uncles are wearing the crowns that should, in the normal pattern of who-gets-to-be-king, go to them (the sons). Fortinbras seems to be dealing with his impatience by going out and conquering other countries.

Hamlet, in contrast, only mentions the fact that Claudius has "popped in between the'election and [his] hopes" (in other words, his hopes of becoming the King of Denmark). Hamlet distracts himself with thinking, not with conquering. Our prince compares himself explicitly to Fortinbras when he passes Fortinbras's armies in the fields and he sees Fortinbras as a model for how he should behave. "To be great / is not to stir without great argument / but greatly to find quarrel in a straw / when honor's at the stake" (4.4.52-55). In other words, Hamlet realizes that Fortinbras doesn't have very good reasons for leading an army against Poland – but he concludes that reasons are unimportant. To be a great man is to act for any reason to preserve honor. Fortinbras, like Laertes, is an example of action with little thought – precisely the opposite of Hamlet..

Osric

The ludicrous, flowery, stupid courtier who invites Hamlet to fence with Laertes, then serves as referee during the contest.

The gravediggers

Two "clowns" (roles played by comic actors), a principal gravedigger and his assistant. They figure only in one scene -- Act Five scene one -- yet never fail to make a big impression on readers and audience members. The primary gravedigger is a very witty man, macabre and intelligent, who is the only character in the play capable of trading barbs with Hamlet. They are the only speaking representatives of the lower classes in the play and their perspective is a remarkable contrast to that of the nobles.

The players

A group of (presumably English) actors who arrive in Denmark. Hamlet knows this company well and listens, enraptured, while the chief player recites a long speech about the death of Priam and the wrath of Hecuba. Hamlet uses the players to stage an adaptation of "The Death of Gonzago" which he calls "The Mousetrap" -- a play that reprises almost perfectly the account of Old Hamlet's death as told by the ghost -- in order to be sure of Claudius' guilt.

A Priest

Charged with performing the rites at Ophelia's funeral. Because of the doubtful circumstances of Ophelia's death, the priest refuses to do more than the bare minimum as she is interred.

Reynaldo

Polonius' servant, sent to check on Laertes in Paris. He receives absurdly detailed instructions in espionage from his master.

Bernardo

A soldier who is among the first to see the ghost of Old Hamlet.

Marcellus

A soldier who is among the first to see the ghost of Old Hamlet.

Francisco

A soldier.

Voltemand

A courtier.

Cornelius

A courtier.

A Captain

A captain in Fortinbras' army who speaks briefly with Hamlet.

Ambassadors

Ambassadors from England who arrive at the play's close to announce that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead.