Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Who is Gertrude's enemy?

On a superficial level, Gertrude does not have any enemies in Hamlet. No character actively plots her destruction, nor does she plot the demise of any other character. Even the ghost of King Hamlet admonishes Hamlet to not harm Gertrude but to save his revenge for Claudius.


However, of the characters in the play, Claudius behaves most like an enemy toward Gertrude. First, Claudius murdered King Hamlet, her husband. Though she marries Claudius very soon after the murder (angering Hamlet), it does not appear that she was aware of her new husband's actions. Second, Claudius plotted the murder of her son. Finally, Claudius inadvertently killed Gertrude when she accidentally drank the poison he had intended for Hamlet. Thus, although Claudius never actively plotted against Gertrude, his evil actions repeatedly caused her harm.

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