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The Effects of Indecision In Hamlet by William Shakespeare, indecision corrupts many characters. The most important, Hamlet, must revenge his father s death, but delays the act. Hamlet is the root of all evil in the play, though he is against evil more than most characters. Hamlet dies because he postpones the killing of the king. This act of indecision results in a brutal ending, full of death and suffering. Indecision affects not only the person who is indecisive, but all of those who surround them.
Decisions not made may result, as in the case of Hamlet, as well as in today s world, in disaster and death. In times of crisis, it is crucial that decisions be made quickly, without delay. One night, Hamlet is visited by his father s ghost. This spirit tells Hamlet that Claudius is his father s murderer.
Hamlet swears to revenge his father s death upon hearing the news. After the spirit leaves, Hamlet doubts whether the ghost speaks the truth. Upon leaving Hamlet says, The time is out of joint. Oh cursed spite/ That I was ever born to set it right (Shakespeare Act 1 Scene 5 lines 215 - 216). This quote illustrates that Hamlet is upset that he must revenge his father s death, while questioning the ghost s integrity. This is Hamlet s first moment of indecision.
Hamlet s second moment of indecision comes after the play. Hamlet needs more evidence that Claudius is guilty of his father s murder. He then asks the players to perform a specific selection. In this play, a king is murdered by his brother as he sleeps, much like the ghost s explanation. If Claudius reacts emotionally to the play, Hamlet will know Claudius is guilty. The play s the thing that will catch the conscience of the king (Shakespeare Act 2 Scene 2 Line 604).
Claudius, just as Hamlet presumed, over reacts to the play. He jumps at the killing of the king during the play and storms out of the room, clearly disturbed by the scene. Hamlet now knows of the king s guilt and understands that the apparition was accurate. Although Claudius is undoubtedly guilty, Hamlet again does not revenge Claudius. Hamlet s third moment of indecision takes place when he walks in on Claudius while he is praying. Hamlet has every chance in the world to kill Claudius, but does not because he fears Claudius will be sent to heaven, as he is asking for forgiveness.
Hamlet should have seized this opportunity, as Claudius was not in fact praying. Consequently, he vents his rage towards his mother and kills Polonius. While Polonius had his faults, Hamlet did not have the right to kill him. Polonius death leads to the insanity and subsequent death of Ophelia, an innocent victim. Hamlet delayed the killing of Claudius and, killing many innocent people in the process. The book Shakespeare A to Z states, Hamlet s avoidance of one evil has thus involved him in another, greater one (Boyce 233).
Hamlet s repeated insistence on postponing his duty of revenge emphasizes his ambivalence: Emotionally, Hamlet s procrastination produces in him a growing rage that leads to his killing of Polonius, an act that provokes the king and Laertes to set in motion the incidents that lead to the bloody climax and that hastens Hamlet s exile (Boyce 237). In today s society, every person is faced with decisions on a daily basis. Some of these decisions are small; others could be so great as to change a person s life. It seems that as every year goes by, people are in more and more of a hurry. People s lives are becoming more and more hectic. With people s hectic days, there is no room for time in decision making.
If one does not take time with their decisions, their day and sometimes even their life may be affected. In the case of governments, it is often important that decisions be made without delay. Congress and the President make decisions daily in which they hold peoples lives in their hands. They may decide whether to start a war or to protect another country. The slightest delay in their decisions could result in injury or even death. In this instance, indecision results in death and suffering, just as in Hamlet.
Hamlet is plagued by indecision, resulting in the loss of many. According to Shakespeare for Students, the frustrations reach the point of utter deadlock and standstill; and the completions, when they finally come, are sudden, violent, and unexpected (Scott 88). Hamlet s indecision and delay causes the deaths, whether they be direct or related, of seven characters. Hamlet s failure to kill Claudius prompts the deaths of Polonius, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern.
Polonius death leads to Ophelia s death. This sets up the fencing match between Laertes and Hamlet, which results in the deaths of Laertes, Hamlet, and Gertrude. In the end, indecision can only be negative. In this play, and in the government of today s society, it causes death and mourning. Works Cited Boyce, Charles F. Shakespeare A to Z.
New York: Roundtable Press, 1990. Scott, Mark W. Shakespeare for Students. Detroit: Gale Research, 1992. Shakespeare, William. Hamlet.
New York: Pocket Books, 1958. 330
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