Critical Analysis
The Role of Mortality in Hamlet
By Madison Blaine
Abstract
While Shakespeare’s Hamlet is traditionally viewed as a tragedy of revenge, its true driving force is a paralyzing fear of the unknown afterlife. By bridging 17th-century existential dread with modern psychological and theological perspectives, this essay explores how humanity's desperate need for spiritual certainty shapes our mortal decisions. Ultimately, it examines how the universal anxiety surrounding death serves as a powerful catalyst for seeking moral integrity and purpose in the present.
Analysis
In Hamlet, Shakespeare constructs a pervasive atmosphere of mortality that infects every character and drives the tragedy's psychological tension. Rather than simply grieving his father's sudden death and his mother's hasty remarriage, Prince Hamlet is consumed by the moral decay around him. He laments his mother's "most wicked speed, to post / With such dexterity to incestuous sheets," revealing a mind hyper-fixated on the corruption of life (Shakespeare 1.2).
This existential despair deepens when the ghost of his father commands Hamlet to avenge his "foul and most unnatural murder" (Shakespeare 1.5). Burdened by this violent directive and uncertain of the spirit's true intentions, Hamlet spirals into a profound contemplation of his own significance. His feigned madness becomes a tool not only to uncover King Claudius’s guilt but also to externalize his internal agony. Ultimately, the primary force restraining Hamlet from taking his own life is his paralyzing fear of a punitive afterlife.
Hamlet’s desperate yearning for the peace of death is most famously articulated in his Act 3 soliloquy:
"To die, to sleep— / To sleep, perchance to dream. Ay, there's the rub, / For in that sleep of death what dreams may come..." (Shakespeare 3.1).
As the compounded traumas of murder, incest, and his fraught relationship with Ophelia fracture his psyche, suicide appears as a logical escape. Yet, because he cannot fathom what awaits a sinner after death, he remains trapped in the mortal world, choosing instead to project his misery onto the rest of the court.
Through Hamlet, Shakespeare masterfully illustrates a universal human condition: the fear of the unknown. Without absolute certainty of what follows death, humanity is left in perpetual anxiety over the loss of present life. For Hamlet, this uncertainty acts as a double-edged sword; it prevents his suicide, but it also paralyzes his ability to act. When presented with the perfect opportunity to kill a solitary, praying Claudius, Hamlet hesitates. Claudius himself wrestles with divine judgment, crying, "O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven" (Shakespeare 3.3). Hamlet spares him in that moment not out of mercy, but out of fear that killing a man in prayer will send the murderer to Heaven and damn his own soul. His dread of the afterlife dictates his logic, ultimately prolonging his suffering and proving that he would rather endure harsh realities than risk eternal regret.
Hamlet’s 17th-century existential dread closely mirrors modern discussions of mortality. In his TED Talk, The Four Stories We Tell Ourselves About Death, philosopher Stephen Cave unpacks the human necessity to believe that something beautiful awaits us at the end of our lives. The harsh reality, however, is the absence of empirical proof regarding Heaven or Hell. To survive the weight of this unknown, individuals must cultivate their own belief systems to give their tangible lives meaning. The late Cardinal Francis George, a symbol of Catholic faith, echoed this sentiment when questioned about the afterlife by CBS Chicago. He responded simply, "That is what faith is about, and I hope that I have that trust," clarifying that in the absence of factual certainty, we can only rely on faith that goodness awaits us.
This desperate need for spiritual absolution is echoed in the play's final moments. After exchanging fatal blows, a dying Laertes watches Queen Gertrude succumb to Claudius’s poison and seeks to make his world right before taking his last breath. He absolves Hamlet, stating, "He is justly served... Exchange forgiveness with me, noble Hamlet". Laertes’s final act verifies the human necessity to leave the world unburdened and free of grudges, striving for suitability in a gracious heaven.
Ultimately, humanity craves hope. Without it, life feels meaningless, and death becomes a paralyzing terror. Because there is no absolute certainty of what awaits us, we lean on personal convictions, structured religions, or shared philosophies to find peace. Hamlet serves as a timeless reminder that while we naturally fear our endings, faith and moral integrity are what provide comfort. Living purely not only prepares one for a potential afterlife but fundamentally enriches the well-being of the life we are currently living.
Works Cited
Cave, Stephen. "The 4 Stories We Tell Ourselves about Death." TED Talk. TED.com. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.
Allen Jr., John L. "Chicago Cardinal Francis George, the 'American Ratzinger,' Dies." Crux. 2015. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.
CBS Chicago. "Cardinal George Feared Death, And The Unknown Afterlife." CBS Chicago. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.