Essay The Hamlet Ghost - 3184 Words

The Hamlet Ghost Does the ghost in Shakespeare’s Hamlet conform to the standards for ghosts in the days of the dramatist? This essay will answer this and other questions about the ghost in the drama. Cumberland Clark says in â€Å"The Supernatural in Hamlet† that: The Hamlet Ghost fulfils all the demands of popular superstitition. In the first place it comes in strange and creepy circumstances, at dead of night, when it is cold and still and lonely. ‘Tis now the very witching time of night, When churchyards yawn, and hell itself breathes out Contagion to this world (III.2.405-407) It appears clad in the garments worn in mortal life. . . . Its appearance arouses the terror of†¦show more content†¦This is what we see Hamlet do when, in spite of his immediate conviction that it is an honest ghost he has seen, he arranges a trial of its veracity in the form of the play within the play (117). Thus is explained the rationale of the â€Å"play within a play† which is seen as necessary for the climax of the drama. To begin consideration of the Ghost, let it be said that the Ghost makes his appearance even before the play has opened. Marchette Chute in â€Å"The Story Told in Hamlet† describes the ghost’s activity prior to the opening scene of Shakespeare’s tragedy: The story opens in the cold and dark of a winter night in Denmark, while the guard is being changed on the battlements of the royal castle of Elsinore. For two nights in succession, just as the bell strikes the hour of one, a ghost has appeared on the battlements, a figure dressed in complete armor and with a face like that of the dead king of Denmark, Hamlet’s father. A young man named Horatio, who is a school friend of Hamlet, has been told of the apparition and cannot believe it, and one of the officers has brought him there in the night so that he can see it for himself. The hour comes, and the ghost walks. The awed Horatio tries to speak to it but it stalks away, leaving the three men to wonder why the buriedShow MoreRelatedThere is No Ghost in Hamlet Essay753 Words   |  4 Pagesapplication of ghosts in his plays, Hamlet is no exception. Scholars argue that the ghost in Hamlet is only a figment of Hamlet’s imagination, but how does that explain others witnessing the apparition. Hamlet’s mental state is declining throughout the play, but what is the true cause? From an external view Hamlet appears insane, whether or not he is insane is left ambiguous. If he is insane, is the traumatic loss of his father causing Hamlet to see a ghost or is the ghost real indeed? The ghost firstRead MoreThe Ghost Of Old Hamlet1466 Words   |  6 PagesThe ghost of Old Hamlet is an important part of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, but the ghost does not appear to all of the characters. 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