Hamlet: The Theme of Having A Clear Conscience :: Shakespeare Hamlet Essays

Hamlet The Theme of Having A Clear Conscience The most important line in Hamlet  is, The plays the thing, wherein Ill catchthe conscience of the king. (II, ii, 617).  In the play, the issue of a clearconscience forms a key motif.  When the conscience of the characters appears, itdoes so as a matter of some swear out as in the case of the aforementioned line,which follows Hamlets conversation with the player.  This line is of particularsignificance because it ties action and its effect on the conscience of thecharacters.  The temper of Hamlet is conscience, and action plays an importantrole in creating the development of the plot. No where is this development seen clearer than with Hamlet.  The Princesdevelopment comes as a result of the self-evaluation of the actions that havetaken place, and the turn up actions that he takes are a clear result of thisself-evaluation.  So, in essence, the actions cause him to think of hisconscience and then ac t upon these feelings.  Hamlets several soliloquies are awill to this method acting.  His first soliloquy, following a conversation withhis recently wed mother and uncle reflect the uneasiness he feels.  He feelsbetrayed.  O, most wicked speed, to post, with such manners to incestuoussheets. . . but break my heart, for I must hold my tounge. (I, ii, 156-159).Hamlets conscience tells him what is wrong-in this case, the hasty marriage-buthe is ambivalent as to how to approach it before he meets the ghost, tranquillize ishis method.  When Hamlet meets his fathers ghost however, he feels sure ofhimself, and knows what he must do.  As a result of the dialogue with the ghost,Hamlets conscience makes him feel that revenge is the best method to deal withthe problems that face him. The consciences of Hamlet, and to a lesser extent, Claudius, affect theirdecisions in the play.  However, both characters only question themselves afterthey have been prompted by some specific action or dialogue.  By self-evaluation,the characters then make the conscious decision to take action with theirfeelings.  An example of this is at the end of act II, following Hamletsconversation with the player.  In the soliloquy to end the act (whereupon themost important line is derived), Hamlet questions his passion for the plot hehas planned, and his conversation has clearly affected this ambivlance.  However,after mulling over his passion- or lack thereof-towards his plot, Hamlet endsthe soliloquy determined to carry out the play.  Hamlet is questioning hisallegiance to the pact he made with his father in Act I, but by the end of the