Irony

[Vance]

I find it ironic that Hamlet murders Polonius. Wouldnt this make him just as bad as his uncle?

[motherhubbard]

No. Claudius murdered his brother after plotting to take the crown and his wife. It was premeditated. Hamlet thought he was killing Claudius. This was acceptable because he was entitled to avenge his father. Had Claudius been behind the curtain it would have been justice instead of murder.

[bleucanary256]

No. Claudius murdered his brother after plotting to take the crown and his wife. It was premeditated. Hamlet thought he was killing Claudius. This was acceptable because he was entitled to avenge his father. Had Claudius been behind the curtain it would have been justice instead of murder.


This is all entirely true, but what I find most interesting is Hamlet's behaviour after he discovers he killed the wrong man. If Hamlet is truly the unerring hand of cosmic justice, the lack of remorse he apparently feels after killing a basically innocent man is a very dark foreshadowing of the events to come. It is true that it was a justified killing, since Hamlet thought it was his uncle, but that does not excuse him from his regret. Just look at the lines "For this same lord,/I do repent; but heaven hath pleased it so/to punish me with this, and this with me." He says he repents almost matter-of-factly, as if it takes little and means less. Before this, Gertrude is horrified at his crime, and his reaction is to turn it around on her, as if her marriage to Claudius is somehow worse than the body laying at his feet: "Oh what a rash and bloody deed is this!/A bloody deed--almost as bad, good Mother,/As kill a king and marry with his brother." This is where Hamlet's priorities can be seen. He is not impartially meting out justice; it is all very much on his own terms, which is where things get dangerous...

[Redzeppelin]

This is all entirely true, but what I find most interesting is Hamlet's behaviour after he discovers he killed the wrong man. If Hamlet is truly the unerring hand of cosmic justice, the lack of remorse he apparently feels after killing a basically innocent man is a very dark foreshadowing of the events to come. It is true that it was a justified killing, since Hamlet thought it was his uncle, but that does not excuse him from his regret. Just look at the lines "For this same lord,/I do repent; but heaven hath pleased it so/to punish me with this, and this with me." He says he repents almost matter-of-factly, as if it takes little and means less. Before this, Gertrude is horrified at his crime, and his reaction is to turn it around on her, as if her marriage to Claudius is somehow worse than the body laying at his feet: "Oh what a rash and bloody deed is this!/A bloody deed--almost as bad, good Mother,/As kill a king and marry with his brother." This is where Hamlet's priorities can be seen. He is not impartially meting out justice; it is all very much on his own terms, which is where things get dangerous...

Hamlet was quite aware of Polonius's meddling and his spying - there are hints in 3.1 that he was/became aware that his conversation with Ophelia was being monitored (eg. "where is your father?"). It is clear from his behavior with Polonious in Act 2 that he does not particularly like him, and that he is aware of/or deeply suspects Polonius's treatment of Ophelia (ie. the Jeptha comments).

[GVS]

Well, hamlet didnt plan to kill Polonius, did he? He really thought it was his uncle Claudius, whom he wanted dead... Unfortunately, it happened to be Polonius instead:) And Claudius didnt just accidently happen to kill Hamlets father did he? now, thats a murder, the death of Polonius could be called an accident...

me love hamlet <3

[beavadam]

Is this the point where Hamlet is no longer pretending to be mad?

[Peter 1966]

Is this the point where Hamlet is no longer pretending to be mad?

But is he ever pretending to be mad? I know he says he is going to 'seem' mad, but is it not true that he becomes mad? Witness his lack of remorse following Polonius' murder!

[Rach89]

Claudius' act of killing his brother was worse than Hamlet's act of killing Polonius as Claudius not only killed his own brother in cold blood but he also took King Hamlet's wife and his thrne as well. Hamlet killed a courtier in his uncles court thinking that it was the man that killed his father.

[Emma263]

Considering that Polonius seems to have been part of the court for many years, it seems strange that Hamlet shows no remorse to what he has just done. This could show that Hamlet has infact become genuinely mad. What also could be argued to counteract this is the fact that Hamlet was aware of Polonius' involvement in the plan with Clauduis to watch Hamlet. What ever way you look at it, it seems unlikely that this killing was planned, which makes Claudius' act of killing his brother much worse.