“COOL: SAN FRANCISCO & SHAKESPEARE”

Take up the body. Such a sight as this
Becomes the field, but here shows much amiss.¹

More than any other play, Hamlet contemplates death and all that is connected to it, including atonement and heaven. The subject matter, though grave, is dealt with in various ways, from humor and fear to resentment and philosophy. Characters question the nature of death and wonder about its implications for the person who has died, as well as for those who are left behind. What happens to a person after their last breath is spent? Do unresolved issues affect a person post-death? And if so, is a peaceful afterlife possible in spite of this?

Death is woven into the plot of Hamlet from the very start, with a secret fratricide being the reason for royal disorder and family disunity. Indeed, the power of death reverberates throughout the play and its presence sets the stage for a great many questions, led by the most famous of all: “To be or not to be, that is the question” (3.1.58).

In Act V, Scene 1, Hamlet and Horatio happen upon a gravedigger preparing a site. To make the new site, the bones of others who had been previously buried there are removed. The gravedigger is merry in his work, having done his trade for so long, and as Hamlet observes this scene, the prince contemplates the suddenly unearthed skulls:

That skull had a tongue in it and could sing once. How that knave jowls it to th’ ground as if ’twere Cain’s jawbone, that did the first murder! This might be the pate of a politician which this ass o’er-offices, one that would circumvent God, might it not? (5.1.70-4)

The gravedigger makes no distinction from one skull to another. To him, they are all the same. Other issues raised regarding the grave include proper burial, suicide, and the privileges of wealth and power. As for the latter, while the gravedigger cynically implies that Ophelia had secured a proper Christian burial because of her place in society, Hamlet notes that in the end, rank matters little. Perhaps taking in the actions of the gravedigger or remembering the fate of his own royal father, Hamlet observes that death ultimately serves as an equalizer. The dust of the common man would serve the same purpose as that of a man such as Alexander:

No, faith, not a jot; but to follow him thither with modesty enough, and likelihood to lead it, as thus: Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander returneth into dust, the dust is earth… (5.1.191-3)

Conclusions, opinions, beliefs. All of these are found in Hamlet in respect to death. Prince Hamlet himself goes through an incredible journey as he moves to answer questions related to death, including his own role in the deaths of others, such as Ophelia, so-called friends, a spy, and his own family.

Confronted with his father’s ghost and given such an enormous task as revenge, Hamlet struggles to come to terms with death and dying, with life and living. In Ophelia, we see that living can grow to be too miserable, as disappointment, despair, and loss spiral into madness. In Claudius, we see how a treacherous life can become so intricate that it consumes itself. And in Hamlet, we see how a life full of burden and expectation can at times be too heavy to lift. Is death then an escape? Did Ophelia take her own life to end her misery? Is such an option available to Hamlet?

To die, to sleep -
No more, and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to - ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep.
To sleep, perchance to dream. (3.1.62-7)

As he makes his way through the events of the play, with each turn finding new questions, each twist, more disappointment, Hamlet does ultimately arrive at a realization. This breakthrough for him is highly important, as his own death draws near (though he does not know it).

So distracted has he been with staying true to his father’s request, he fails to see the machinations of his uncle, who wishes to see him dead: to solve his own problems. Indeed, to Claudius, murder and death are not to be pondered but set forth. While Hamlet examines the true meaning of death, Claudius simply embraces it as a way to further his own ambition and fulfill his own dreams.

As for Hamlet’s realization, it comes in Act V, Scene 2, after Hamlet and Horatio had been to the gravesite and learned of Ophelia’s death. Just as with his observation that everyone, regardless of rank, wealth, or privilege, is turned into dust and thus, the same, Hamlet realizes that death comes to everyone, and all that a person can do is prepare for it. In a beautiful passage, he states:

Not a whit. We defy augury. There’s a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now, ’tis not to come. If it be not to come, it will be now. If it be not now, yet it will come. The readiness is all. (5.2.157-60)

To not rush death or delay it, but to prepare for it by realizing that it happens to all. It’s important that Hamlet come to this truth (for himself). To go back to the beginning of this essay and to the end of the play, recall that Hamlet stops Horatio from taking his life. Indeed, Horatio still had a task to carry out. To ensure that the details of the tragedy are properly related. That the truth behind Hamlet’s actions are explained. Looking at his own father’s example, Hamlet knows that in death, one cannot defend, cannot fight. The legacy left behind, that’s what remains.

Death in Hamlet is a starting point and an end. It evolves from something to be feared to something to accept. It is what makes the play a tragedy, for it takes the life of the wicked as well as the innocent and good. Though it punctuates an end to treachery and marks a new beginning, it also costs a faithful son, a loyal friend, and a noble hero.

Let four captains
Bear Hamlet like a soldier to the stage,
For he as likely, had he been put on,
To have proved most royally; and for his passage,
The soldiers’ music and the rites of war
Speak loudly for him. (5.2.339-44)

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* Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. The Norton Shakespeare. Stephen Greenblatt, ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996. 1668-1756. | Public domain image courtesy of Karen’s Whimsy.

(1) 5.2.345-6 | (2) One of my favorite essays. Originally written/published March 15, 2004.