Hamlet And King Claudius Foils

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The play Hamlet is a story of vengeance where Prince Hamlet, the son of King Hamlet wants revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who is now king. Prince Hamlet wants to take such action upon Claudius because he knows that Claudius is the reason why his father is dead. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, more than one character has been identified as being a foil to Hamlet. King Claudius is one of the foils for Hamlet. Prince Hamlet and King Claudius are foils to each other because they have opposite personalities. Even though they have different personalities, they both have to purpose of seeking to kill the other. Prince Hamlet wants King Claudius dead because Hamlet knows for a fact that Claudius was the one who poisoned his father. King Claudius wants Hamlet dead because he is afraid of Hamlet revealing the truth of what Claudius did to get his power as king. Despite having the same purpose, their personalities differ because Hamlet is indecisive and Claudius is decisive. When Hamlet has the chance to kill Claudius he is hesitant, but Claudius comes quick to conclusion that he wants Hamlet dead. For example, after the Prince Hamlet’s play that portrayed the events that lead to King Hamlet’s death, Prince Hamlet found King Claudius praying in a room all alone. Hamlet had the chance to kill Claudius right there, but he realized that it is a sin to kill someone especially praying in a religious atmosphere. Hamlet really wanted to kill Claudius, but the results did not follow through as planned. On the other hand, when Claudius spoke with Laertes, Claudius completely put his mind into killing Hamlet. Claudius made a plan to poison a drink that Hamlet would ingest. Claudius wasn’t indecisive of his actions; he would do anything to kill Hamlet just so that he could gain his power as the king. This is how Claudius is a foil to Hamlet. Laertes, the son of Polonius, is also a foil to Hamlet. Laertes and Hamlet are both similar because they both want to avenge the death of

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