The serpent that did sting thy fathers life now wears his crown (1.5.46-47). As the ghost speaks these words to Hamlet, Hamlet's world is immediately changed. He faced a difficult dilemma after finding out that his uncle, Claudius, killed his father, King Hamlet. He did not know whether or not he could believe the ghost and felt angry and confused; he didn't know how to respond. He appeared to distrust the idea that it might be possible to act in a controlled, purposeful way. He considered taking direct action against Claudius but also thought about finding some indirect way to make sure that justice was served. He battled with himself throughout the play as he contemplated how to take revenge against his uncle.
Water polo is a very physical sport. During a particularly intense game against rival GBN, I was treading water at the middle of the pool playing defense and pushing my opponent out towards his own goal. The ball was in front of my own goal, but that was not my concern. I kept my eyes on the shot clock knowing that my sole purpose was to explode away from my defender and kick-start the counter attack. GBN shot the ball and as I started to kick and swim towards the opposite corner, I felt a fist pound into my sternum. My opponent had taken a direct shot into my chest for no reason (or perhaps to slow me down) and completely without provocation. I was in pain and wanted to retaliate. For a split second, I thought about the course of action I could take. I could turn around and punch him back, or I could elbow him in the face and get my revenge with some sort of physical action, but I would risk getting called out on a penalty. I could not guarantee that my actions would not be seen by an official. I tried to think rationally as I pondered my options. Although my dilemma was not as serious as Hamlet's, we both needed to decide how to react to being wronged. As humans, we believe in justice, the concept of moral rightness based on ethics and natural law.
Before taking action, Hamlet needed to prove to himself that his uncle was guilty. He staged a play in which a character was killed in the same way he suspected his father was killed and Claudius responds by saying, Give me some light. Away! (3.2.295). Hamlet was then convinced that his uncle was the guilty party, and he began to plot his revenge. He decided on the more direct approach of retaliation an eye for an eye and started to think of how to kill his uncle. In order for Hamlet to find peace with himself and settle his soul, he believed he needed to kill his uncle. Before realizing and proving to himself that his uncle was guilty, Hamlet was acting insane. Although the other characters seem to think that his madness is because of his love for Ophelia, it is actually because of his inner conflicts. Ophelia recants a situation in which Hamlet was scaring her by saying, He seemed to find his way without his eyes, for out o doors he went without their helps. (2.1.110-111). After talking to Ophelia and proclaiming his love, he creepily leaves the room while still staring at her. He was not at peace with himself or the world around him and the inner conflicts that he had were overtaking him. In order for Hamlet to resolve his conflict, he eventually decides that he needs to kill his uncle.
To resolve my conflict, I decided on the more passive option. Ignoring the punch, I sped off into the corner leaving my opponent helplessly facing the wrong way. Our goalie had saved the shot and all of a sudden I was in the attacking third of the pool by myself with only GBNs goalie in my way. The ball dropped directly in front of my face and I swam with it towards the goal. My more passive option gave me an opportunity to score and help my team. The open net was just reward not only for me, but for my team. Whether I scored or not, I think that justice would still have been served. I proved to myself and my team that I do not have to resort to dirty tactics to play the game. That makes me a better player and in the end, makes me the better man. The opportunity to demonstrate my integrity was created by my decision to not retaliate physically.
Unfortunately, the result of Hamlet trying to kill Claudius was that Hamlet ended up being killed as well. At the end of the play, the sword fight between Laertes and Hamlet took a turn for the worse when Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, took a sip of the poison that the King had set aside for Hamlet. As confusion set in, Hamlet and Laertes were struck by the poisoned tip of Laertes' sword. As Hamlet was dying he forced the poison down Claudius' throat to exact his revenge. Although Hamlet may have felt that justice was served, it was short lived and costly. The net loss for Hamlet was greater than it might have been had Hamlet chosen a different course of action.
After making the decision to ignore the punch, I swam towards the goal and popped the ball into my right hand. I faked once, twice, and shot the ball into the top left corner. The satisfying smack of the ball against the tarp in the back of the cage brought a smile to my face. As a result of my choosing to be more passive, I had scored for myself and for my team. The rewards of ignoring the punch completely outweighed the personal rewards I would feel from exacting my revenge on the opposing player.
I decided to take the more passive option because I knew that the reward would benefit more than just me. I knew that taking direct revenge could end up hurting me and my team if I was caught. The safest and smartest decision was to ignore the punch and play my game. However, Hamlet was a more hot-headed individual than I was and decided to take a more direct action against the person who did wrong against him. Although the actions that were committed against us are of varying intensity, Hamlet still ignored the possible consequences of direct action and retaliated. In addition, each of us had different responsibilities. Hamlet's were much larger than mine and these drove him to take a more direct action. He was responsible for the entire country, while I was only responsible for myself and to help my team.
Hamlets predicament helps me to realize that sometimes taking the more passive course of action rather than finding direct revenge can lead to more satisfying results. Although direct revenge may seem more justifiable, usually those actions are committed blindly, recklessly, and even violently. In Hamlets case, he did not completely think through his plan to get revenge, but at the last moment, when time was running out, he acted out of impulse. Even when he did not know who he was going to kill, when he heard Polonius behind the curtain, he did not think but just reacted and killed him. Hamlet's story also helps me understand how many times, the second person that commits the crime gets caught. If I were to punch back, it would have been more obvious, and I would be the one that would get punished.
My story helps me to realize that Hamlets direct revenge against his uncle is sometimes unavoidable. In some cases, the severity of the wrong action against you is so heinous that you feel the only justifiable action is to take direct revenge. I believe that murder and torture are some of those cases. If my family was killed and I knew who was responsible, it would be very difficult for me not to go and kill the culprit. However, a more petty crime such as a punch to the chest is easier to ignore and other ways of revenge can feel equally justified. Hamlet's story also demonstrates that acting without thinking can lead to more actions committed without complete deliberation of the consequences and effects those actions will have.
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