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Name
Teacher
ELA 30-1
Date
The Influence of Diseased Ambition
"But, like the owner of a foul disease, / To keep it from divulging, let it feed / Even on the
pith of life" (IV.I.21-23). When an individual’s drive comes into conflict with one’s morality, the
consequences can be detrimental. The play Hamlet by William Shakespeare displays this theme
with the main character, Hamlet. Hamlet’s identity as a non-violent man of royalty comes
crashing down when his ambition of avenging his father emerges , negatively affecting his sanity.
If Hamlet were a man of action, the negative consequences would not have been as damaging to
his and others’ lives. This inaction was what spiralled Hamlet’s life into despair, spreading his
diseased will to the people around him. Hamlet’s drive towards avenging his Father’s death takes
a toll on his well-being, as well as the people around him, due to his inability to act clashing with
his diseased commitment.
Hamlet’s status as a renaissance man collides with his ambition to avenge his father,
therefore leading to his depleting mental state. Throughout the play, Hamlet is shown to have
second thoughts of murdering King Claudius because of his original nature. Hamlet was a
renaissance man, someone who never experienced violence, or has been violent. His nonviolence
is signified in Act 4, Scene 6, when Claudius and Laertes are planning Hamlet’s death. Claudius
schemes up a duel between Laertes and Hamlet, because he knows Hamlet is not much of a
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fighter (Shakespeare). The effects of him being forced to sacrifice his morality takes a toll on
him. Hamlet is aware of his inaction towards his intention, and criticizes himself for it. During
his soliloquy in Act 2 Scene 2, Hamlet calls himself out, and says ““Why, what an ass am I! This
is most brave, / That I, the son of a dear father murdered, Prompted to my revenge by heaven and
hell / Must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words,” (II.II.595-598). Hamlet picks apart at his
unproductive ambition, as well as his nature as a renaissance man. When Hamlet finds out about
the destruction of the chain of being ( the murder of his father ), he decides to put on a facade of
madness. This facade turns into reality as time goes on, his ambition engulfing his sanity. His
insanity is seen after his great act of inaction (Polonius’ murder). In Act 3, scene 4, Hamlet
accidentally kills Polonius instead of Claudius. Instead of feeling guilt, or shame, in the next act
(Act 4, scene 1), he gives out riddles on Polonius’ whereabouts, indicating how little he was
impacted by his unlawful act (Shakespeare). His casual attitude towards this sinful deed is an
indication of Hamlet’s madness, showcasing the impact his ambition had over his morality.
Hamlet has sacrificed his mentality, and nature, due to his ambition.
The ambition Hamlet possesses could have been counterproductive against his own
self-destruction if he did not neglect his original initiative. Hamlet is known to be a man of
inaction within the play. He deceives himself into thinking he is a man of action, by creating
schemes. These schemes seem like he is taking action towards his goal, but in reality they were
just a long period of hesitation. Hamlet’s original intentions were to just kill Claudius, and
avenge his father. His father’s ghost never instructed him to create a trap, or get his mother
involved. When compared to one of Hamlet’s foil, Fortinbras, ambition can be seen to provide a
positive outcome. This positive after-math is because Fortinbras did not stall, and was quick to
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act. In act 5, scene 2, Fortinbras and his army charge into the castle of Denmark, and successfully
gain the throne. Not only has Fortinbras avenged his father, but he has also gained a new
kingdom to control. Throughout the play, Hamlet continuously reinstates that the state of the
chain of being has been broken. One instance is when he was talking to Claudius when he asked
about Polonius’ whereabouts, he told the King that no matter who we are,"We/ fat all creatures
else to fat us, and we fat ourselves /for maggots.../That’s the end." (IV.III.24-28). Although he is
aware of the destruction of the chain of being, he is not doing anything productive to restore it. If
he had "[Revenged] his [father’s] foul and most unnatural murder" (I.V.25), his kingdom would
still belong to the Hamlet family. Not only would Hamlet have kept his kingdom, but his life, and
the people who died due to his diseased ambition as well. If Hamlet’s ambition had stayed on
track with his goal, the tragic after-math would not have happened.
Hamlet’s inaction towards his own goal leads him to self-sabotage, harming the people he
loves around him in the process. Hamlet becomes the one thing he compares Claudius to, a
disease. Hamlet’s ambition is the virus that drives his affliction towards others. The murder of
Polonius, Ophelia’s father, is the one of the first manifestations of the infection created by
Hamlet. Ophelia spins into madness when she finds out about her father’s death, claiming that "
[the] violets, withered all when my father died. " (IV.V.194-196). Ophelia’s faithfulness in the
people around her, especially Hamlet, died alongside her father. Ophelia’s ‘sickness’ eventually
led her to her death in Act 4 Scene 7, adding another victim dying by the hands of Hamlet’s
ambition. Hamlet completely abandons his goal to kill Claudius when he starts criticizing his
mother’s immaturity. Hamlet hurts Gertrude, as she says that her son has " turn’st my eyes into
my very soul,/And there I see such black and grainèd spots" (III.IV.98-101). He has successfully
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spread his ambition’s illness to his mother, going against his father’s ghost (inaction). Hamlet’s
diseased commitment is realized by his ambition’s original victim, Claudius. The King calls
Hamlet "a foul disease" (IV.I.21-23). The irony of Claudius calling Hamlet an illness indicates
how far he has strayed from his pure ambition’s goal. Hamlet’s toxic commitment spreads like an
infection to the people around him, causing more harm than good.
When one’s ambition goes against their values, it can turn into an infectious illness which
can completely destroy oneself, and the people they care about. Hamlet is continuously seen
fighting his own objective with his morality, causing inaction towards his goal. His inaction is
what deprives him of achievement. If Hamlet was more of a man of action, he would have
satisfied his original intentions. Hamlet’s negligence of his goal is what causes his disease to
spread to the people around him, including his mother. If Hamlet fulfilled his ambition from the
very beginning, he would have restored the chain of being, successfully taking vengeance for his
father.