Ben Johns
2-14-10
“The King’s To Blame”
In a climactic finish to Hamlet, the play ends with a duel between two men. Two men
similar in age, but very different in attitude and motivation. One of these players is Hamlet, who
has been stumbling to find a moment to kill the king and avenge his father’s death. He knows the
king killed his father, and the king now knows Hamlet wants him dead. The other player is
Laertes, who wants to kill Hamlet the first chance he can for death of his own father, Polonius,
and his sister Ophelia. The duel is part of a plan conceived by Laertes and the King, working
together since each man wants Hamlet dead. They knew Hamlet would not turn down a chance
to duel Laertes. The plan was to poison Hamlet in one of two ways. First, Laertes would poison
the tip of his sword, and make sure it was well sharpened. Hamlet however, would be given a
dull sword. Secondly, Hamlet’s goblet would be poisoned by the king, from which he would
drink between rounds when he gets thirsty. The goblet serves as a backup plan in case Laertes
could not cut Hamlet. In the first two rounds of the duel, Hamlet is struck by the poisoned sword,
but its effect does not set in right away. The two players then mix their swords up on the ground
and it is Hamlet who comes out holding the poisoned sword. Hamlet then strikes Laertes, giving
him a dose of the venom. During this commotion the queen unknowingly drinks from the goblet
intended for Hamlet. She calls out for him and dies. It is at this point that Hamlet starts to realize
what treachery is occurring. Laertes now on the ground, giving into the poison, confirms what
Hamlet was thinking with his dying words. When Hamlet hears what Laertes has to say, he
learns he is holding the poisoned sword, so he quickly thrusts the blade into the king. Hamlet
himself then dies from poison in his wounds.
The speech Laertes gives as he is dying has elements to it that sum up entire themes of
the play, and they are important to keep in mind. What Laertes is essentially saying in this
Ben Johns
2-14-10
dialogue directed towards Hamlet is “You are going to die and it is my fault. There is no
medicine in that world that can cure you. You don’t have a half an hour left in your life, because
the sword I used to stab you is very sharp and poisoned. You now hold it in your hand, and also
stabbed me with it The foul plan backfired on me. Now I am lying down, and I will never get
up. Your mother has been poisoned. This is the end for me, I can’t live any longer. This is all
the king’s fault.” The dialogue demonstrates a kind of peace that Laertes has reached with
Hamlet. He is realizing that the fight is not between them, but that there are others to blame, such
as the king, for the scenario they have been put in. He reveals the plan to kill Hamlet, that didn’t
work out, and that it was the king’s idea. This information tells Hamlet that his mother the queen
died because the king poisoned her, and that the king planned to have Hamlet killed because the
sword is poisoned. This information finally gives Hamlet the reasoning and opportunity he
needed to take the poisoned sword he has in his hand and kill the king with it.
There is a lot of poisoning going on here. We have four characters poisoned in a matter
of minutes. The same four characters all had a spouse or family member die in the play prior to
this point, unlike any of the other remaining characters in the play. So in a sense, all were tied
to death, starting with the poisoning of King Hamlet, and all died poisoned. There is certainly
some irony in this part, since the king was poisoned with his own poison by Hamlet. His poison
also poisoned the queen, now his wife. In fact, his initial deed poisoned the entire court, when he
poisoned Old Hamlet and lead to his own eventual death-by-poison. In other words, his
wickedness brought death to everyone in this castle. Poison can be interpreted as a symbol of the
source of all evil in this play, and the end of all evil in this play.
Now as for what Laertes says here specifically, we can see hints of dramatic irony. It is
interesting that Laertes says that “the king’s to blame.” Laertes did not know how this whole
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thing started. It was in fact Claudius who snuck into the garden and murdered Old Hamlet, who
in turn appeared to Hamlet and told him to avenge his death. The king is to blame for all of this,
not just the deaths that occurred at this duel, but also the deaths of Polonius, and Ophelia who
were caught in the rot of this whole scenario, in the midst of Hamlet’s mission. Laertes is more
correct than he even knows. That line alone, “the king’s to blame” can sum up this entire play.
He is the source of poison for the entire play. He is the source of death, another key theme in the
play. This last dialogue is full of death; in only eight lines it says “Hamlet you’re dead, I’m
dead, and your mom’s dead.”
Laertes says these things to Hamlet, who just a minute ago he seemed so mad at. He was
enraged because he blamed Hamlet entirely for the death of his father and in turn his sister.
Here, however, Laertes seems at peace. He does not sound like his anger is directed towards
Hamlet. It seems that he is seeing a larger picture. That they were both caught up in some else’s
wickedness. They were directly affected by Claudius’ murder of Old Hamlet. It leaves us asking
questions about Laertes and Hamlet. Do these two characters die on peaceful terms with each
other, even though they were both just a minute before about to kill each other? Not only that,
but Laertes rushed into the castle wanting Hamlet’s blood immediately for the death of his father.
He didn’t even want to wait for this duel until convinced otherwise by Claudius. When Hamlet
was asked to avenge the death of his father, he certainly took some time. So how does the
revenge of Laertes compare to the revenge of Hamlet, in their intentions and in their final
outcome?
Ben Johns
2-14-10
LAERTES:
It is here, Hamlet. Hamlet, thou art slain.
No medicine in the world can do thee good.
In thee there is not half an hour of life.
The treacherous instrument is in thy hand,
Unbated and envenomed. The foul practice
Hath turned itself on me. Lo, here I lie,
Never to rise again. Thy mother’s poisoned.
I can no more. The king, the king’s to blame.
(Hamlet V.ii.296-303)