Hamlet: Exploring Heroism and Anti-Heroism in Shakespeare's Play

This essay delves into the complex character of Hamlet, exploring the ongoing debate of whether he embodies the qualities of a hero or an anti-hero. The analysis focuses on Act III of Shakespeare's play, examining Hamlet's actions, motivations, and interactions with other characters. The essay considers the traditional definition of a hero, including qualities such as courage, ingenuity, and a commitment to a code of honor. By examining Hamlet's pursuit of revenge, his interactions with Ophelia and Gertrude, and his internal conflicts, the essay argues that while Hamlet possesses some heroic qualities, his actions and indecisiveness ultimately place him within the realm of a tragic hero, or even an anti-hero. The essay references scholarly sources to support its arguments and provide a comprehensive understanding of Hamlet's character within the context of the play.

Running head: HAMLET – HERO OR NOT
Hamlet – Hero or Not
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1HAMLET – HERO OR NOT
Hamlet, also known to the readers as The Tragedy of Hamlet, The Prince of Denmark,
is a tragedy which was written by popular English poet and playwright William Shakespeare
himself. The tragedy tells the readers the story of Prince Hamlet of Denmark, who sought
revenge on his uncle Claudius, for murdering his father and seizing the throne himself, also
trying to marry his mother. The play is said to be the longest of all Shakespearean plays and
also one of his most influential ones. The debate of whether Hamlet is a hero or an anti-hero
had continued for a long time. This is what the readers will analyse for themselves.
The purpose of this essay is to determine the fact whether Hamlet is a hero or not
according to the Act III of the play itself.
In popular literature and media (books, movies, video games etc.) a hero is considered
to be a person whose adventures and life are discussed by the normal people of the country
itself and who lives his life following a code of honour itself. A hero is supposed to be a
character who likes to adventure and never backs down from the face of danger itself. He is a
character who is shown to fight danger and adversity using the qualities of ingenuity, courage
and strength. Other qualities which the hero might possess are knowledge and kindness. All
these are qualities which makes a hero. It is therefore obviously expected therefore, the
actions taken by the heroes will also be full of the qualities which are mentioned above
(Hooti, 2013).
Based on the qualities of a hero already discussed above and the summary of Act III
itself, the readers get the idea that Hamlet meets all the criteria of being a tragic hero or more
specifically, an anti-hero. This is because if several reasons. First when the character of
Hamlet is analysed by the readers themselves, it is seen that Hamlet had only one motive in
his life; to avenge his late father (Goldman, 2014). It is because of this reason in which he
sets the play in the same manner in which his father was killed. This was done deliberately

2HAMLET – HERO OR NOT
for playing mind-games with his uncle Claudius. Later, it is seen by the readers how Hamlet
kills Polonius for listening to him and his mother Gertrude speak. All these qualities in
Hamlet indeed gives the impression to the readers that he is a true hero out to avenge his late
father (Cohn, 2015).
Therefore, from the above discussions, the readers get the idea that the qualities of a
hero are indeed present in the character of Hamlet himself. It is because of the heroic
qualities in Hamlet himself which makes him one of the most popular and most lovable
characters to be created by William Shakespeare himself. All of these reasons helps the
readers to understand the reason why Hamlet is considered to be a tragic hero.

3HAMLET – HERO OR NOT
Reference List
Cohn, R. (2015). Modern Shakespeare Offshoots (Vol. 1316). Princeton University Press.
Goldman, M. (2014). Acting and Action in Shakespearean Tragedy (Vol. 18). Princeton
University Press.
Hooti, N. (2013). William Shakespeare’s Hamlet: a deconstructive study. International
Research Journal of Applied and Basic Sciences, 3903-3909.
Titlestad, P. (2013). Hamlet the populist politician. Shakespeare in Southern Africa, 25(1),
43-49.
.