Loyalty in Hamlet
...voyage to conquer Denmark. His motives for the journey are driven solely out of loyalty toward his father who had previously been defeated by King Hamlet in battle and as a result had some of his land taken away. Thus, young Fortinbras aspires to recover the lands and power lost by his father as a way of honoring his loyalty toward him. As the play progresses, loyalty also becomes a dominating threat when it takes over the mind of Hamlet. Upon encountering his father’s ghost and seeing the results of the staged play, Hamlet is positive that Claudius killed King Hamlet in order to take over the throne of Denmark. In contrast to Fortinbras, however, Hamlet does not act quickly and is paralyzed by his own indecision and fear. When Hamlet finally takes revenge, unlike Fortinbras’, Hamlet's revenge comes with a great cost to all. His inability to act sooner causes the death of his mother who drank the poison destined for Hamlet. The irony is that Hamlet, by proving his loyalty to his father, has destroyed the family whose honor he sought to uphold. After Laertes finds out that his father has been killed by Hamlet, he permits his emotions to cloud his judgement in an attempt to prove his loyalty to his dead father. Together with Claudius, they plan to kill Hamlet at a fencing match. Both Hamlet and Laer...