Deceit and the Downfall of Hamlet Deceit is a major cause of the downfall of Hamlet.

This is demonstrated in three instances in the play. First, Polonius spies on Hamlet while he is talking priv ately with his mother Gertrude. Second, Claudius sends Hamlet away to England. F inally, Laertes and Claudius scheme to kill Hamlet. The first way that deceit leads to the eventual downfall of Hamlet is Polonius' spying. In Act III, scene iii, Polonius decides to help the king by spying on Ha mlet and his mother when he says, "My lord, [the king] he's going to his mothers closet. Behind the arras I'll convey myself to hear the process." (III; iii; 28 - 29) In Act III, scene iv, Polonius gets his chance and listens to a conversat ion between Hamlet and his mother, hoping that Hamlet would confide something in his mother that could be used against him. Unfortunately for Polonius, Hamlet h ears him behind the curtain, and (thinking that Polonius is actually a spying Ki ng Claudius) immediately stabs and kills him. This event contributes to Hamlet's downfall because Claudius is able to use it as an excuse to send Hamlet away to England. Officially, the king sends Hamlet away, "for thine especial safety," ( IV; iii; 37) with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern because the murder might earn him some enemies. Privately though, Claudius plans to have Rosencrantz and Guildens tern go with Hamlet to convey a message to the King of England that Hamlet is to be executed. In addition, by sending Hamlet away, Claudius is protecting himsel f because Hamlet is, "loved of the distracted multitude [the public]." (IV; iii; 4) So, if Hamlet were to show the people that Claudius had killed Hamlet's fath er, then they might believe him, and as a result, overthrow and kill Claudius. T hus, the downfall is that Claudius wants Hamlet dead. In addition, if Claudius' plan works, then Hamlet dies and his father s death would not be avenged. So, if P olonius had not spied on Hamlet and Gertrude, Hamlet would not have killed Polon ius and thus, Claudius would not have a good enough excuse to send Hamlet away t o England. Fortunately for Hamlet, Claudius' deceit fails. This deceit, however, still does contribute to the eventual downfall of Hamlet. Aboard the ship to England, Haml et discovers Claudius' message being sent by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamle t explains later, "Groped I to find out them, [Rosencrantz and Guildenstern] had my desire, fingered their packet, and in fine withdrew." (V; ii; 14-15) Hamlet reads the message, and decides to change it, so that Rosencrantz and Guildenster n would be executed instead, as he says, "I sat me down, devised a new commissio n, wrote it fair. /.../ He should the bearers put to death." (V; ii; 31 - 32, 46 ) Furthermore, Hamlet feels no remorse for his deed, as he says, "They [Rosencra ntz and Guildenstern] are not near to my conscience; their defeat does by their own insinuation grow." (V; ii; 58 -59) This act is very out of character for Ham let, because he has no trouble killing them (or Polonius, for that matter), but earlier in the play, he could not bring himself to kill Claudius, despite having ample opportunity and more reason to do so (Claudius, of course, killed Hamlet' s father). To understand this change in Hamlet's character, it is necessary to u nderstand what kind of person he is. A normal man in the medieval times that thi s play is set in, if put in the same circumstances as Hamlet was in, would have killed Claudius without hesitation. This contrast is clearly demonstrated in the play by how Laertes, upon hearing of his father's murder, immediately demands, "I'll be revenged most thoroughly for my father." (IV; v; 33 - 34) Hamlet, if an ything, was more of a Renaissance man than a Medieval man, which is why he had s o much trouble killing Claudius; he was more of a thinker and less of a doer. Ha mlet says to himself, "Why, what an ass am I! /.../ the son of a dear father mur dered, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must like a whore unpack my he art with words." (II; ii; 549 - 552) Because his immense frustration and grief, Hamlet kills Rosencrantz and Guildenstern without remorse and thus, regresses to become more of a medieval man. As such, Hamlet losses his moral integrity and n o longer thinks about whether it is right or wrong beforehand, he just does it. This is a downfall of Hamlet. Thus, this downfall would not have happened if Ham

let had not been sent away to England to be executed, which provoked him enough to kill Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The final deceit that finishes the downfall of Hamlet, is how King Claudius and Laertes plan to kill Hamlet. The plan is simple. "I'll anoint my sword. I bought an unction of a mountebank, /.../ I'll touch my point with this contagion, that , if I gall him slightly, it may be death. /.../ I'll have preferred him a chali ce for the nonce, whereon but sipping, if he by chance escape your venomed stuck ." (IV; vii; 138 - 139, 144 - 146, 157 -159) In order for the plan to work, they will have to switch swords in the presence of Hamlet. They know that this will work because, "He, [Hamlet] being remiss, most generous, and free from all contr iving," (IV; vii; 132 - 133) will never suspect them of any wrongdoing. The plan will make it look like an accident, as the king says, "But even his mother shal l uncharge the practice and call it accident." (IV; vii; 65 - 66) This plan is t he ultimate downfall of Hamlet, as it causes his death. So, if Laertes and Claud ius had not schemed to kill Hamlet, then Hamlet would not have died. Therefore, in conclusion, deceit is a major cause of the downfall of Hamlet. Pol onius spying led to Hamlet being sent away to England. Hamlet being sent away to England causes it s own deceit because it causes Hamlet to loose his character and regress to become like other medieval men around him. Finally, the plan of Laer tes and Claudius to assassinate Hamlet causes his downfall because it is success ful and Hamlet dies as a direct result of it.