Example research essay topic: Type Of Love

Hamlet
In his play, Hamlet, William Shakespeare explores many different types of love.
One type of love is Hamlets love toward Ophelia, his romantic love. Shakespeare
shows the everlasting love between two people, which can never be broken,
friendship, the friendship Hamlet had with Horatio. Paternal love was when
Hamlet was very affectionate with his mother, in the beginning of the play, but as
it progressed, he became more bitter toward her. Another type of love is the love
for power, which Claudius possessed. There are many ways to prove Hamlets love
toward Ophelia to be true.

At the beginning of the play, when Hamlet decided to pretend madness, he

pretends that he does not love Ophelia, he rejects, and insults her Get thee to a
nunnery. (3. 1. 121). This, of course, means that he has been in love with her
before, has let her think that she was loved. Before that, when Hamlet learns
about his fathers murder, you could see that Hamlet does in fact trust Ophelia,
because she is one of the few loved ones he has left to turn to. Sure he trusts, and
loves, his family to some extent, but his father is dead, and his uncle is the one
who murdered him. The only other woman in his life, his mother Gertrude, has
betrayed him in a way, by marrying Claudius. You could see Hamlets love for
Ophelia because he did write the love letter to her in which he did say he loved
her.

Act 3 Scene 1 is where it would be possible to consider Hamlets love for Ophelia
to be untrue. Before visiting with her, Hamlet thinks about suicide in his To be or
not to be soliloquy. After that, his purpose for revenge on Claudius makes him
more miserable, or mad, but when Ophelia comes Hamlet is momentarily happy
and recognizes the importance of his love towards her. Hamlet says to her That if
you be honest and fair, your honesty should admit no discount to your beauty. (3.
1. 107). He is saying to her that she can be honest and fair, but it is almost
impossible to join the two because honesty comes from within and beauty is an
external feature, .

He wanted her to remain pure, like when he says, Ay, truly, for the power of
beauty will sooner transform honesty from what it is to a bawd that the force of
honesty can translate beauty into his likeness. (3. 1. 111) It is in the nunnery
scene in which Hamlets attitude towards her starts to change. He insults her, then
tells her had once loved her, but then changes his mind into never loved her. It
angered Hamlet further when he asked her where her father was, just to see her
response. She said he was at home, but of course Hamlet knew he wasnt. He told
her to go to a nunnery because he holds her in a high regard, and does not want
her to become corrupted, like Claudius, therefore he feels that she would stay
away from all of that in a nunnery. In act 5, at Ophelias funeral, Hamlet once and
for all declares that he did love Ophelia.

He says to Laertes, I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers could not with all
their quantity of love make up my sum. (5. 1. 271) In Hamlet, Horatio is Hamlets
one true friend in which he can rely on. The reader can truly see Hamlet through
the point of view of Horatio in the play. I am glad to see you well (I.

ii. 167) Horatio told Hamlet, and Hamlet then calls Horatio My good friend,
therefore we know that they are friends. Horatio is the first person Hamlet tells of
his guilt and he was the first one to see the ghost. Horatio offers his opinion to
Hamlet, if your heart is warning you not to, then dont do it. Which a true friend
will always do. I f it not for him, Hamlet would have never known about the ghost.
But of course, he is a true friend.

Hamlet admires Horatio for the qualities that Hamlet himself does not posses.
Hamlet compliments him for his goodness, and self control, Horatio, thou art een
as just a man, As eer my conversation copd withal. (3. 2. 56) Horatio and Hamlets
friendship, trust, or love for each other is Shakespeare's way of showing how
friendship is the only type of love that will remain until the end. That was true in
the end of the play, Horatio was the only one left standing. He was the only one
left alive. Another type of love in Hamlet, is the paternal love between Hamlet
and Gertrude, or lack there of. Hamlet was very affectionate with Gertrude in the
beginning, but as the play progressed, he became more bitter towards her.

This happens as Hamlet learns of his fathers murder. Many questions arise in his
fragile mind. Was my mother in on the plan to kill Hamlet Sr. ? After Polonious
reads the love letter from Hamlet to Ophelia, to Gertrude and Claudius, Gertrude
wanted to use Ophelias love to bring her son out of madness, showing her
motherly characteristics. Then Hamlet decides to put a play on which re-enacts
the death of his father in order to see the reaction of A- Claudius guilt, and B- To
see whether or not his mother knew about it.

Later on, Hamlet seems mad in everyones mind. He threw his mother onto her
bed and insisted on condemning her marriage to Claudius, Nay, but to live in the
rank sweat of an e steamed bed, Stews in corruption, honeying and making love
Over the nasty sty! (3. 4. 92) Obviously his comments are very painful toward her,
yet Shakespeare has Hamlet continue to insult her. In Shakespeare's day, perhaps
he viewed the love between a mother and son to be strong and everlasting. So
maybe he just wanted to give the image as to what can happen if things were
somewhat distorted.

But in the long run, Gertrude, the mother, stepped in and drank the poison to
save her son. Now a different type of love in Hamlet, is also present. That is the
love Claudius had for power. Claudius was in love, not with Gertrude, but with
what came with her. The power to rule. In order to obtain the power and what
came with it, Claudius murdered Hamlet Sr.

and then possibly deceived Gertrude into loving him to get the thrown. Even
Claudius himself admitted the murder when he was praying, I am still possess of
those effects for which I did murther: my crown, mine own ambition, and my
queen. (3. 2. 53) It makes sense to see why Claudius had to gain by marrying
Gertrude, he didnt love her, just the thrown. All along, Hamlet is the only one
who was aware of the true nature of Claudius, Nay, but to live in the rank sweat
of an e steamed bed, Stews in corruption, honeying and making love Over the
nasty sty! (3. 4. 92) That is how he described their relationship, in his eyes, to
Gertrude. The main instance when Claudius and Gertrude's love is questioned, is
at the fencing match.

Claudius was prepared to kill his nephew, Hamlet, when Gertrude stepped in to
drink the poison, and all Claudius could say was, Gertrude, do not drink. (5. 2.
290) To the audience he said, It is the posted cup, it is too late. (5. 2. 292) That
one line summed up him whole attitude towards her. Claudius showed three main
qualities throughout the play, dishonesty, evilness, and deceitfulness, and all
three of these could be shared with another popular Shakespearean character,
Lady Macbeth from Macbeth. Shakespeare in one of his most popular plays,
Hamlet, explores many different types of love. He shows the romantic side of
Hamlet toward Ophelia, and the good friendship between Hamlet and Horatio.
Another one is paternal love. Which in this play is up and down throughout.

Finally, the love and lust for power showed by Claudius shows a close comparison
to Macbeth's Lady Macbeth. In the end, the different types of love led to total
destruction, so if that was todays society, what would be the point of love?

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