Compare & Contrast The Adolescent Rites of Passages and External and Internal Development of Prince Hamlet and Prince Hal
Hamlet and Prince Hal initially strike the reader or viewer of theirrespective dramas as miserable adolescents, albeit of different types.Both Hamlet and Hal seem to live in a state of anger, alienated from theirrespective societies. Over the course of Prince Hamlet's tragedy and PrinceHal's historical play of coming to age in the drama named after his father,"Henry IV, Part 1," both of these protagonists come of age before theaudience's eyes and ears. To achieve this sense of maturity theprotagonist must become a murderer of an individual who is the embodimentof all that his father champions. By killing such an individual, bothcharacters are also able to kill the false ideal of the male self that isupheld by both their respective societies and their respective fathers. Indoing so, they resolve the crux of both of their internal dilemmas. The alienation of Hamlet from his society can be seen in the firstsoliloquy he utters to the audience. "Oh that this too, too, solidflesh/Should thaw..." (1.2) Hamlet is first seen wishing himself dead,dressed in black, still mourning for his father in a court that is all toowilling to forget about the elder king's recent death. Prince Hal as well
Laertesalmost seems like a direct dramatic parallel, ironically, with thecharacter of Hotspur in "Henry IV, Part 1. " If Hamlet's rivalry withLaertes is only implied on an emotional level, the rivalry between Hal andHotspur is even more explicit in "Henry IV, Part 1," where the kingdirectly states on numerous occasions that he wishes that Hotspur, ratherthan Hal, were his son. However, these antics come from a deeper sense ofinternal alienation from society and their roles as sons. Eventually, Hamlet kills both Laertes and Claudius at theend of the play. He must do soby killing the current King Claudius. Early on in both plays, each protagonist is presented with a series offoils, or characters that are more simple and extreme in their nature buthighlight something significant about the main character. Still, only when Hal killsHotspur, can he be assured that he has killed this rival for his fatherHenry IV's affection. shares his first significant thoughts (as opposed to his semi-drunk,slightly hung over banter with Falstaff during 1. Ultimately as well, the heart of the audience is always with these twomain characters, despite their initially unprepossessing characters andcircumstances. Hamlet and Hal ultimately have steadiersouls-after they kill the representation of all that is viewed as good bytheir fathers, either the angry vengeful spirit of Laertes or the fightingspirit of Hotspur whom hardly cares what side he is on so long as his"honor is not lost," they realize that the values of manhood and valor rundeeper within themselves, and even the thoughts of their father, than theinitially thought. Because Hal kills Hotspur the field of battle, his rise in estimationin his father's eyes should be assured. 4) Hal,although less internal a character than Hamlet, also shows that he knowsnow must take up his destiny and fight, because someday the kingship ofEngland will be his, no matter what his father says. The reason for this compassion comesbecause both men have attained a more nuanced understanding of the world,as is evidenced in Hamlet's laughing at death in the graveyard, and hisfinal, personal words to Horatio before the duel, "Let be.
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Acceptance Essays
