Group+6

“I find thee apt.” This is what Hamlet’s father says to him regarding to avenging his death. Claudius, argumentatively the most complex character besides Hamlet in Shakespeare’s play, is the person who Hamlet is to seek revenge on. Claudius stole the thrown from his brother and took his wife; all the while never being an effective king. In addition to his ineffective behavior, Claudius contradicts his words and actions throughout the entire play. Claudius’ contradictory behavior and ineffectiveness as king ultimately leads to his downfall. Claudius demonstrates numerous times to the reader he is an ineffective king. The first time the reader sees this is in Claudius’ first encounter with Fortinbras. King Hamlet has just defeated his country, and although that King is now dead, Fortinbras asks the new king, Claudius, to march through his country. A deliver reports to Claudius that he has received a letter from Fortinbras, and Claudius completely brushes it off. He says he will get to it at a later time, and he has more important things to handle at the moment. As Fortinbras is marching through the country, he invades, and overtakes the castle. This is the ultimate showing of his ineffectiveness as king; someone else takes his crown. Another demonstration of Claudius’ ineffectiveness is his spying on Hamlet. Like a good and fair king should do, he should be upfront with Hamlet, and ask him what is really going on. Instead, on several instances, Claudius decides to spy on him to get the information he is seeking. The reader finds out through this spying that Claudius is very deceitful and secretive. When he attempts to send Hamlet to his death in England, Claudius writes a note that is to be delivered to the king of his duties. This he hands to Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, all behind Hamlet’s back. Claudius is contradictory throughout the whole play. In one breath, he says how he cannot kill Hamlet because he knows he is his queen’s son and she needs him to breathe. However, during pretty much the whole play, Claudius is seeking a way to murder him. He first tries to send him off to England to face his death. When that plan foils, he then begins plotting things with Laertes. Claudius plans to have Hamlet killed in a fencing match with Laertes. If that doesn’t work, he goes as far as to make a backup plan, which is to kill Hamlet by poisoning his wine. Claudius also proves that he is contradictory when he goes to pray. Although on his knees, trying with all his might to talk to God, he finds that he cannot do so. This proves to be contradictory because although he is attempting to pray to plead with God to forgive him for his sins, he is incapable, proving he is not truly sorry for killing king Hamlet. Through his ineffectiveness and contradictory behavior, Claudius proves to the audience he was never ready to be king. This is evident when he is killed and Fortinbras takes the thrown. If Claudius was the king he thought he was going to be, and should have been, he could quite have possibly avoided his death. Claudius died never really accomplishing his goals, because he did not kill Hamlet the way he would have liked to.