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 * __Claudius__**

"A bad man, but a good king." There’s no question that Claudius is a bad man: nice guys do not murder their brother and steal their wife. Simultaneously, Claudius certainly appears to be a competent leader. The fact that he manages to acquire his brother’s crown without a hitch is evidence to his powers of persuasion. As he says himself, he had to convince the people of the court to accept his untimely and sinful marriage to Gertrude, for he knew that's what it was. Aside from the theft of the throne and queen, Claudius goes on to artfully avoid war with Fortinbras of Norway and keep the members of his court, with the exception of Hamlet, under control. Claudius is a man who cares only about meeting his own needs, and maintaining his power. One may think that this characteristic would make Claudius a simple and predictable character, but on the contrary it causes him to take on a more complex personality. Claudius formulates decisions based on how he alone will benefit from the outcome. His complexity is visable throughout the play, starting in Act 1. In Act 1, scene 2, we are first introduced to Claudius. From the start he is shown as a honest and powerful political figurehead as well as the sincere husband of the queen. In actuality, his virtuous facade and marriage to Gertrude are utilized as a means for dulling the very recent death of his brother. Claudius is clearly a man of power and influence as seen in the play with how he can directly influence everyone around him. His persuasion is portrayed in the play in small trifles like persuading Hamlet to stay in Denmark instead of go abroad to continue his studies, but it is also seen in much larger affairs. For instance: swooning the widow of the late King Hamlet to marry him even though King Hamlet had only been dead for two months. This skill of Claudius is not one of honesty and justice, but it can be said that it is what he needs done, he gets done, despite the wicked nature that it entails. In this nature Claudius is an effective king, albeit a sinful one, but nonetheless he is effective. An example of this is the decree he gave to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern ordering Hamlet to be killed once they arrived in England. This is truly a sinister act, but in order to maintain the dexterity of his command over Denmark, it had to be done. What is truly frightening is the nature of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern themselves who, as Hamlet put it, “(Why, man, they did make love to this employment.) They are not near my conscience. Their defeat does by their own insinuation grow.” Now Rosencrantz and Guildentsern are very close friends of Hamlets, but this example shows that not only can Claudius get people to do what he wants, but he can also make them like it despite emotional ties that these people might have. In Act IV, Hamlet discovers Claudius pleading to God saying, “of these effects for which I did the murder: My crown, mine own ambition and my queen. May one be pardoned and retain the’ offense?” Claudius is fully aware that he is morally wrong for murdering King Hamlet. He knows his marriage to Gertrude is indeed sinful and he also knows the life of wealth and luxury isn’t deserved. Claudius is shown to be unhappy and unsettled and the reader is shown the side of guilt that he is feeling. If he really wished to make clean breast, he would admit his sins and give up all that he acquired, though he ultimately does not. His choice of words proves that he is knows he has done wrong, but the guilt alone is not enough to force him to give up his newly obtained status. The effect this has on Claudius is that it further demonstrates he is evil and is willing to beguile and manipulate anyone and everyone for his own benefit.

Although Claudius is effective in some areas, his ineffectiveness is seen even more vividly. Soon after he acquired the throne he began to become an ineffective leader. In the first act, Hamlet's manhood is questioned by Claudius when the two are speaking about the death of his father. He says that Hamlet should not be greiving, tell him his greif over his father " 'Tis unmanly grief." However, in the next act, Claudius seems to change his personality towards Hamlet. In scene two, Claudius and the Queen are concerned about the way Hamlet has been acting. So, Claudius contrasts his character in the from the first act to the second because he takes on the father figure. Many people saw him as a courageous man to be able to assume the throne of an entire country just after losing his brother, but Hamlet knew the truth behind his uncle. He knew that Claudius had killed his own brother to assume the throne and marry Gertrude after the ghost of his father informed him in the end of Act 1. Knowing this, Hamlet devised a plan to murder his uncle that involved Hamlet acting out of the ordinary. Claudius' ineffectiveness began when Hamlet started to act in this strange way. He first started by summoning Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two of Hamlet's old friends, to spy on Hamlet and find the source of his madness. To most, this would seem as if he were simply showing concern over Hamlet, but in reality he is beginning to become almost obsessed over Hamlet's madness. Throughout the rest of the novel Claudius almost completely ignores the other matters that are occurring outside his kingdom and is infatuated with finding the truth behind Hamlet. In a conversation about Fortinbras, Claudius decrees “it likes us well and, at our more considered time, we’ll read, answer, and think upon this business. Meanwhile we thank you for your well-took labor.” The ineffectiveness of the character of Claudius is most obvious in the third Act. Previously in the play, the reader is unable to detect any sort of guilt. When Claudius and Polonius are together and Claudius is speaking to himself and says "How smart a lash that speech doth give my conscience./The harlot's cheek beautied with plast'ring art/ Is not more ugly to the thing that helps it/Than is my deed to my most painted word./ O heavy burden!" Act 3 Scene 1, lines 56-63. Claudius is showing that his feeling of guilt is rising. He compares himself and how he murdered his brother to what a whore does. A whore puts on make up to look pretty and cover up what is done wrong, whereas Claudius hiding how he killed his brother, the King with his words and attitude. Since this is the first time Claudius reveals the guilt he is feeling to the reader, it shows how his character changes throughout the play.

Claudius demonstrates his ineffectiveness from the beginning of the play. In the first act, Hamlet's manhood is questioned by Claudius when the two are speaking about the death of his father. He says that Hamlet should not be greiving, tell him his greif over his father " 'Tis unmanly grief." However, in the next act, Claudius seems to change his personality towards Hamlet. In scene two, Claudius and the Queen are concerned about the way Hamlet has been acting. So, Claudius contrasts his character in the from the first act to the second because he takes on the father figure. In doing so, the King has Guildenstern and Rosencrantz come up to check on Hamlet. It is interesting, however that despite his sense of full control over everything, in the last act this control slips between his fingertips. During the sparring match between Hamlet and Laertes, Claudius offers to drink every time that Hamlet wins. As another means of making sure that Hamlet will indeed die, Claudius puts poison in a cup of wine. He then offers it to Hamlet after he bested Laertes another time. Hamlet declined however, and as a strange turn of events, the cup ended in the hands of Hamlet's own mother and Claudius’ wife. Gertrude offers to drink upon the cup and as she raises the cup to do so, Claudius shouts for her to stop in protest of her ultimate death. Despite the scene that Claudius had made, Gertrude still proceeds to drink the poison unknowingly against Claudius’ will. Normally in such a circumstance, the person would have immediately put the cup down if such a fit is made but Gertrude continued to do so anyway against the will of her husband, the King. What is even more interesting is how he protested against her. In all other circumstances in the play, when Claudius needs something done, he speaks it in a tone similar to that of a usual conversation, but in this situation Gertrude resisted him despite his tone of urgency and panic. This proves that he cannot even control his wife anymore and that he has indeed fully become an ineffective king.

Envy, greed, and infidelity are wicked traits that one would hardly expect to find in a king. Yet Claudius proves contrary to this line of thought. He adorns a crown on head and a scepter in hand, earned not by birthright, but through foul play. He is a master of deception and persuasion. He uses these skills to do what is necacassy for himself to maintain his power, despite the sinisterness these actions entail. He is a man who thinks for only himself. Claudius's wickedness ascended him to the throne but also sent him to his death. His effectiveness was extinguished by his inability to act under pressure, making his complexity the reason his ultimate downfall.