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Ashton Martin Anderson Comp AP 1 January 2012 To Be Immoral? Some people focus more on feeling good, than being good, and Gertrude is no different. Where is the line drawn between a person taking care of their needs, and a person acting out of unsullied selfishness? Is she the seemingly virtuous queen the Ghost speaks of? Or is she worse than a beast that wants discourse of reason (1.2.24)? In Shakespeares play Hamlet, he uses Gertrude as a morally ambiguous character to express the impossibility of certainty by giving her an oblivious persona which can be either interpreted as purely good or purely evil. In one respect Gertrude seems ghastly. She appears evil, and it is as though she plotted King Hamlets death herself. Such an interpretation is not wrong as long as one considers Gertrude as betraying Hamlet on every level. Gertrude marries her mildewd ear of a brotherin-law, but not to keep her position, because she was not heir to the throne in the first place (3.4.74). Once King Hamlet died, she no longer legally was queen. Basically Hamlets own devoted mother steals the role of king away from Hamlet. Whether taking the crown was Claudiuss plan or Gertrudes the reader knows that she is weak. Frailty thy name is woman, giving in to the easiest path not considering the consequences of her emotionless actions (1.2.11). Because Gertrude cannot break away from Claudiuss grasp, she becomes his puppet. Fleeing to him once Hamlet, her gentle son kills Polonius is only one example of her betrayal. When he is to be sent away to England, Gertrude does not protest (3.4.76); nevertheless, [she]

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forgot!(1.4.86). Did she know that Hamlet was being sent to his secretive death? Or is she simply a victim to Claudiuss malevolence? In another respect, Gertrude seems to be an innocent bystander. According to Amanda Mabilliard, many analysts explain the term adulterate beast, used to describe Claudius, as he was having an affair with the queen prior to the death of King Hamlet because the definition of adulterate in the adjective form is being tainted with adultery. It also turns out that adulterate can mean to corrupt; therefore, Gertrude is now the prey to Claudiuss plan (1.5.23). Another example of Gertrudes kindness is when after Claudius finds out about the death of Polonius, Gertrude notifies him that Hamlet weeps for what is done in order to show that Hamlet feels very terrible about the death of an acquaintance and to pacify the king. (4.1.80). She seems to be trying to compose Claudius, but her real motives are not written. Shakespeare writes this character in order to enhance the theme of the impossibility of certainty. In Shakespeares Hamlet, Gertrude is clearly a morally ambiguous character. She betrays Hamlet is so many ways, but is also forced into betrayal because of her loving husband Claudius. Sometimes her actions go unscathed, but other times they cause Hamlet to become outraged. By creating this ambiguous character, Shakespeare reinforces his theme of certainty being impossible because no matter which argument is considered, the uncertainty prevents the truth from being brought forth.

Martin 3 Works Cited Mabillard, Amanda. Shakespeare's Gertrude. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2000. (01. Jan. 2012.) Taylor, Peter "In Hamlet, When Hamlet's Father Dies, Wouldn't Gertrude Become the Rightful Leader of the Throne? - Yahoo! Answers." Yahoo! Answers - Home. Web. 02 Jan. 2012. Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Toronto: Dover Publications, 1992. Print.