As we've been reading Hamlet, I've often noticed similarities to the play we read last year, Macbeth. Both plays are by Shakespeare (to state the obvious), both are titled by the names of their protagonists, and both are tragedies. Hamlet and Macbeth are both princes or lords and could possibly become king in the future. Both see ghosts who were murdered. Hamlet encounters his father, murdered by Claudius; and Macbeth sees Banquo, whom he ordered to be murdered, at a feast. However, there are many differences between the two plays.
First of all, Hamlet seems to be younger and less experienced than Macbeth. He isn't married, and he seems more a scholar than a warrior, whereas Macbeth was a revered for his prowess in battle. While Macbeth seems to be a true Aristotelian tragic hero and is brought down from a great height (becoming king) by his tragic flaw (ambition), Hamlet is a completely different story. While Hamlet is a tragedy, it is often called a "revenge tragedy" (like Medea), rather than an Aristotelian tragedy. Hamlet does not seem to have a flaw in his character or personality traits; he is simply brought to madness by trying to get revenge on his uncle Claudius for murdering Hamlet, Sr. Shakespeare does use common themes of tragedy among royalty or nobility in many of his plays, but he manipulates the structure, plot, and characters to keep his works diverse and original.
One final note: Lady Macbeth is wayyyy cooler than either Gertrude (who marries her husband's brother and murderer--ew, incest!) or Ophelia (who, although Hamlet treats her poorly, seems like a pretty whiny tattletale; keep your love letters to yourself, girl!).
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I wanted to elaborate on how Lainey talked about both Hamlet and Medea being revenge tragedies. The definition of a revenge tragedy is "a style of drama, popular in England during the late 16th and 17th centuries, in which the basic plot was a quest for vengeance and which typically featured scenes of carnage and mutilation." Medea was clearly a good example of this as Medea went on a quest to destroy the life of her husband Jason who'd betrayed her. Throughout Hamlet, he will attempt to do the same in vengeance for his father's death. Both characters are definitively human, but at the same time, their actions are overly elaborate and at times, fantastical. I believe that in writing the characters how they are, both Euripides and Shakespeare have attempted to appeal to human nature, creating a revenge tale that the audience may have wished they could've carried out.
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