In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Hamlet's focus on thought and reason, as opposed to immediate action, leads to a tragic ending. Although Hamlet acts throughout the play, he tortures himself by pondering situations instead of acting according to his inclination. First, after agreeing to seek revenge for his father's death, Hamlet is torn by his conscience and idealism, resulting in Polonius' death. Furthermore, he turns away from suicide, which only delays his end. Ultimately, he is able to excuse his own role in Polonius' death, ending in his and Laertes' deaths. Hamlet's focus on reasoning and rationalization is what delays his ability to act immediately and leads to fatal endings for both him and the people around him. Even though Hamlet has agreed to get the desired satisfaction from his father, one major obstacle he has is that he doesn't want to do it. be morally complicated. If he truly believed he was justified in avenging his father's death, he would have acted and not worried about the optics of appearing heroic. During the prayer scene, Hamlet immediately draws his sword when he sees the king alone. However, Hamlet does not act immediately because he thinks that killing Claudius while he is praying will not fulfill the vengeance his father asked for. “A villain kills my father; and for this I, his only son, send the same villain to heaven. Oh, this is wages and wages, not vengeance” (Hamlet, pg. 68). Hamlet wants to kill the king, but recognizes that if he did at that moment he would be the same villain. Instead of killing Claudius at the first opportunity after the play, Hamlet decides to carry out the deed while his uncle is in the midst of committing a sinful act. “When it's dru...... middle of paper......; only that I will take greater revenge on my father” (Laertes, page 86). This leads to the duel in which Laertes takes action against Hamlet by poisoning his sword. If Hamlet had not reconciled his guilt and confessed to Laertes, the tragic end of both he and Laertes could have been avoided. He considered himself above secular consequences and this line of thinking led to tragedy. If Hamlet had acted directly and not followed his thought process, Claudius would have been killed at Hamlet's first opportunity. He would have committed suicide and avoided the deaths of others. Furthermore, if he had not tried to hide and justify Polonius' death and instead dealt directly with Laertes, this could have changed the outcome of the play. Hamlet's thoughtfulness caused him to delay the action he intended to take and changed the course of events, ending in tragedy for many..