Claudius the Villain in HamletThis essay will carefully outline the character of King Claudius in Shakespeare's Hamlet, show his place in the play, and interpret his character - with l the help of literary critics. Philip Burton in “Hamlet” talks about Claudius' sudden accession to the Danish throne upon the death of King Hamlet I: The fact that Claudius became king is not really surprising. Only later in the play does Hamlet complain that his uncle had "intervened between the election and my hopes." The country was in a nervous state awaiting an invasion by the young Fortinbras, leading a band of lawless adventurers, in revenge for the death of his father at the hands of King Hamlet. A new strong king was immediately needed; the election of Claudius, especially in Hamlet's absence, was inevitable. On the other hand, it was immediately justified, because Claudius manages to avert the threat of invasion by appealing to the king of Norway to keep his nephew Fortinbras in check; the ambitious young soldier was all the more ready to cancel the planned invasion because the object of his revenge, Hamlet's father, was now dead, and in exchange he had received free passage through Denmark to fight against Poland (Burton) . The play opens after Hamlet has just returned from Wittenberg, England, where he was a student. What brought him home was the news of his father's death and his uncle's accession to the throne of Denmark. Hamlet also learned the disturbing news of the new king's “hasty marriage” to Hamlet I's wife less than two months after the funeral. It would initially seem that Gertrude, and not Claudio, is responsible for the protagonist's “violent emotions” (Smith 80); so......middle of paper......et.htmColeridge, Samuel Taylor. Lectures and notes on Shakspere and other English poets. London: George Bell and Sons, 1904. p. 342-368. http://ds.dial.pipex.com/thomas_larque/ham1-col.htmFaucit, Helena (Lady Martin). On some of Shakespeare's female characters. 6th ed. London:William Blackwood and Sons, 1899.Jorgensen, Paul A. “Hamlet.” William Shakespeare: the tragedies. Boston: Twayne Publ., 1985. Page no. http://www.freehomepages.com/hamlet/other/jorg-hamlet.htmlMack, Maynard. “Hamlet's World”. Yale Review. vol. 41 (1952) p. 502-23. Rpt. in Readings on Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996.Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 1995. http://www.chemicool.com/Shakespeare/hamlet/full.html No line nn.