Abstract

Critical discourse on Shakespeare’s Hamlet often discusses Polonius as a victim, ignoring Shakespeare’s creativity in depicting the complexities of the human psyche. Therefore, this paper attempts to study Polonius’ character from a new perspective through answering questions such as: what is the meaning of the death of a whole family that has apparently nothing to do with the death of Old Hamlet? And why would this family give the first death in the play, if the family, or Polonius in particular, is not part of the conspiracy against Old Hamlet?

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