Claudius’s Confession Essay

What can be more desirable than the Crown of the Dutch Kingdom? What can be more desirable than the absolute power? What can be nobler than be the King of all Dane people? If there are any means that cannot be used when you are next in the succession line to the throne of the Kingdom? The answer to all of these questions is obvious.

There is nothing in this world more precious and honorable than the royal power, the absolute power over the Dane people and you can use all means to meet this end. Can anyone blame me than that I “arranged” the death of my noble and beloved brother? I think, no. This is why I cannot understand that foolish Hamlet, who is a disgrace to our family. I think he has got something on his mind and he is plotting against me to gain the throne I have succeeded from his father. I know for sure that even if he has gone he will never abandon the idea of becoming a king sine even an insane cannot help from desiring to become a king one day.

You can blame me that I succeeded the throne unlawfully because I did not allow Hamlet to inherit the Kingdom directly from his father, but I assure you that I have deserved the honor to be the king of Denmark. It was me, not Hamlet who killed his poor father. Frankly speaking, I do not even now he is more foolish Hamlet, who has gone insane recently, or his father who let me fool him around so easily and kill him without any efforts from my part. It was a brilliant idea to poison him in such a sophisticated way and he should be grateful to me because I let him die, or, to put it more precisely, I helped him to die respectfully, as a true and noble king. He just fell asleep to never wake up and I think it is an honor for the king to die in such a way because how many kings were stabbed, slaughtered or, what is even more terrible, deprived of their power and left alive. I cannot even imagine a more dishonorable end to the king’s rule. I would better die than get rid of my royal power because death is much more pleasant than the disgrace and dishonor of being deprived of the power over all Dane people. And I did not dishonor my brother, though I could use my power, my loyal vassals to take the power in the kingdom and overthrow him taking the Dane throne in a day, while he would be alive but dishonored. Hence, I believe that it was a good deed from my part to take the throne in such a way and no one can blame me that I acted unfair or that I am not a noblest man of all noble men in my beloved Denmark.

Moreover, Hamlet should be grateful to me as much as his father should have been because I have married Gertrude.

What should she be without me after her husband death? She would be totally ruined, dishonored, lost in this world.

She would have nothing to live for and nothing to live from because she owns nothing but her femininity. Her only destiny is to be a mother and a good wife and, I should say, she performs her duties well since she is as devoted and faithful wife to me as she used to be to my brother. Unlike her foolish son, she is grateful to me because she understands what an honorable, noble man I am and what a great and just king I am. I wish you have seen how excited and honored she was when I announced my decision to marry her after the death of my beloved brother. As a noble man, I could not abandon the wife of my brother and it was my duty to marry her, though, frankly speaking I did not like her much and, when I became a king, I could have married the most beautiful woman in Denmark or the most beautiful princess in the world. But I am a responsible and noble king. This is why I could not fail to fulfill my duty properly and, in accordance with laws of our ancestors I married Gertrude, regardless of my true feelings to her or, to put it more precisely, the lack of feelings, such as love, to her.

However, it is while comparing the attitude of Gertrude to me and the attitude of that Hamlet to me, I can understand how ungrateful that young fool is. Don’t he know that I can kill him any moment. Moreover, I should have killed him to secure my rule and save my people from unnecessary war within the kingdom. Nevertheless, I let him live. And what have I got in response? A secret enemy, a snake who can bite me any moment. What miserable, unjust, and ungrateful people can be if such good kings as me have so many enemies?



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