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One question that has puzzled readers and audiences alike is Hamlet's delay. Why does he wait so long to kill Claudius?
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Hamlet's Delay in Shakespeare's Hamlet Hamlet is truly a great play. Any work of literature that generates so much debate and has lasted for four hundred years must be pure genius. One question that has puzzled readers and audiences alike is Hamlet's delay. Why does he wait so long to kill Claudius? During and immediately following Hamlet's conversation with the Ghost, he is determined to fulfill the Ghost's wishes. Hamlet already has a plan to catch Claudius. However, the next time he appears in the play, which is long after the Ghost's visit, he has not yet done the deed. He admits he may have been deceived by the ghost. "The spirit that I have seen / May be a devil, and the devil hath power / T' assume a pleasing shape (2.2.627-629). To fully understand Hamlet's inaction, it is important to look at revenge. In Richard III revenge is...
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