The structure of Shakespeare s “Hamlet”, lays on the little information received by Hamlet from the mysterious ghost. Among all the characters, Marcellus seems to have the deepest understanding of the personality of this ghost. He is the one who fears a relation with this ghost. Shakespeare introduces character of Marcellus to give insight into the nature of the ghost.
In the first scene of the play, Marcellus s interest in the ghost is shown to be of a special nature. The first to notice and identify the ghost appearance and disappearance is Marcellus. Whereas Bernardo is more interested in the outward appearances of the ghost and says “In the same figure like the king that s dead, ” Marcellus is more interested in the nature of the ghost. He realizes the complexity of involving himself with it and due to this asks Horatio, the scholar, to speak to it. But even a scholar such as Horatio wonders more of its appearance than its character and only with prodding by Marcellus does he question the ghost.
In the same scene, Marcellus begins to develop a sense of what the ghost s personality is like. He realizes that “It is offended, ” and that is why it left. The second time the ghost vanishes, Marcellus understands that the being of the ghost is “As the air, invulnerable.” Furthermore, he comprehends why the ghost leaves at dawn.
This knowledge compels Marcellus to fear the ghost. He wants to strike at it with his partisan. His apprehension causes him to maintain an aversion to introducing Hamlet to the ghost. It is not his idea to impart this discovery unto young Hamlet. Moreover, when Horatio is disclosing the findings to Hamlet, Marcellus remains on the side, making only a few remarks, and even then only directly answering a question of Hamlet s.
The Essay on King’s Ghost In “Hamlet”
During Shakespeare’s lifetime people were, in general, more religiously devout and more likely to believe in spirits and ghosts. Spirits could be messengers from heaven or evil in nature. This is one reason Hamlet so readily believed his friends when they told him they had seen his father’s ghost; he was also more likely to believe their story because his friend Horatio told it, and he ...
