Hamlet Essay

In an essay that demonstrates your wild brilliance and for Pete's sake avoids plot summary at all costs, please explain how this quote (To thine own self be true) contributes to your understanding of the tone and theme of Hamlet.  Specifically: Which character speaks the line/s?  At what point in the play/plot?  How do the words affect the character's own understanding, the other characters' understandings (if applicable), and the audience's understanding?  Top shelf responses will include definitions of these literary elements, demonstrated understanding of the play's central message, tone, and characterization, and application of the concept of Performative Utterance.

"To thine own self be true"

 

 

"To thine own self be true," a phrase that was derived from the play Hamlet, a phrase that has gained mass popularity in the last years, now means more to hundreds of people than it did to whom it was spoken to. The phrase spoken by Polonius was directed at his son Laertes in the play as last minute advice before his son departs on a trip. It is the last, and most pertinent piece of advice Polonius delivers, following up with "And it must follow, as the night the day,/Thou canst not then be false to any man." This phrase, however, also affects other characters, as well as audiences (even today's readers), and aids in setting the tone and theme for this tragic play.

Laertes himself is quite unaffected by the advice his father prompts. What Polonius means by his famous line was that Laertes live up to his name, to not go around doing what he usually does, and act decent. Polonius himself has described his son as a gambler, someone who will borrow money and not pay back, someone who will act as a man with word of honor, yet never have the decency to actually act with honor. Laertes is never true to his name, he is although, true to the identity he has given himself with his actions, and true to his reputation. At the end of the play, when fighting for his father is where he becomes true to himself, the way his father truly wished, he fights for his name, he fights for the honor of his family. What Polonius intended to do was create a locutionary force,  by hoping that his son will remain true and not tarnish their last name, the desired perlocutionary action from Laertes.

Hamlet, although not having been given the advice in the same words, is also told by the ghost to not lose himself, to not lose his head. Unlike Laertes, he actually tries to follow this advice throughout the play, and constantly struggles. Was he himself when he pretended to act mad, did he portray his true self according to others? Was he true to himself when he failed to avenge his father's death? Or when he lost the kindness he used to show Ophelia, the love of his life, was he true then? Hamlet purposefully struggles with being true to others, but he knows who he is. Many readers now attempt to do just that, to be true to themselves, not worrying about how they are seen by others. "To thine own self be true," a phrase that most people wish to apply to their own lives. The audience at the time of Shakespeare may have missed the importance of this line, but generations now have definitely picked up its meaning and have run with it. Many readers attempt to apply this famous phrase to their individual lives, and even attempt to live by it. If this phrase was typed into a search engine millions of 'tumblr' accounts, countless posts, and a multitude of profiles would appear, all advertising this little Shakespeare-ian saying. The phrase has had an immense impact on many readers, and even people who have not had the opportunity to read the play in its entirety.

The tone, as set forth by the author seems vengeful, depressing, and yet questioning. The quote helps Shakespeare and the play set forth a more understanding tone, as though the play itself is seeking vengeance, and questioning everything that occurred in young Hamlet's life, yet it asks of Hamlet and Laertes to remain conscious, to avoid transforming into something dreadful because of the murder of their fathers.  The theme returns to the forces of locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary and the complexity of words and actions. The theme is set forth by the countless phrases Hamlet disguises with double meanings, and the fact that his words make others believe things, such as him being lunatic, and his actions only add to the complexity that he is. His words, his actions, they all remain true to the character that Hamlet is.

"To thine own self be true," many wish to live by this, and Polonius only wished his son would. The quote affects more than just the characters, adding a second dimension to the tone. The entirety of Hamlet encompasses the complexity of actions and words, easily seen with many pairs of characters such as, Polonius and Laertes, Polonius and Ophelia, Hamlet and his father, etc. etc. Be true to yourself, to your name, to who you are, the best advice Polonius could deliver to his son.