The intense relationships in Hamlet are a major part, but not the only elements of the

play which continue to captivate audiences.

Hamlet and Gertrude:

- Hamlet feels betrayed by Claudius, who has ‘taken to wife’ with his brother’s
widow, an act of adultery which bordered on incestuous during the time of the
play and its Ecclesiastical laws forbidding such sexual activity.
- Despite being warned by Old Hamlet’s ghost to only take revenge on the one
who committed his ‘most foul and unnatural murder’, Claudius, Hamlet
ignores this command and acts out violently against Gertrude in the closet
scene.
- Originally Gertrude abandons her son and disregards what is best for him in
order to fornicate with Claudius. Some critics have questioned whether or not
Gertrude knew that Claudius murdered Old Hamlet, even suggesting that she
took a part in the murder.
- Critic A.C. Bradley in 1904 described Gertrude as having the disposition of a
‘sheep’, due to her gentle nature and willingness to follow authority regardless
of whether it is legitimate or usurped.
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