This is a phrase which sees Shakespeare maintain Hamlet’s pretence of insanity whilst also using play on words for a double meaning, “fishmonger” also having connotations of a brothel and hence insulting the unknowing Polonius and his innocent daughter, Ophelia. Additionally, Hamlet’s reasoning is clear even though he acts like a madman, calling Polonius a “fishmonger”. The twelfth century legend of Amleth which is recorded in Saxo Grammaticus’s Historie Tragiques and which probably is the source of Hamlet, clearly presents Amleth as an avenger who feigns madness to detect the secret of his father’s murder. He feigns madness to use means of detection without being noticed, something that would have aroused the suspicion of others if Hamlet had retained his own self. Hamlet’s “antic disposition” can also be seen in terms of his role as investigator. Plosive sounds and sibilance emphasise Hamlet’s accusation and Shakespeare accordingly produces a cathartic and pathos-filled scene to fulfil the audience’s desires. Typical of the genre, Hamlet procrastinates his exposure of the criminal as his confrontation with the detective does not occur until the final scene where Hamlet openly accuses him of being an “incestuous, murderous, damnèd Dane”. Claudius rises in discomfort and calls for “some light”, Shakespeare using irony to display his own crimes to the court and the detective himself. Likewise, Hamlet uses ‘The Mousetrap’ to expose Claudius’ guilt through enlisting travelling actors to perform a play about regicide: “the play’s the thing/Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King”. Oedipus Rex by Ancient Greek playwright Sophocles features similar thematic ideas based on supernatural methods, including a mystery surrounding a murder, a closed circle of suspects, and the gradual uncovering of a hidden past. The figure of the detective was not a new caricature, but a rapidly evolving character in literature and theatre, with some scholars suggesting that ancient texts bear similarities to what would later be called detective fiction. From his introduction to the play, the protagonist suspects that a crime has been disguised, but even when the Ghost has revealed the secret of his death, he does not immediately embark upon action. Hamlet’s role as a detective is defined through him seeking out to prove the crime before committing revenge. Hamlet detects the crime and thus becomes the avenging murderer, Shakespeare’s dramatic methods nevertheless validating his role as a tragic hero. Similarly, the binary opposition between the terms ‘detective’ and ‘murderer’ imply that Hamlet cannot transcend both concepts, as well as the archetypes being demonstrated by other significant characters within the play. Hamlet features a protagonist infamous for his procrastination of avenging the death of his father, but it could instead be interpreted that he plays the role of a detective figure, Shakespeare using dramatic setting in a conflicted society to detect the death of not only Hamlet’s father, but the death of his state, Denmark. Allusion to Biblical and classical stories, however, have witnessed the evolution of the detective figure centuries before this landmark text. “Hamlet is more the detective figure than he is the avenging murderer.” To what extent do you agree with this view?ĭetective fiction in the English-speaking world is considered to have begun in 1841 with the publication of Edgar Allen Poe’s The Murders in the Rue Morgue, featuring the first eccentric and brilliant fictional detective, C. I received 23/25 for this essay, which, in my opinion, is too kind, but demonstrates the development of my ideas and where it can take me in the future. Likewise, I think the counter argument points (about Laertes and Horatio), are good and could be utilised in future essays. Despite this, I still think it’s worth including on this blog, as it contains relevant analysis, context and intertextual links that bring up its grade according to the mark scheme. It is overly long, lacking in relevancy to the question, and has a poor, undefined structure with a lack of argument. This essay was written in the first term of my A2 year, and this shows.