" (2.2.608-610) Hamlet does not respond decisively to his father's orders, as Fortinbras would, and in Act IV Hamlet explains his delay, saying: .
Rightly to be great.
Is not to stir without great argument,.
But greatly to find quarrel in a straw.
When honor's at the stake. (4.4.53-56).
In other words, Hamlet states that he can't act until he is certain, until the grounds are "more relative." The source of his reluctance to act is his conscience, the commanding element of his knowledge and judgment in evaluating actions already done or in appraising plans of actions in the future. According to the etymology of the word itself, the junction of con with scientia forms conscientia which means a "knowledge with." "Conscience unites reason, moral obligation, and fear in ways which would have seemed self-evident to an audience in 1600 .Going well beyond a guilty feeling or revelation of guilt, it points forward as well as backward in time, and provides guidance to action" (Frye 179). Professor Roland Frye's conclusions support the argument that a morally conscientious man is not doomed to inaction, but impelled to a slowness to action when weighing that actions good or evil results. When confronted by a moral dilemma, such as what suicide presents, Hamlet responds by deliberation, by first evaluating the morality involved, which results in his delay of action but not a lack of it:.
.
O! that this too too solid flesh would melt,.
Thaw and resolve itself into a dew;.
Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd.
His canon 'gainst self-slaughter! O God! God!.
How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable.
Seem to me all the uses of this world. (1.2.129-134).
Depressed by his father's death and distraught by his mother's impure remarriage, Hamlet wishes that he could become nothing more than a vapor and simply vanish. He contemplates suicide, but his conscience reminds him of the moral prohibition against suicide, and he wishes that God's prohibition of suicide would disappear, too.
Hamlet - The Anti-Coward An extended question that arises in Hamlet is: why is there a delay in the actions of the Prince? ... Remember me Hamlet: So, uncle, there you are. ... This scene again shows Hamlet as the thorough thinker, not a coward. The first three acts of Hamlet bring Hamlet much grief and traumatic experiences that most people could not face. ... Hamlet is a hero. ...
Hamlet then calls himself a coward for his inability to say anything in defense of his father. "Am I a coward"(II, ii, 578)? ... Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, And thus the native hue of resolution Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought. ... Hamlet's conscience is making him a coward by not allowing him to kill Claudius without knowing that he is justified without a doubt. ... His inaction, for which he considers himself a coward, is revealed to be derived from a deeper source of morality and goodness. ...
Hamlet then calls himself a coward for his inability to say anything in defense of his father. "Am I a coward"(II, ii, 578)? ... Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, And thus the native hue of resolution Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought. ... Hamlet's conscience is making him a coward by not allowing him to kill Claudius without knowing that he is justified without a doubt. ... His inaction, for which he considers himself a coward, is revealed to be derived from a deeper source of morality and goodness. ...
But that isn't good enough for Hamlet. ... In the third soliloquy, Hamlet admits to the audience he is a coward; "What an ass am I!" ... Hamlet poses the question "To be or not to be." ... "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all." The audience in hearing these words from Hamlet sees that Hamlet is incapable of revenge. ...
Hamlet is a tragedy about a man that can't make up his mind. ... There are a number of reasons for Hamlet's procrastination. ... So Hamlet, seeking for revenge was trapped in a dilemma. ... However, after a deep and meaningful conversation with the players, Hamlet finally realises that he has been a coward for procrastinating revenge. ... Am I a coward?" ...
The soliloquies performed by Hamlet help unfold what Hamlet's feelings and thoughts are really about. Without these soliloquies understanding Hamlet would be very hard, and there would be alot of guessing about what Hamlet is really about. ... Throughout the soliloquy Hamlet continues to put himself down as he questions whether he is coward enough to be unable to avenge the death of his Father: "Am I a coward?" ... Is Hamlet too afraid to take action? ... "This analysis of himself as a coward is one to which Hamlet no more returns, at least not in despair at his own insufficiency. ...
King Claudius in Shakespeare's play Hamlet resembles parents of today, and Hamlet represents teenagers of today. ... These lines illustrate how Hamlet views the world as hopeless because humans are afraid of what will happen in the afterlife, thus making humans cowards. It is the conscience that makes man cowards, the deep examination of life that overlaps the will and courage to do something about life. ... Since Hamlet had not killed King Claudius as soon as possible, he is seen as the coward. ... As wise and noble Hamlet can be, his encounter with Queen Gertrude further reveals ...
Hamlet's Soliloquies Throughout this play, Hamlet likes to engage in soliloquies to voice his innermost thoughts and conflicts. ... However, Hamlet himself feels weak in comparison. He calls himself a coward and instead identifies more with a "john-a-dreams, unpregnant of cause" (l. 595) then to the player's rendition of the revengeful Pyrrhus. ... He finally realized that he has been a coward all this time. ... He chastised himself a coward, but at the same time he had no intention of taking the direct action. ...
(Act 1, Scene 2, lines 139-141) Hamlet is also very sensitive and emotional. ... One could possibly argue that Hamlet is a coward and he is putting off killing his uncle, but this is not the case. Hamlet's plan to kill Claudius is well thought out, and not the work of a madman or a coward. ... Although the murder is accidental, Hamlet is not at all remorseful. ... This is the sort of revenge that Hamlet wishes to have. ...
