Some Hamlet-y stuff (or rather, Hamlet/Horatio-y stuff) for the LJ folks. First, fic - akatonbo linked me this, which was absolutely fitting and lovely, and anybody who hasn't read crazylittleme's Hamlet/Horatio fic should.

Second, genkitozuku insisted I post that essay I keep talking about, although I am still largely of the opinion that it kind of stucks. But for anyone who cares, I suppose ^^


Love and Loyalty: The Impact of Hamlet and Horatio's Relationship in Hamlet

At its most basic level, Shakespeare's Hamlet is the story of a man who has lost his father, and indeed, that relationship of father and son is one of the cores of the play. But at the same time, Hamlet and Horatio share a very close friendship as well. This relationship is arguably one of the strongest in the play, and is a key defining point for both of them as characters, as well as how the audience perceives them, and thus, the play itself. The relationship adds a layer of complexity that makes Hamlet, both play and character, so intriguing even today.

It becomes clear fairly early on that while this may be a strong relationship, it is not perceived in exactly the same light by both its participants. Hamlet refers to Horatio as his "good friend" (1.2.163), implying that he feels they are equals, despite the assumed difference in rank. Horatio, however, seems to feel that he is unworthy of this status in Hamlet's eyes, referring to himself as Hamlet's "poor servant ever." (1.2.162). This difference in perception between Hamlet and Horatio continues throughout the play. Even after Hamlet asks Horatio to stop being so formal, saying "I'll change that name with you" (1.2.162) when Horatio refers to himself as Hamlet's servant, Horatio continues to be formal. He only once refers to Hamlet by his given name, at the very beginning of the play to Marcellus and Barnardo, saying they should "impart what [they] have seen unto young Hamlet" (1.1.169-170). To Hamlet himself, the address is always "my lord" (1.2.175), with the occasional variations like "good my lord" (1.2.169) and "sweet lord" (3.2.43). Hamlet, on the other hand, is always informal with his friend - Horatio is merely "Horatio" (1.2.161).

This subservience and formality on Horatio's part is very telling of his character. He seems to take a sort of pleasure serving his lord, of being there "at [his] service." (3.2.43) at a few words' calling. His constant use of the possessive 'my' in referring to Hamlet can be seen as laying some sort of claim to him, that Hamlet is his to serve. This loyalty manifests itself to an extreme degree at the end of the play. As Hamlet lays dying from the poisoned sword-wound, Horatio proposes to join Hamlet in death by drinking the poisoned wine, saying "I am more an antique Roman than a Dane. Here's yet some liquor left." (5.2.320-321) It is the ultimate loyalty - serving his lord in death as well as in life. But perhaps more telling is what happens next. Hamlet manages to take the cup away from Horatio, and says

If thou didst ever hold me in thy heart,
Absent thee from felicity a while,
And in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain
To tell my story. (5.2.325-328)

And Horatio does, allowing his lord's wishes to override his own desires. Loyalty is Horatio's role in this relationship, and loyalty is Horatio himself - his character is defined almost exclusively through his interactions with Hamlet.

Hamlet's place in the relationship is different. Loyalty is what Horatio brings, but what Hamlet brings is trust. Throughout the course of the play, Horatio is the only one Hamlet is direct with, and the only one he reveals his true feelings and intentions to. Even before the ghost appears, complicating the plot, Hamlet is more open with how he feels about his father's death to Horatio than he is to anyone else but himself, letting his bitterness show as he says "Thrift, thrift, Horatio. The funeral baked meats did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables." He apparently shares what his father's ghost has told him, "the circumstance [...] of [his] father's death" (3.2.66-67) with Horatio, as well as his plans to confirm Claudius's guilt through the play. He even includes Horatio in these plans, asking him to "observe [his] uncle" (3.2.70) while the play goes on. He also tells Horatio of his plans concerning Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and how he has more or less sent them to their deaths, and even his own feelings on the matter - that "they are not near [his] conscience" (5.2.58). To see such openness from a man who to everyone else speaks in riddles, schemes behind their backs, pretends to be something he's likely not - the change is a surprising one.

Horatio also shares a special status with Hamlet, that is absent with nearly everyone in the play. Though it is little exercised except when it is in Hamlet's favor, he has the right, it seems to command Hamlet, who outranks him. He tries to keep Hamlet from the ghost in the first act, saying "Be ruled, you shall not go" (1.4.81). Then, in the graveyard, Horatio attempts to break up the fight between Hamlet and Laertes, saying to Hamlet "Good my lord, be quiet." (5.1.234) The only other two people who ever try to command Hamlet are Gertrude and Claudius, who outrank him, and thus must be grudgingly obeyed, and the ghost, who is Hamlet's father. Horatio also seems to have a sixth sense when it comes to Hamlet. He fears seeing the ghost will "draw [him] into madness" (1.4.73), and also has a bad feeling about the match between Hamlet and Laertes, telling Hamlet "You will lose, my lord." (5.2.183) Unfortunately, both of these predictions of Horatio's turn out to be true.

The interaction between Hamlet and Horatio, and what it shows about them as characters, lends a great deal of depth to the play that would be otherwise missing. Hamlet without Horatio would largely just be a revenge story. All of the negative qualities Hamlet exhibits in his interactions with other characters - the paranoia seen in the very beginning as he says "No, you will reveal it." (1.5.118) of the ghost, his possible insanity, his desire for revenge - would be there, still, without Horatio, but little else. It is when he is with Horatio that Hamlet's better side is seen, that which makes him such a fascinating, complex man. With Horatio, Hamlet shows he can trust others, and care about them. Horatio, in turn, shows how Hamlet can be a good person by the way he respects Hamlet's decisions - never tells him what to do regarding Hamlet's revenge, but merely cautions him when he senses harm will come to Hamlet - and by his unwavering loyalty to his lord. Horatio is one of the few main characters in the play without some scheme or wrongdoing on his hands, and the fact that he believes Hamlet is a good person says much about Hamlet's quality of character. Even at the very close of the play, as Hamlet has the death of at least five people on his hands, he still feels Hamlet has "a noble heart" (5.2.338) and hopes that "flights of angels sing [him] to [his] rest" (5.2.339).

It is not a bond of family that ties Hamlet and Horatio, nor one of marriage, nor anything else quite so legal or official. Yet this friendship, though unobtrusive, seasons the events of the entire play of Hamlet, and how the audience views and feels about them. It is a crucial element to making Hamlet the character that so many literary critics throughout the ages have spent so much time pondering and analyzing, questioning his sanity and his motives. This in turn is a crucial part of why the play is so fascinating and complex.


...I totally have more to post about, but I just want to sleep right now. So it'll have to wait until tomorrow, or possibly Wednesday, as I've got two finals tomorrow.