Use of Foils to Illustrate Deceit in Shakespeares Hamlet :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Use of Foils to Illustrate Deceit in Hamlet      Ã‚  Ã‚   In his play, Hamlet, William Shakespeare uses a variety of characters from different social backgrounds to paint an elaborate picture of deception. From the opening line of "Who's there?" the reader gets the impression that people are not what they seem in this play. The interrelationships between the royalty and people of the court are developed to illustrate the similarities and differences between the characters. Shakespeare skillfully reveals the deceptive nature of man and the ruin it causes through his use of foils.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Foils are integral to this play, because many of the devious plots are revealed to the reader through them. A foil is a secondary character that illuminates certain things about a primary character to the audience. The major character may reveal secrets, such as murderous plots or traps, or feelings, for example, a perspective on death or the love of another character. This can happen if the minor character is primarily a listener on stage. Another scenario is if two characters, major and minor, share similarities, but have distinct differences. These variations in personality will reveal something important about the main character. The "something important" could be a fatal flaw or a good point of their personality. Many foils are used in this play, but there are two important ones which happen to be for the same character.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Laertes is a foil for Hamlet and their deceptions are quite painful to all involved. Laertes and Hamlet are the same sex and approximately the same age.   They also both live abroad, France and Germany, respectively. Laertes and Hamlet both deeply love in different ways a maiden named Ophelia. Ophelia is Laertes' sister and receives advice from him about Hamlet. Hamlet proclaims his love and lust for Ophelia many times throughout the play. [Where in the play does he proclaim his lust for her?] For example, on page 659, [Citation] Polonius reads to the king and queen a love letter from Hamlet which states, "Doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love." [This says "love," not "lust"; shame on you.] Laertes tells Ophelia that Hamlet does not love her, that she is just a passing fancy to the prince. Hamlet and Laertes both have meddling parents. Polonius, Laertes' father, sends his servant, Reynaldo, to spy on his son.