Pretending

There is a lot of pretending going on in this play. Hamlet acting mad, tha actors acting out the murder, the king acting innocent, and so on. Shakespeare is trying to represent all of the acting that goes on in real life, people pretending to be who they really aren't just to conform into the society they live in. Shakespeare doesn't believe in this. First of all, all of the fake characters end up dead. Horatio who has been true doesn't die. We see that even if short gains are made by covering oneself up it isn't worth in the end. Also, most conspicuous is Polonius message to Laretes "be true to thine ownself". A prominent theme that Shakespeare reinforces throughout the play. The question Hamlet askx, "To be or not to be" is a question that each of must answer everyday. all of the characters face this question and some chosae truth and some chose false.
Additionally, I think the use of actors in the play make the play seem more real to the audience. It connects them with the characters because they can say, hey, thery're watching a play just like I am, this could happen in my life. Because Shakespeare makes his play seem more realistic to the viewers, his themes resonate all the stronger. We can see a little bits of ourselves in each of the characters and that causes us to reevalueate them and ourselves. However, he also uses royalty to paint a more intense drama and keep a little separation between entertainment and real life. I liked this play because of the drama and action portrayed by conflict between the true and fake characters.