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Revenge as a main in theme in Hamlet Someone once stated, “Revenge proves its own executioner”. It has caused the downfall of many people throughout history, for its consuming nature causes one to act recklessly through anger rather than reason. In Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy, Hamlet, this dominant theme of revenge saturates the play and is the manipulative influence behind the actions that make the play a tragedy. In discussing Hamlet and its themes, Patrick Cruttwell describes Hamlet as being “…almost nothing but an embodiment of revenge” (“Patrick” 235), which ends in the deaths of almost everyone involved. Usually, revenge is seen as an easily rationalized emotion; one turn deserves another. On paper, it seems a simple and easy task to carry out, but the actions of Hamlet and the problems that arise as he attempts to avenge his father’s murder prove otherwise. The ghost of Hamlet’s father, the old King, introduces the first ideas of vengeance into Hamlet’s mind. The ghost tells Hamlet that he was wrongfully killed at the hands of his traitorous brother, the present King Claudius. He urges Hamlet that he must take revenge for his murder and kill Claudius, and says, “If thou didst ever thy fath