Hamlet: Play within a Play - Essay Example

Before the start of the play within the play, Hamlet advises the other actors to act naturally and wants their act to look as real as possible so that the King may get entwined in it, which may amplify the call of his conscience (act 3, Scene 2). Like all Shakespearean plays, Hamlet elaborates the prime philosophy that juxtaposes ‘acting’ and ‘real life’ to provide greater insight into one’s surroundings. Hamlet constantly puts forth the question that every individual in the society is simply a character in a play and they all have specific scenes and roles to play.

This aspect of the drama deconstructs the fictional nature of the play, giving it a more realistic look as the plot takes a philosophical turn. It seems that Hamlet constantly suggests that he is also in a play, but he cannot seem to decipher his role in it. Hamlet is torn between exacting revenge on his father’s murderer and his conscience; he has to choose between two roles, which either act as the lawful son or the righteous man. The entire play is a combination of Meta-theatrics that truly makes everyone question their role in our real life, which is a metaphoric play and it incites one to find meaning to their existence.