Beginning of Essay
It is reasonable to wonder what Shakespeare had in mind while writing Hamlet. After all, Shakespeare wasn't a philosopher or historian, or even a literary critic. He was a playwright. He didn't leave us critical essays examining his work. It is left to us to exami ....

Middle of Essay
.... and Goneril who receive everything at his hands and betray him. These themes of misplaced love and filial betrayal are mirrored in the subplot of the play, the relationship between the Earl of Gloster and his two sons, Edmund, who is supported and approved by Gloster and betrays him, and Edgar, who unjustly becomes a fugitive from his father's wrath. The mirror is whole. In it we view Cordelia's reflection and see Edgar, while Regan's and Goneril's reflections, which are of one face, show us Edmund. In the main plot ofHamlet, Hamlet's father has been murdered. Hamlet swears revenge, but feign's madness and delays. In the subplot, the chamberlain ....