Hamlet #1

Hamlet desires to go away to study in Wittenberg but his mother and uncle are adamantly against it. Hamlet respects their opinion calmly and decides to stay. He does not seem to have a fiery temper, he is rational and thoughtful: "I shall in all my best obey you" (1.2.124). Hamlet could become enraged about their decision and point out his mother's rapid marriage but he does not. After their discussion Hamlet tells the audience about how he mourns for his father and that he believes his mother was married too quickly. Hamlet seems to believe that it is unfair/unjust that she was able to move on so soon after his father's death. Hamlet is a very respectful, educated and even tempered man. This is how he is characterized in the first scene. However, because this is a Shakespearean tragedy, I predict a slow devolution of these traits throughout the next five acts.