The Story of Hamlet in HamletShakespeare's tragedy, Hamlet, has an exceptional character, namely the protagonist Hamlet. His character is so complex that this essay will barely present an adequate representation of his character. John Russell Brown in "Soliloquies and Other Wordplay Let the Audience Share Some of Hamlet's Thoughts" explains the interplay of dialogue, soliloquies, and narrative in the role of Hamlet: Hamlet is one of Shakespeare's most complex characters, and a series of soliloquies is just one way that encourages the audience to enter imaginatively into his very personal and frightening situation. The narrative of the play is managed so that a prolonged back-and-forth chase is sustained between him and the king, during which the audience knows more than either and thus anticipates the events . Interacting with Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Polonius, and perhaps with Claudius, Gertrude, and Ophelia, Hamlet has asides to draw attention to what dialogue cannot express (55-56). Marchette Chute describes the opening scene of the drama: "For two nights in succession, as the bell struck one o'clock, a ghost appeared on the battlements, a figure clad in full armor and with a face similar to that of the late king of Denmark, Hamlet's father. [. . .] The hour comes and the ghost walks” (35). Horatio and Marcellus emerge from the walls of Elsinore with the intention of seeking Hamlet's help. There is a court social gathering, where Claudius pays homage to the memory of his deceased brother, the former king, and then conducts some business. Hamlet is there dressed in black, the color of mourning, for his deceased father. His... middle of paper... World of Hamlet. Yale Review. flight. 41 (1952) p. 502-23. Rep. in Shakespeare: Modern Essays in Criticism. Rev. Ed. Leonard F. Dean. New York: University of Oxford P., 1967. Rosenberg, Marvin. “Laertes: an impulsive but serious young aristocrat.” Readings on Hamlet. Ed. Don Nardo. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1999. Rpt. from The Masks of Hamlet. Newark, NJ: Univ. of Delaware P., 1992. Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of Hamlet, prince of Denmark. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 1995. http://www.chemicool.com/Shakespeare/hamlet/full.html No line nos Wright, Louis B. and Virginia A. LaMar. “Hamlet: a man who thinks before he acts.” Readings on Hamlet. Ed. Don Nardo. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1999. Rpt. from The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Ed. Louis B. Wright and Virginia A. LaMar. N.p. : Paperbacks, 1958.