SOURCE: Hallett, Charles A., and Elaine S. Hallett. “Hamlet.” In The Revenger's Madness: A Study of Revenge Tragedy Motifs, pp. 181-222. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1980.

In the following essay, the Halletts offer a detailed appraisal of Hamlet in terms of Shakespeare's merger of the traditional revenge tragedy form with his broader vision of the tragic consequences of the search for truth. Emphasizing that the play and its protagonists represent unique expressions of this form, the critics demonstrate Shakespeare's refinements and alterations of a number of revenge conventions.

'Tis now the very witching time of night, When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out Contagion to this world. Now could I drink hot blood, And do such bitter business as the day Would quake to look on. 

Shakespeare, Hamlet

To discuss Hamlet solely in terms of revenge is somewhat like attending to the trellis rather than the rosebush...