In Act I of Shakespeare's classic play, Hamlet, Polonius is introduced first as a father. Throughout the play, nearly every major conflict is driven by Polonius's constant forays involving his misguided overprotectiveness of his children. Unfortunately, he chooses to use deceit and spying in order to benefit for his children. Due to his constant use of subterfuge, the character Polonius is one of the play's best examples of one of its major themes: the contrast between appearance and reality. Polonius's protectiveness of and devotion to his children are a small dot of light in his otherwise dark and scheming personality.

In life, as in literature, first impressions go a long way towards shaping our opinions of a person. Therefore, it is safe to assume that Shakespeare had a deep meaning behind his introduction of Polonius. Polonius is first introduced to the audience as a well-loved, single father of...