"To be, or not to be: that is the question:" or is it? This is just one of the many questions surrounding William Shakespeare's famous tragedy Hamlet. A play of deception and devilish plots against one's own family and close friends. Perhaps a more suitable question surrounding all this corruption would be, is something truly rotten in the state of Denmark? Many examples of this are demonstrated through Claudius' shrewd manner of ruling, Gertrude's tendency to follow her heart not her head, and Polonius' poor fathering skills.

The first sign of corruption was displayed through Gertrude's light attitude towards her husband's death. In Act I, Scene 2 lines 68-73 in a conversation with her son Hamlet she tells him "Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted colour off ...all that live must die, passing through nature to eternity." She was telling Hamlet not to mourn his father's death, people die and...