Abstract
M.A. (English)
This study applies st Thomas Aquinas's principles of love
to William Shakespeare's Hamlet in order to establish the
moral bases of the causes and effects of the actions of the
characters in the play. The dissertation is divided into
two parts comprising six chapters. The first part, chapter
one, establishes the availability of st Thomas's precepts
in the English Renaissance. The second part, comprising
chapters two to six, applies st Thomas's principles
relating to charitable and concupiscent love to the
characters in the play.
st Thomas's philosophy exerted a pervasive influence in
the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and was accessible to
educated circles in England. In view of this influence, it
is possible that Shakespeare was influenced by Thomist
thought when he wrote Hamlet.
In this study, the characters are grouped in terms of the
Thomist principles of love that they exemplify in Hamlet,
with Horatio providing a moral norm, Claudius being the
epitome of evil, and the central character, Hamlet, being
a source of moral ambiguity. The cast of supporting
characters reflects the nuances of good and evil in the
play.
The study concludes that, while Shakespeare's characters
are governed by established Thomist principles, the
translation of moral abstracts into practice elicits moral
dilemmas that are difficult to resolve.