Teaching Deception and Selfishness in Hamlet The tragedy of Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, illustrates the disintegration of not only a family but of a company. In a work full of greed, manipulation and dishonesty, the end result is the demise of all the main characters. ?It is clear that the theme of revenge is simply a vehicle used by Shakespeare to articulate... themes central to humanity: the relationships between father and son, mother and son, and Hamlet and his friends... youth and age? (Introduction to Hamlet). Aren't children to blame for their parents? errors. Because young people often learn through observation of the adults around them, today's society is hyperaware of ?example? which sets for the future generation; In Denmark, during Hamlet's time, there was little regard for the moral structure of the country's future leaders. Through the adults' conceit in Hamlet, are there moral repercussions for themselves and for the youth of Elsinore, who are unable to bear the burden of the adults? errors. The adults at the forefront of the play are Claudius, Hamlet's uncle/stepfather; Gertrude, her mother and Claudio? new wife; and Polonius, advisor to the king and father of Ophelia and Laertes. Claudius is pleased at the beginning of the play because he seems to have gotten away with killing King Hamlet, Gertrude's late husband and Hamlet's father, in order to secure the title of King and woo Gertrude. He committed selfish and murderous acts that, according to the belief of the time, would damn his soul. Indeed, in a soliloquy in Act III, Scene III, he admits to himself that he feels no remorse for what he has done, saying, “But, oh, what form of prayer can serve my turn…Am I still possessed? " of those effects for which I committed murder: my crown, my ambition and my queen? (lines 54-58). The deception committed by Claudius places young Hamlet with the responsibility of avenging his father's death, which he proves incapable of accomplishing until the end of the play, despite several attempts to find the courage. Claudius also turns Hamlet's friends against him by attempting to use Guildenstern and Rosencrantz as spies. Polonius, the king's advisor, is a manipulative character intent on obtaining the king's approval. His solutions to the problems surrounding the royal family involve espionage and lying as a means to an end. This is evident in Act III, Scene I, lines 49-51, when Polonius instructs Ophelia on how to behave while he and the king spy on Hamlet..