Horatio (character)

Horatio (character)

Horatio is a character from William Shakespeare's play "Hamlet". A friend of Prince Hamlet from Wittenberg University, Horatio's origins are unknown, though he is evidently poor, [(III.ii.58-61)] and was present on the battlefield when Hamlet's father defeated 'the ambitious Norway'. [(I.i.61)] Horatio is evidently not directly involved in the intrigue at the Danish court; thus, he makes a good foil or sounding board for Hamlet. He is often not identified as any specific court position, but simply as "friend to Hamlet".

Character analysis

Horatio is Hamlet's most trusted friend, to whom Hamlet reveals all his plans. Several times Hamlet swears his affection to Horatio in a way he does for no other character. [III.ii.61-3. "Since my dear soul was mistress of her choice / And could of men distinguish, her election / Hath sealed thee for herself."] Horatio swears himself to secrecy about the ghost and Hamlet's pretense of madness, [I.v] and conspires with Hamlet to prove Claudius's guilt in the mousetrap play. [III.ii] He is the first to know of Hamlet's return from England, and is with him when he learns of Ophelia's death. Not only is Horatio loyal and supportive, but he is also rational. The guards in the opening scene call upon Horatio to bear witness to the presence of the ghost, trusting in his unbiased opinion. Without proof, Horatio is skeptical of the ghost: "Horatio says 'tis but our fantasy,/ And will not let belief take hold of him." [Marcellus, I.i.23-24] The fact that Horatio sees the ghost has been used to refute the theory that the ghost is a figment of Hamlet's imagination.

At the end of the play, Horatio proposes to finish off the poisoned drink which was intended for Hamlet, saying that he is 'more an antique Roman than a Dane', but the dying prince wrestles the cup away from him and bids Horatio to live, help put things right in Denmark; "If thou didst ever hold me in thy heart, / Absent thee from felicity a while, / And in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain / To tell my story." Hamlet's last request creates an interesting parallel between the name "Horatio" and the Latin "orator", meaning "speaker".

Horatio is present through most of the major scenes of the play, but Hamlet is usually the only person to acknowledge that he is present; when other characters address him, they are almost always telling him to leave. He is often in scenes that are usually remembered as soliloquies, such as Hamlet's famous scene with the skull he calls 'Yorick'. Horatio is also present during the mousetrap play, the discovery of Ophelia's madness, Hamlet's display at Ophelia's grave, and the all-important final scene. He is the only major main character to have survived all the way to the end of the play.

In performance, the part of Horatio is the only part in the play that can't be doubled, i.e. that can't be played by an actor who also plays another character, since he is present in scenes involving nearly every character.

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Horatio — may refer to:* Horatio (character), a fictional character in the Shakespearean play Hamlet * Horatius Cocles, the legendary Roman defender of the Pons Sublicius bridge * Horace (65 BC – 8 BC), Roman poet * Horatio, Arkansas, a US cityHoratio is… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Weisfeld — Horatio (Ray) Weisfeld is an influential writer and editor who co founded two mass market comics magazines and developed other media properties. Early Years In Business/Publishing As a teenager, Weisfeld made his living by speculating on the 1st… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Hornblower — Admiral of the Fleet Horatio Hornblower, 1st Baron Hornblower, GCB, is a fictional protagonist of a series of novels by C. S. Forester, and later the subject of films and television programs. Ernest Hemingway is quoted as saying, I recommend… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Caine — CSI character csi serie = CSI: Miami image size = 180px caption = color = #FFFF99 name = Horatio Caine born = birth date and age|1960|4|7 city = Miami Dade job = CSI rank = Lieutenant position = Crime Lab Supervisor family = Kyle Harmon (son)… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Hornblower — noun a fictional English admiral during the Napoleonic Wars in novels written by C. S. Forester • Syn: ↑Captain Horatio Hornblower • Instance Hypernyms: ↑fictional character, ↑fictitious character, ↑character * * * Horatio …   Useful english dictionary

  • Horatio Alger, Jr. — Infobox Writer name = Horatio Alger, Jr. pseudonym = birthdate = birth date|1832|1|13 birthplace Chelsea, Massachusetts, United States deathdate = death date and age|1899|7|18|1832|1|13|df=yes deathplace = Natick, Massachusetts occupation =… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Seymour — Infobox Governor name=Horatio Seymour order=18th office=Governor of New York term start=January 1, 1853 term end=December 31, 1854 lieutenant=Sanford E. Church predecessor=Washington Hunt successor=Myron H. Clark term start2 = January 1, 1863… …   Wikipedia

  • Horatio Bridge — Commodore Horatio Bridge (1806 1893) was a United States Naval officer who, as Chief of the Bureau of Provisions, served for many years as head of the Navy s supply organization. Appointed by his former college mate, President Franklin Pierce,… …   Wikipedia

  • fictional character — noun an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story) she is the main character in the novel • Syn: ↑fictitious character, ↑character • Hypernyms: ↑imaginary being, ↑imaginary creature …   Useful english dictionary

  • fictitious character — noun an imaginary person represented in a work of fiction (play or film or story) she is the main character in the novel • Syn: ↑fictional character, ↑character • Hypernyms: ↑imaginary being, ↑imaginary creature • …   Useful english dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”