Comparative Essay on the representation of individuality
in Hamlet and Don Quixote
By: Ma.Gemarje K. Villanueva
For some, Hamlet and Don Quixote are considered comedy, but for me,
it’s a story with tragic events. Both of these stories are men who deal with
their own minds descent into madness, but still there are differences
between the two. One is more like dark tragedy that shows how a person’s
madness can all those that surrounds them, while the other one is somewhat
light comedy about the epic adventure of an insane an confused man.
Hamlet is written by the famous writer, Shakespeare. It as tragic play
that uses different themes such as love, death, revenge, and mental health.
The play revolves around the character, Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark. After
his father’s death, his uncle Claudio marry his mother and the throne to
himself. He struggles about his feeling and the urge to avenge his father’s
death who was killed by his uncle. While the story’s famous line is “to be or
not to be” it just simply highlights his self conflict and the search for
meaning.
On the other hand, Don Quixote is about a story of a man that strongly
believes that he is knight on a mission. He went out for various adventures
that is base on his own dreams and imaginations. Compared to Hamlet which
is more on the serious part, Don Quixote is more on the hopeful side that
follows what he believes. This story is full of humor and uses theme such as
Idealism which blinds him to reality. He channels his love of chivalrous tales
into a quest to do similarly heroic acts, but fails to see his blind spots or
mistakes. He also manipulates and harms others unintentionally.
Both Hamlet and Don Quixote teaches us to be who we are and to be
true to our selves. While both stories are opposites in regards to how the
world treats their madness and the events that transpire because of them.
