"My parents deserve justice, and I cannot let that
pass...but justice is about more than revenge."
In Batman Begins, young Bruce Wayne's parents are murdered
right before his eyes by a criminal named Joe Chill. Chill's act of violence
changes Wayne's life forever and sets his journey to become Batman in motion.
However, when given the opportunity for revenge, Wayne chooses to forgo the
chance at vengeance. After physically beating Chill for what he did, Wayne does
not kill him, as it goes against his devotion to justice.
If only Hamlet were more like this "Batman" I've
been hearing about. Batman has every right to fight for revenge, but instead he
choses not to...an honorable man by all means, he seems "truly
incorruptible." (Nolan 2008). Hamlet had quite a lengthy speech about the
King, calling him a "remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless
villain," (2.2.509), followed by describing himself as "prompted to
revenge by heaven and hell," (2.2.512), none of which can be good. I suspect
he will continue on his quest to "catch the conscience of the King"
(2.2.534). What Hamlet does not realize is that this revenge is corrupting
him...as he becomes more bent on the idea of revenge, the moral ground beneath
his actions continues to erode. The supposed murder of Hamlet Sr. was unjust,
yes, but does Hamlet realize he will not be any "better" than
Claudius if he continues to pursue this course of action? I'm afraid he does
not. If Hamlet does prove that Claudius was the villain during his proposed
scheme, what purpose will killing him serve? If Hamlet truly believes that killing
Claudius will make himself better than the old King, he is mistaken. He will be brought back down to the same level as the King. Again I
say, if only Hamlet had the morals of the Batman. Hamlet considers himself to
be a "rogue and peasant slave" (2.2.475), which is very similar to
the situation Bruce Wayne was in when he decided to devote himself to justice
as the Batman. However, Hamlet seems to be doing the opposite...rather than
using his drive for vengeance to fuel his desire for justice, his desire for
revenge consumes him. I fear that "The spirit [Hamlet] has seen may be the
devil" (2.2.527), and "that [the] impossible anger [will] strangle
[his] grief, until the memory of
[his] loved ones is just poison in [his] veins" (Nolan 2005), and soon
afterwards, all will be lost in our Prince.
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