Hamlet: the gravedigger and the inevitability of death From the appearance of the ghost at the beginning of the play to its bloody conclusion, Hamlet is pervaded by the concept of death. What better site for a comic interlude than a cemetery? However, this scene isn't simply a bit of comic relief. Hamlet's encounter with the gravedigger serves as a forum for Shakespeare to process the nature of death and as a turning point in Hamlet's character. The structure and changing atmosphere of the encounter serve to bring Hamlet and the audience closer to the realization that death is inevitable and universal. This meeting is essential to the plot, as it involves Hamlet's return from England and sets the stage for Hamlet's discovery. of Ophelia's death. It takes Hamlet from the state in which he could easily arrange the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to one in which he can feel deep grief over the loss of Ophelia. It also grants him a better perspective on the nature of death and his own destiny. Its strong focus on death further serves to prepare the audience for the play's conclusion. Up to this point, Hamlet has been an active agent in attempting to fulfill his destiny as prescribed by his father's ghost. His actions were disorganized and his goal continually foiled. For example, his attempt to control the situation makes him incapable of killing Claudius while he is at prayer, since Hamlet wishes to manipulate the circumstances of Claudius' death so that he "occupies himself with some deed that has no taste in it " (III, iv, 91-2). The lesson of the cemetery is that death is inevitable, not artificial. Having learned this lesson, Hamlet becomes a more passive agent of his own fate, and the plot resolves itself. The......middle of paper......and his destiny will happen. Rather, "availability is everything" and he just needs to "let himself be" (V, i, 225; 227). To the famous question "to be or not to be" he responded with the simple phrase "let it be" (III, i, 56; V, i, 227). The meeting with the gravedigger is clearly a turning point for Hamlet in which he realizes the two truths that are the theme of the play: death is inevitable; death is universal. By thus dramatizing the theme and placing a statement of it on the lips of the protagonist, Shakespeare conveys this message to the audience. The main character's statement of Hamlet's theme is confirmed in his subsequent speeches and actions, resulting in the restoration of order that is the conclusion of a Shakespearean tragedy. Works Cited: Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of Hamlet. approx. 1600-1601. Ed. Edoardo Hubler. A classic with a seal. New York: Penguin Publishers,1963.