The significance of religion in Hamlet

The tragedy Hamlet is one of the most important of Shakespeare’s plays published and performed as part of the rainbow of world literature. This study investigates the role of religion in Hamlet, and attempts to provide a new interpretation to understand how religious beliefs influence the characters’ motives. Text analysis shows Hamlet’s social surroundings are receptive to metaphysical beliefs. Hamlet is fundamentally more religious than his religious community; therefore, he seems reluctant to take a position on his father's murderer because of his fearing to be a sinner. The paper concludes that, although Christianity is the main influence on Hamlet, the playwright also uses Hellenic religious symbols for purely rhetorical purposes. Hamlet, having suffered a psychological shock, re-evaluated events in light of his religious views. Even if the ghost’s appearance is the result of mental illness caused by the trauma of his mother's marriage to his uncle and the story of killing his father is imagined, Hamlet's attitudes and behavior are religiously based. Hamlet reveals how Shakespeare uses rhetoric to create a religious message about the church and re-create the values of right and wrong according to his own view, so he punishes sinners by creating disastrous endings.   Key words: Hamlet, Shakespeare, religion, Christianity, hesitation, revenge, Hamlet's shock, Hamlet's faith.