Corruption Of The Nation, The Community, And The Individual

Izzy Rael November 16, 2015 English 10-X Corruption of the Nation, the Community, and the Individual â€Å"Corruption is the enemy of development, and of good governance. It must be got rid of,† says Pratibha Patil, India’s 12th president. Corruption within society hinders its ability to properly function and affects mankind. While it is in effect, corruption will continue to tarnish society’s mores. In Hamlet, Shakespeare uses the motifs of disease and decay to exhibit that moral corruption destroys society. When a leader is corrupt, his country is linked to his moral deterioration, thus the state deteriorates as he does. Hamlet, alone, ponders the current condition of Denmark. After his father has died, his uncle, Claudius,†¦show more content†¦In turn, Claudius’ corruption will disperse throughout Denmark and will destroy and pollute the state. Hamlet says that the weeds of this garden are â€Å"rank and gross†. These wild and unwanted plants smell foul and are repulsive to think of. King Claudius, symbolized by weeds, is wicked and dishonest to the people of Denmark; his dishonesty will socially mutilate his state. The audience soon recognizes the prominent effect of Claudius’ corruption when mysterious events occur in Denmark. After seeing the ghost of Old Hamlet, Marcellus tells Horatio that there is something amiss in Denmark. He says, â€Å"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark† (I.v.100). The word â€Å"rotten† is associated with decomposition; thus when Horatio describes this defect as â€Å"rotten†, he demonstrates that there is a disease that is deteriorating Denmark from the inside out. This corrupt â€Å"something† that Horatio speaks of has transpired out of Claudius’ rise to power. Since Claudius has become king, the natural order of Denmark has disrupted; the dead are among the living– Old Hamlet’s ghost lurks. As long as Claudius is in rule, his immorality will send Denmark to a doomed and destined fate. Individuals who are surrounded by the moral decay of others becomes less virtuous themselves. Hamlet forces Gertrude to see, â€Å". . .such black and grainà ©d spots / As will not leave their tinct† (III.iv.90-93) within herself. Gertrude uses the metaphor â€Å"black and