In "Hamlet", is Gertrude part of Claudius' plot to kill King Hamlet, o

Question:

In "Hamlet", is Gertrude part of Claudius' plot to kill King Hamlet, or is she an innocent victim?

I like both theories, and think they each have advantages and disadvantages. Convince me that one is better than the other.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Gertrude doesn't want to kill Hamlet. To begin with, neither does Claudius; he'd rather have him on side of course, as this would strengthen his position, and Gertrude loves Hamlet, her son. She is swayed by the charismatic Claudius, and really just wants them to get along. The reason that Claudius eventually plots against Hamlet, is that he sees him as a threat (which, of course he is), as he can't get him on side, and he keeps embarrassing Claudius publically, on two fronts: 1. his madness (which I happen to think is real) and 2. his threats, implications and obvious hostility towards Claudius, who is only interested in his own power, and completely without any familial feeling, just greed (remember his speech in Act 1! He could barely contain his glee and gloating over his new-found position: very inappropriate in such circumstances). I don't think Gertrude is entirely innocent - Shakespeare's main characters are far too human to be completely innocent (apart from Ophelia, but she's not really a main character). She's torn between the two men she loves (Hamlet and Claudius), and the grief and guilt she feels towards her late husband, which Hamlet plays on cruelly in the bedchamber scene. He forces her away from him in the most vile terms imaginable, so of course she then sees no way to reconcile the two, and clings to Claudius even more firmly for comfort, bitterly hurt by Hamlet's terrible, violent, degrading outburst. Hamlet is his own worst enemy, and he is the catalyst to Claudius' later actions, and Gertrude's inaction (feeling she's lost him already, which she has!). Gertrude is not a big bad monster, and whilst Claudius is a monstrous person, and a nasty piece of work, he doesn't plot against Hamlet, until Hamlet plots against him. Incidentally, Hamlet is a prince, so if you meant his father, it's never established that Claudius actually killed him - the ghost scene is Hamlet's moment of crisis, showing his struggle between the superstitious barbaric (vengeance) tradition of his people, and his enlightened, philosophical European education, which is at the heart of his psychological problems (combined with the loss of his father, his resentment of his uncle and mother, and his feelings of guilt and blame). Eat your heart out Freud!!

Hope this helps! It's a superb play!!