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Towards the end, when Hamlet is dying, Horatio also wants to drink that poisoned wine but Hamlet entrusts him with a greater responsibility of putting things in order and tells the complete story to the world. He is a true friend because his goodness remains uncorrupted in such a corrupt world shown in the play. Hamlet trusts him completely which is evident when together they swear before the ghost to keep that event as a secret. They studied together at Wittenberg University so it shows his close familiarity with him. Horatio, a character in the play Hamlet is a friend to the protagonist Hamlet. He has a great pursuing capacity which he shows while luring Laertes into his plan for killing Hamlet by betrayal in a fencing match. His first crime which is betraying his brother is the act which can be considered as the source of the whole plot’s crimes. Shakespeare uses the Queens character as an example of a betrayal of loyalty and the redemption of that betrayal.His villainy is complicated further with an almost Hamlet-like self-awareness but his morals are completely rotten. Her last thoughts are of Hamlet and her last action before she dies is to call out and warn him of the poisoned drink. Her redemption of her betrayal is finalized with her death. The King asked her why Hamlet is crazy and she tells him what Hamlet told her to say during their meeting.
![characters in hamlet characters in hamlet](https://www.bbc.co.uk/staticarchive/0cf6d9ee675087c87dec3ede0ca40878433a58d3.jpg)
The indicator that her loyalty has shifted from Claudius to Hamlet is her conversation with the king in 4.1. It is after this meeting with Hamlet that she starts to shift her loyalty to him.
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She feels guilty for what she did and says to Hamlet: “O Hamlet, speak no more! / Thou turn’st my eyes into my very soul, / and there I see such black and grained spots / as will not leave their tinct” (3.4.99-103). Once Hamlet explains what she did she understands that she had betrayed him by being loyal to Claudius rather than to him. At first she doesn’t understand why Hamlet is so angry with and why he is being so cruel. It is not until 3.4 during her meeting with Hamlet that she realizes her betrayal. She stands by while Claudius verbally abuses Hamlet and continually chooses to defend and support Claudius over Hamlet. Her loyalty is not with her son but with him. Ophelia who is Hamlets love goes mad with grief over her fathers death, Laertes returns from France in a fit of rage, and Claudius finally plots the. The Queen betrays her son by marrying Claudius. Shakespeare uses the Queen to show people that it is possible for a person who has betrayed their loyalty and friendship to someone to redeem themselves. Shakespeare shows that some people’s loyalty and friendship may be betrayed and then regained, or that it can be shallow and easily bought, or that it will be so strong it will last through anything. He uses the Queen, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and Horatio to show the different levels and types of friendship and loyalty. Although the characters are secondary to the play, their loyalty and friendship, or lack of, have an effect on the main character, Hamlet. The reader gains new perspective on Hamlets character. Distinct contrasts are created through the usage of the plays minor characters. They serve as narrators for events that occurred outside the immediate play: the Danes ghost. In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare uses the secondary characters to show the theme of loyalty and friendship. Minor characters play a very crucial role in Shakespears Hamlet.