William Shakespeare's famous philosophical work, Hamlet, embodies the tragedy of revenge; the characters in the play are forced to act with vengeance only to cause a bloody and shocking. The most obvious example of revenge in the play is that of Hamlet against Claudius who becomes the corrupt king of Denmark after killing Hamlet's father. Spurred on by the ghost of the deceased king, Hamlet oscillates between adamant moods and uncertainties in his attempt to repay his father's life, a task that proves complicated. Christian doctrine plays a key role in the play as it pervades the lives of Hamlet and the other revenge seekers and forces them to reconcile their actions with their moral obligations, linking together the idea of ​​harmful revenge and the final Christian tragedy of the damnation. The revenge that serves as the central plot of the play is brought to light when a ghost, presumably that of Hamlet's father, appears to Hamlet. Although Hamlet has been warned of the apparition's resemblance to the late Danish king, upon seeing it he proclaims, "Angels and ministers of grace defend us!" (1.4.39) Hamlet, his best friend Horatio and the guard Marcellus are all aware that the ghost may be an evil spirit from hell trying to destroy their souls as ghosts can engage in the practice of telling their victims a truth in order to establish their credibility and, therefore, more easily orchestrate against the person's best intentions (Spinrad 8). Horatio asks the ghost, by heaven's justice, to speak, and when he departs, he comments that “it began as a guilty thing / Upon a terrible summons” (1.1.154–55). Despite his religious hesitation towards its authenticity, Hamlet is persuaded by... middle of paper ......ss in his judgment of justice, however, Hamlet's revenge against Claudius for the murder of his father ends with his own death and damnation at the hands of the same mastermind, a true tragedy. Works Cited Hughes, Geoffrey. "The Tragedy of an Avenger's Loss of Conscience, a Study of Hamlet." English Studies 57.5 (1976): 395. Literary Reference Center Plus. Network. 17 April 2014. Kastan, David Scott. "'His fellow in his mirror': Hamlet and the imitation of revenge." Shakespeare Studies 19.(1987): 111. Literary Reference Center Plus. Network. April 17, 2014. Moore, Peter R. “Hamlet and the Two-Witness Rule.” Notes & Queries 44.4 (1997): 498. Literary Reference Center Plus. Network. April 17, 2014. Spinrad, Phoebe S. "The Sparrow's Fall and the Map of Hamlet's Mind." Modern Philology 102.4 (2005): 453-477. Literary reference center Plus. Rete. 17 April. 2014.