Hamlet and Claudius speeches

Hamlet and Claudius’s speeches differ because of the language they use and how they are delivered. Their speech patterns are very similar, but their different diction uses illuminates their characteristics and shows the contrasting personalities they possess. An example is when both Hamlet and Claudius are speaking and their diction differs in the way that Claudius sounds more sophisticated with his replies while Hamlet speaks more simply and less elaborate. Claudius’s language, thus, reflects his personality because when he tries to complicate his sentences by using elaborate diction, his speeches lose the effect and point he is trying to make. Hamlet’s diction, however, resembles his straight-forward personality. Moreover, Hamlet’s language in his soliloquies emphasis his straight-forward emotions in his inner conflict, instead of publicly exclaiming them.