Why do people crave power, fortune, and lust when it all leads to corruption, greed, and/or death? In William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, a character's greed for power and fortune leads to tragedy. First, Claudius murders King Hamlet and attempts to kill Prince Hamlet in order to retain the crown to rule Denmark. Second, Claudius hatches a plan that involves putting a poisonous pearl in the winner's victory cup which Gertrude ends up drinking. He also puts poison on the tip of the sword which ends up killing Laertes in the duel. Finally, Claudius sends Rosencranz and Guildenstern to escort Hamlet to England to be secretly killed so he can keep the crown. It can be objected that Polonius' death was not the fault of Claudius's greed since Hamlet killed Polonius. However, Hamlet was obsessed with killing Claudius because he wanted revenge on his father. Claudius's greed for power is the root of all the tragedies in the play Hamlet. First of all, jealousy is a form of greed that has resulted in multiple tragedies. Claudius is jealous and wanted what his brother had. An example of this is when he killed King Hamlet because he wanted the crown, he wanted to rule the kingdom of Denmark, he wanted money and he wanted Gertrude. When the ghost says to Hamlet: "With the witchcraft of his mind and his treacherous gifts -- O wicked spirit and gifts which have the power to seduce thus! -- he has won by his shameful lust the will of my most queen virtuous."(iv) 44-46), this proves that Claudius' actions came from his greed. Second, when people are overcome by greed for power, they are determined to do whatever it takes to get what they want. For example, when Claudius sets up the plan to poison Hamlet during the duel, he ends up killing Ger...... middle of paper ...... it is his uncle, Claudius for having took the throne, his mother, his money and the crown. So yes, Hamlet is obsessed with the desire to kill his Claudius. Claudius's greed for power is the root of all the tragedies in the play Hamlet. Claudius was jealous of his brother and went through excesses in order to gain power through greed. Relying on others was another tragedy. Polonius' death was not the fault of Claudius's greed. Hamlet killed Polonius. Don't assume, because assuming leads to awkward situations. However, Hamlet was obsessed with killing Claudius because Claudius had killed his father and Hamlet wanted revenge on his father. Keep your nose out of other people's business and find another way to make your dad proud. The bottom line is that Claudius craved power, fortune and lust, which leads to corruption, greed, jealousy and death..