Hamlet's Level of Strategy

Over the course of reading Hamlet, it can be confusing whether or not Hamlet was a good or terrible strategist. During Hamlet, we see that he isn't exactly a swell guy. Sure, everyone he wants dead ends up dead, but at what cost? Let's look at three characteristics of Hamlet to see if he was a good strategist. For reference, I will use multiple quotes from a genius Chinese general, Sun Tzu.

First, Hamlet's mindset. it doesn't matter what you're doing, mindset is crucial to the end result of your situation. Well, Hamlet was definitely determined to kill the king, but his mindset... needed some work, to say the least. First of all, he wasn't willing to change. When he saw that his friends were dying because of his quest, he continued blindly, in anger and recklessness. Secondly, he based his actions off his emotions. This was a huge mistake on his part, because this caused him to use unorthodox methods to get his way and kill people it wasn't really necessary to kill.

Next, he used tactics without strategy. This sentence can be a little confusing to some people, so let me explain. Tactics are your action, what you do and where you do it. Strategy is why you do it and which tactic you will use. Hamlet used tactics, but never strategy. He recklessly killed Polonius for no apparent reason, and when Polonius's daughter died by possible suicide, Hamlet never stopped to think his tactics were wrong at all. This is the mark of a poor leader and a poor strategist.

Lastly, Hamlet didn't complete his directive of killing the king when he should have. The king was sitting quietly in his room, praying for forgiveness of his sins. Hamlet was about to avenge his father, when something struck him. If he killed the king now, the king would go to heaven! Well, Hamlet couldn't have that. Out of foolishness and spite, Hamlet waited until the king was much less vunerable to strike, leading to Hamlet's death.

If Hamlet had killed the king at a more decisive time, Hamlet would have survived and still successfully completed his mission. Hamlet forgot that his father's ghost asked him to avenge his death carefully, and his father's ghost would not have wanted Hamlet to die as well. Overall, Hamlet was a terrible strategist. His passions ran roughshod over his intelligence, at least towards the end of the book.