Why do people crave power, fortune and lust when all it brings is corruption, greed and/or death? In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, a character's greed for power and fortune leads to tragedy. First, Claudius kills King Hamlet and attempts to kill Prince Hamlet to keep the crown to rule Denmark. Second, Claudius prepares a plan that involves placing a poisonous pearl in the victor's cup of victory that Gertrude ultimately drinks. He also puts poison on the tip of the sword which ultimately kills Laertes in the duel. Finally, Claudius sends Rosencranz and Guildenstern to escort Hamlet to England to be secretly killed so that he can keep the crown. One might argue that Polonius' death was not the fault of Claudius' greed because Hamlet killed Polonius. However, Hamlet was obsessed with killing Claudius because he wanted to take revenge on his father. Claudius' greed for power is responsible for all the tragedies in the play Hamlet. First of all, jealousy is a form of greed that has resulted in multiple tragedies. Claudio 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, "By the sorcery of his wits with treacherous gifts—O evil spirit and gifts that have power so to seduce!—he has conquered with his shameful lust...the will of my most apparently virtuous queen ." 44-46) this shows that Claudius' actions stemmed from his greed. Secondly, when people are overwhelmed by the greed for power they are determined to do whatever it takes to get what they want. For example, when Claudius arranges the plan to poison Hamlet in the duel, he ends up killing Ger... middle of paper... is uncle Claudius for taking the throne, his mother, his money and the crown. So yes, Hamlet is obsessed with killing his Claudius. Claudius' greed for power is responsible for all the tragedies in the play Hamlet. Claudius was jealous of his brother and went through exstemes to gain power through greed. Relying on others was another tragedy. Polonius' death was not the fault of Claudius' greed. Hamlet killed Polonius. Don't assume because assuming leads to difficult situations. However, Hamlet was obsessed with killing Claudius because Claudius had killed his father and Hamlet wanted to seek revenge on his father. Keep your nose out of other people's business and find another solution to make your father proud. The conclusion is that Claudius craved power, fortune and lust, therefore leading to corruption, greed, jealousy and death..