Throughout
the ages, procrastination has been the equivalent of poor work ethics,
irresponsible habits, and a reflection of the student’s way of life. Nobody
likes to live with a person that has to be constantly reminded that they have
to turn this or that in or else they won’t do it. But interestingly so, in the article called Viewpoint: why do we procrastinate so much? the author says that the very reason why
Hamlet is a novel people are so engaged to, is because that crippling
indecision Prince Hamlet sticks with throughout the story is something we can
all relate to.
Prince
Hamlet is a character that carries indecision throughout the story, and that
all the meaning towards the end of his life was to commit a murder. His eternal
indecision, mixed with his determination are, according to the author of this
article, the two elements that make a character as boring as Hamlet one of the
most relatable characters in any of Shakespeare’s plays. Because readers from
all over the world, no matter how old or young they are can relate to that
crippling indecision between completing a complicated task and resting with the
idea that ignorance is bliss. Of course the glam about not only this plot but
any plot in any of Shakespeare’s stories is that the task to be completed will
never be an AP Literature essay, it’s the murder of someone, of the murder of
oneself for that matter.
“What
are university libraries for, if not staring into space, gazing at sexy peers,
logging on to iTunes and planning your evening’s drinking?” states the article
when describing procrastination, or in other words the “Student’s curse”. It’s
the irony of the place where students go to, and the things they do there that
makes professors’ teeth go on edge. But when the author of this article claims
that about 95% of the world’s population has procrastinated at least once in
their lives, it’s when everything comes back to Hamlet. When Prince Hamlet’s
purpose is looked at in a simple matter, it is soon realized that all Hamlet
ever does in the play is procrastinate to an obligation he would have to do sooner
or later. And, like the author claims, the reason why this character has been
so famous throughout history is precisely because he procrastinates intensively
when it comes to murdering his uncle. So because of this, the topic of procrastination
is so important in the play.
