Shakespear Reason vs Passion

In William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet, Laertes, Fortinbras and Hamlet find themselves in similar situations. While Hamlet waits for the right time to avenge his father's death, Laertes learns of his father's death and immediately wants vengeance, and Fortinbras awaits his chance to recapture land that used to belong to his father. Laertes and Fortinbras go about accomplishing their desires quite differently than Hamlet. While Hamlet acts slowly and carefully, Laertes and Fortinbras seek their revenge …

…act in haste. This leads Laertes and Fortinbras to be manipulated by others, but since Hamlet is secretive about his plans and thinks everything through, he does not become a pawn. By having Laertes and Fortinbras contrast with Hamlet so much, Shakespeare is able to highlight Hamlet's weaknesses and strengths because Hamlet can be compared with Fortinbras or Laertes. This not only helps the audience understand Hamlet better, but also Laertes and Fortinbras as well.