Hamlet - Does Claudius repent? When you're the brother of a king, you have a rich life and you might say you might be happy, but you'll always be second choice - you'll never be the king, so you'll never have the queen. The only way this could happen is if your brother died prematurely. Would you be willing to kill your brother, your own flesh and blood? If you killed your brother, would you be able to live with the consequences and could you live with your guilt if you felt any? King Claudius killed his brother because he no longer wanted to be just the king's brother, and he no longer wanted to be second in command. He wanted to have this one as his only queen. No matter who he married, she would never be queen. King Claudius knows what he did was wrong, but his heart was not in the right way. He always feared keeping his wealth and gaining access to paradise. If he was truly remorseful, he would be willing to give up everything, which means dying for what he did. If everyone knows that if you are the younger brother, you will not become king. you will have a rich, comfortable life and all your needs will be taken care of, but you will be the other, not the one getting all the attention. you'd probably get sick of it, and Claudius does. he wants the real queen. Claudius wants the crown, and Claudius wants recognition. he says this in act three, scene three, "I still possess the effects for which I killed, my crown, my own ambition, and my queen (p. 165)." he admits that he wanted what his brother had. He wanted it so much that he killed him for it, and now he has everything he ever wanted. But he begins to wonder if what he did was really worth killing his own brother. When you commit a murder there is always a doubt about time, the murderer feels remorse because if he did it he wouldn't think twice about what he was doing. Well, in Claudius' case, I think he feels bad because he knows what he did was wrong. especially when he says: "O. My offense is serious, it smells like heaven; it carries on it the oldest curse, the murder of a brother (p. 165)." Claudius knows that what he did was wrong and he feels bad to some extent, but he never says it. He only says that what he did was wrong and that he will probably be punished for it. he doesn't say how he plans to redeem himself. he simply recognizes that what he did was morally wrong. most people would be really sorry if they killed their brother, but Claudius just feels like he should be remorseful. he doesn't really feel bad about what he did. "Let someone be forgiven and hold back the offense... help, angels! q Maye tests the bow, the stubborn knees and the heart with cords of steel but soft as the sinews of a new- born (p. 165).” He says right away that he can't pay because he doesn't really have remorse and he still wants to keep what he gained from killing the king. The truth is that he will never truly feel good about what he has done until he repents and that would mean he would have to give up everything he has earned, and if he doesn't is not ready to do it, he will not be able to pray. . Claude kills his brother for his power, his wife and his money. The king shows that he knows that what he did was wrong and that he committed a sin. What he didn't understand was that he couldn't just repent and go to heaven because he felt bad. Besides, the only reason he thought about praying was because he wanted to go to heaven. Claudius didn't feel bad, he just had a sense of morality..