Shakespearean Hamlet and Macbeth: A Reverent Beam to the Islamic Perspective of Crime and Punishment

Abstract

Shakespeare is considered as one of the major literary personalities in the kingdom of literature, who is appearing to be a great
philosopher, a poet, a preacher, an actor, a great playwright, a prudent guide and leader. His dexterous scrutiny and commendable thoughts have gifted literature an unavoidable study of his art to the learners in every era. Simultaneously, insightful literary scholars feel themselves honored to study his literary works. Moreover, Shakespeare’s unparallel themes are from certain along with ceaseless universalism, and concurrently they are global and multicultural too. The theme of power, corruption, love, war, peace, nature, deception, appearance versus reality, crime, punishment, judgment, freedom, death and renewal, all are constantly knocking at the door of human civilization in different centuries wearing different masks. Among myriads of themes, the study of Shakespearean crime and punishment can be a strong insight to quake human conscience to the ultimate negative consequences of all crimes. At the same time, this study has a wide scope to sustain sharply the Islamic views towards all crimes and their inescapable punishments as well. The main concern of this paper is to reinstate the genuineness of those verses which mentioned a number of crimes as well as the unavoidable punishments in the holy Quran, the ultimate guide of entire human beings. Moreover, this study will incite thoughts in the minds of the considerate learners for not to judge Shakespeare’s tragedies as plays only, rather to consider them to shape morality.