What is the theme of Hamlet? Key: (1) The story of the play comes from an old Danish legend. It is very likely that William Shakespeare borrowed something from Thomas Kyd’s The Spanish Tragedy. The whole play shows how Hamlet, hero of the play, who represents good and justice, fights against his uncle in whom all the evil things of the time can be seen. (2) William Shakespeare showed his great creative abilities in writing this play. Hamlet is made a hero of the Renaissance period and the representative of humanism. Through him William Shakespeare expressed his own humanist ideas. This play is usually regarded as the summit of William Shakespeare’s art.