Some of William Shakespeare's most famous playwrights tell the stories and air the dirty laundry of people associated with high social class and power. In Hamlet, Shakespeare gives many examples of social class and shows how it can be both destroyed and disrupted when greed gets involved. It also shows how power derived from social classes can manipulate and ruin individuals caught in the dramas of these social norms. During the year 1599 there was no form of social networking, there wasn't even the internet or telephone. In today's age we have all of this and more, I wonder how Shakespeare could have written Hamlet in the 21st century with the presence of social media in the form of social classes. In Hamlet as today, people are in constant struggle and competition with each other in an effort to reach the highest level they can achieve. In this article, I will discuss the similarities between social media and social class as it relates to Hamlet and the consequences that arise from it. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay William Shakespeare wrote Hamlet during the Victorian era, this era saw the development of complex social classes heavily evidenced throughout the play. These social classes presented in Hamlet were not only hanging over the heads of the characters but were an important part of life at that time. Throughout the play we see many examples of how the pressures of social status can push people to go to extremes to gain power and recognition or to distance themselves from it. We first see this when Prince Hamlet of Denmark discovers the terrible truth regarding the death of his noble father, King Hamlet. This was revealed to Hamlet when his father visits him in supernatural form as a ghost to tell him that he was murdered by a poison put in his ear by his brother Claudius. “A snake bit me. Thus the entire ear of Denmark is abused by a process wrought from my death. But know, noble young man, that the serpent that bit your father's life now wears his crown” (Act 1. Scene 5 43-47). In this scene, Hamlet discovers his evil uncle who had unjustly stolen the throne from his father, King Hamlet. Shakespeare reveals to readers how a person who craves power will take any risk to achieve his selfish desire. Shakespeare's play Hamlet greatly represents current situations that deal with social class and power. The media reveals to us through the news, the Internet and other forms of social media the crazy scandals that those in power and the upper social classes experience. In Hamlet, many scandals occur at the same time. An unexpected scandal was the quick and unexpected marriage of King Claudius and Queen Gertrude. The marriage of the king and queen almost pushes Hamlet to the point where people believe he has truly lost his mind. In Act 1, Scene 2, Hamlet states: “She is married. O wickedest speed, to post With such dexterity to the incestuous leaves! It is not and cannot come to good: But break, my heart; because I must hold my tongue. This shock leads to a depression that lasts for months, but Hamlet knows he must continue to keep his cool until he finds the answers he seeks. In Hamlet you have the Royal Court which consists of Prince Hamlet, Queen Gertrude and the King. Claude. They are the highest form of power)