Effects of Parental Relationships on Children as Highlighted by HamletFamilies are the essential building blocks of the relationships we form in the final years of our lives. If we receive unconditional love from those we hold dearest, we learn to trust others and their love for us. However, if we do not receive adequate attention, we may come to believe that we are incapable of being loved or loving others. These types of family proceedings can lead a child to a lifetime of troubling consequences. Just as important as the relationship they have with us is the relationship between mother and father that we grow up observing. Parents should maintain a healthy relationship to prevent their children from forming a distorted image of love and trust. After Hamlet's experience with his mother's incestuous new marriage to Claudius, he no longer sees love as a pleasant feeling. Gertrude exclaims the exact basis of her son's apparent madness when, in response to Claudius' proclamation that Polonius knows the origin, she exclaims "I doubt but the chief, / The death of his father and the hasty marriage" . (II. ii. 59-60). This rapid and incestuous marriage suggests to Hamlet “the impermanence of human affection as well as of life, and also, less obviously, compels him to think of the violation of the union which gave him life and his being.” (Scott 110). From this event he learns that love is nothing more than a fleeting, meaningless emotion. This attitude towards love spills over into how he treats Ophelia. Hamlet's exclamation of "Fragility, thy name is woman!" (I. ii. 152) applies in his mind, not only to Gertrude, but now also to Ophelia. ... in the middle of the paper ... in others, after having formed a firm sense of one's identity, saying: "It is only when identity formation is well underway that one has true intimacy", which is really a counterpoint just as a fusion of identities “is possible”. (Staal 27). While not all divorce cases may end this way, most likely, most will. It is a difficult experience for children to adapt and compensate for their behavior. The same goes for Hamlet regarding Gertrude's quick remarriage to the murderer of her recently deceased husband. His actions have an effect on his son's thinking and ultimately acting throughout the show. Love and trust are the two most difficult emotions for children to rebuild in these situations after a complicated experience. Therefore, to protect their children, parents should always maintain a healthy and cordial relationship.