Examples Of Madness In Hamlet

Several emotions engulf Shakespeare’s Hamlet throughout the play, the most famous being Hamlet’s own emotional state. His madness, triggered by his incestuous uncle, has led several scholars to explore the psychological causes of his madness. This research into Hamlet’s madness will explore his madness in comparison to other characters, the psychoanalytical studies behind his madness, and defining whether his madness is genuine or another play within the play.

      When one refers to madness in Hamlet, most would think of Hamlet's madness, or at least that that he was pretending to possess. Although Ophelia does go insane and ultimately commits suicide, the central lunacy of the play revolves around Hamlet himself. Hamlet's plan to act mad is completely unexplained. It is safe to

In William Shakespeare’s tragic play Hamlet we are introduced to the young prince’s lover, Ophelia. Ophelia is a young noblewoman of Denmark. She is a very beautiful young woman who’s in love with the prince Hamlet and a potential wife for him. She is the daughter of the chief counsellor of the king, Polonius. She is also siblings with Laertes who dies trying to avenge his father's death and protect his family's name, by killing Hamlet who he wounds with a poisoned sword. With no mother to guide poor Ophelia, she becomes dependent on what the men who surround her, Laertes, Polonius, and Hamlet, tell her. She ends up going mad, singing songs about flowers, and finally drowning in the river surrounded by the flower garlands she had gathered. Ophelia was an obedient and was lovestuck on prince Hamlet in this tragic play. She happened to just need some help or advice in this fairly mere of a romance she had going on in her life.

In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, one of the most evident and important themes is the theme of madness. The theme is apparent throughout the play, mainly through the actions and thoughts of Hamlet, Ophelia, and Laertes. Madness is defined as the quality or condition of mental illness or derangement (being insane). Madness is at the center of the conflicts and problems of the play and is conveyed through Shakespeare’s elaborate use of manipulation and parallels between Hamlet, Ophelia, and Laertes to contribute to Hamlet’s tragic character.

What is madness? Madness to most appears like a complex double-cross between reality and fantasy of the mind. William Shakespeare creates the use of madness throughout his play Hamlet, he portrays the sense of it as the breakdown of the mind, but also the breakdown of society. Within the play, two main characters welcomed madness into their lives, one is fake for personal reasons, and the other is real. Hamlet, prince of Denmark, had a plan to act mad to confuse Claudius. On the other hand, Ophelia the daughter of Polonius, goes insane due to many factors, such as grief, isolation, and distrust.

The insanity of a person can be contributed through the trauma that is caused by a few events in a person’s life, but in the play Hamlet, William Shakespeare wrote the main character prince Hamlet experiences a few dramatic events from the play which his attitude changes throughout. In order to figure out whether hamlet is insane is by figuring out what the characteristics of his insanity. Characters see Hamlet in different shades of gray, each side more or less sane than others. His sanity can be his truth or his lie.

In contrast to Hamlet, Ophelia did in fact go crazy for many reasons, one being Hamlet’s madness. After “going mad,” Hamlet taunts Ophelia numerous times when he says things like, “I could interpret between you and your love,/ if I could see the puppets dallying” (Ⅲ.Ⅱ). It is Hamlet’s statements that leave Ophelia embarrassed and confused, which eventually lead her to madness. She becomes so distressed by the thought of Hamlet’s incapability to love her back. When Ophelia went mad, even a gentleman just passing by noticed how “she speaks things in doubt,/ that carry but half sense. Her speech is nothing” (Ⅳ.Ⅴ). When Ophelia loses it, she really goes insane. Her words only make sense “half” of the time as if she is only half there in her brain as well. Ophelia is pitied by most people who come into contact with her and when she dies, Gertrude justifies Ophelia’s death by saying that she was “incapable of her own distress” (Ⅳ.Ⅶ). The amount of pity that Ophelia received is so much that “Poor Ophelia” is mentioned twice in act four. While Ophelia’s madness becomes a pity party, Hamlet’s madness is seen as strange and unusual. Ophelia became mad because of her confusion inflicted by Hamlet.

In The Tragedy of Hamlet, Shakespeare developed the story of prince Hamlet, and the murder of his father by the king's brother, Claudius. Hamlet reacted to this event with an internal battle that harmed everyone around him. Ophelia was the character most greatly impacted by Hamlet's feigned and real madness - she first lost her father, her sanity, and then her life. Ophelia, obedient, weak-willed, and no feminist role model, deserves the most pity of any character in the play.

That he’s mad, ‘tis true” (II.ii.104-105). The only reason Ophelia was capable of breaking the social norm was due to her insanity and she denotes Hamlet’s deteriorating mindset as he tries to shed social constructs and morality in order to become a character of action and motivate his compulsion for revenge. Hamlet represents himself as a misogynist as he views women as corrupt and cruel individuals. The women Hamlet had interacted with help demonstrate his true qualities. Hamlet’s continuous interactions with Ophelia characterize his Anima whereas his inability to create his Self is shown by the comparison with the moral voice of the

There is a reason Shakespeare includes madness in the play, the causes of madness, how it affects others, and ultimately what it does to people in the end. Madness is a theme present in Shakespeare's classic tragedy Hamlet. It is mostly found in the plays main protagonist, Hamlet, but can also be seen in Ophelia, another supportive character. Madness is presented throughout the whole play from beginning to end. " Here, as before, never, so help you mercy, How strange or odd soe'er I bear myself, As I perhance hereafter shall think meet to put an antic disposition

Hamlet’s Unique Madness In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the main character, Hamlet, has a very peculiar type of madness, which possesses both real and fake elements. In the play, Hamlet intended to act mad as a disguise, but at times, his fake madness appeared to be much more than pretend; this combination of real and fake insanity creates a type of madness that is unique to Hamlet’s character. Indeed, Hamlet has very obvious displays of pretend madness, primarily shown through his interactions with other characters; in contrast, Hamlet also has certain interactions with characters that reveal his slight insanity and true emotion. Additionally, Hamlet’s madness and true feelings are further revealed through his very powerful and passionate soliloquies.

In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare madness is a prominent trait that many of the characters in the play come to possess. These characters go through a multitude of troubles throughout the play that makes this madness justifiable. This madness plays an immense role in the outcome of the play and events throughout it. Hamlet and Ophelia show this trait of madness in their actions throughout the play which ultimately have a detrimental effect on themselves and other characters in the play.

When one thinks of madness in the play Hamlet, the sweet Ophelia may be the first character to come to mind.  Ophelia is suffering from a tragic case of depression.   Although she does not speak in soliloquies, Shakespeare conveys her emotions by song.  

In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, it is clearly evident Prince Hamlet is overcome with “madness” due to his father’s murder and other malicious actions taken against him. Throughout the play, there are many examples of how Hamlet displays his insanity due to certain situations he experiences and how he handles them. Hamlet shows his madness through the killing of Polonius, his treatment of Ophelia, his thoughts of suicide, and the treatment of his mother Gertrude.

Hamlet, a play by William Shakespeare, is as much a mystery as a tale about depression, madness and sanity. Shakespeare reveals how the scourge of corruption and decay rapidly spread; and the emotional consequences that follow. Insanity, madness and depression are as intolerable as corruption and deceit; and just as intertwined. The play makes one ponder if it is possible to be sane in an insane world full of treachery, revenge, incest, and moral corruption? By examining the themes of melancholy, madness and sanity in Hamlet, Shakespeare details his character’s descent from depression to madness. Additionally, Hamlet’s psychological state can be