preview

Hamlet Insanity In Hamlet

Decent Essays

The play “Hamlet” is one of William Shakespeare’s greatest works as well as one of the most famous English plays ever written. Created as a tragedy, it features a complicated central character and a plot containing many themes. The main character, Hamlet, has been a subject of numerous interpretations and studies where his actions and thoughts throughout the play have been analyzed time and again. A certain aspect that is arguably the most disputed is Hamlet’s sanity. Do the events that take place in the play drive him to the point of insanity, or was it all an act of deception? Though there is evidence that generally brings support to both sides of the argument, Hamlet is truly not insane. He merely acted insane for his own agenda. In the very beginning of the play Hamlet is encountered by the ghost of King Hamlet, his father. This spirt tells how he was murdered by his brother Claudius, the new king of Denmark; that explains the truth behind his death. This news disturbs Hamlet greatly and further increases his hatred towards Claudius, who has also hastily married his mother Gertrude. The ghost of the king further tells Hamlet to avenge him by killing Claudius. At that point all that is running through Hamlet’s head is to murder Claudius. Hamlet tells his friend Horatio about the conversation with his father’s ghost. However, Horatio asks Hamlet to think about what might happen if the ghost “assume some other horrible form, which might deprive your sovereignty of

Get Access