Throughout the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the main character Hamlet is given the overwhelming responsibility of avenging his father’s unlawful death. Such an awesome burden can slowly drive a man “mad.” Because of this, Hamlet’s disposition is extremely inconsistent and erratic throughout the plot. At times he shows signs of uncontrollable insanity while, at other times, he exemplifies intelligence and “method in his madness.” Hamlet goes through different stages of insanity throughout the story, but his neurotic and skeptical personality amplifies his persona of seeming insane to the other characters in the book.
Hamlet’s disposition begins to change erratically almost immediately after his father’s death and the quick incestuous
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How stand I then, that gave a father kill’d, a mother stain’d,excitements for my reasons and my blood and let all sleep, while to my shame I see the imminent death of twenty thousand men”(4.1.58-62 )
Hamlet decides from this point on that his “thoughts be bloody, or be nothing worth!”(4.4.67-68) Hamlet procrastinates in his revenge for his father’s death throughout the duration of the play. This procrastination frustrates Hamlet and contributes to his madness. Hamlet begins to become more level headed once he is inspired by Fortinbras’s invasion of Poland.
At other times in the story, Hamlet uses words with great thought and baffles other characters in the book. Hamlet has many encounters with Polonius, in which Hamlet destroys Polonius with carefully selected words by calling him “a fishmonger.”(2.2.188) Hamlet insults Polonius by saying “for yourself, sir, shall grow old as I am, if like a crab you could go backwards” (2.2.215-216) Hamlet is inferring that Polonius is younger than him, which is a direct sign of disrespect. Polonius thinks to himself, “Though this be madness, yet there is method in 't”(2.2.217-218). He also makes a comment on Hamlet’s witty replies “ How pregnant sometimes his replies are! A happiness that often madness hits on, which reason and sanity could not so prosperously be delivered of.”
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Horatio’s words hold considerable weight throughout the play because they are all genuine and true. It is Horatio who is invited by Bernardo and Marcellus at the beginning of the book to authenticate the apparition of King Hamlet in the towers. Because of Horatio’s non-emotional and truthful consistency throughout the play, the audience should pay close attention to each and every one of his words.
Within his words he foresees death as well as Hamlet’s madness in the pursuit of justice in his father’s
Many people have seen Hamlet as a play about uncertainty and about Hamlet's failure to act appropriately. It is very interesting to consider that the play shows many uncertainties that lives are built upon, or how many unknown quantities are taken for granted when people act or when they evaluate one another's actions. Hamlet is an especially intriguing production, both on the set and on the screen because of its uniqueness to be different from what most people expect to be in a revenge themed play. Hamlet's cynicism and insane like behavior cause him to seem indecisive, but in reality he is always judging and contemplating his actions in the back of his mind in order to seek revenge for the murder of
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.
Hamlet’s personality, while hinted at by other characters and his own actions, remains something of an enigma throughout the play. His soliloquies are necessary, therefore, to gain a fuller understanding of it. One of two main aspects of his personality revealed this way can be found in the most iconic lines of the play. Hamlet is shown to be depressed before the “to be or not to be” soliloquy, but it is this speech in which he shows the depth of his grapple with life. He contemplates killing himself outright, questioning “[w]hether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer [t]he slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, [o]r to take arms against a sea of troubles, [a]nd, by opposing, end them?” (Act 3, Sn. 1, ln. 58-61). This soliloquy exposes the depressed mood he has had throughout the play up to this point and shows it for what it really is. Another key point of Hamlet’s personality emphasized through soliloquy is his devout loyalty to his father, the king. When Hamlet speaks to the ghost of his father, his suspicions seem to be true: Claudius, the king’s brother, murdered the king in order to gain his crown. Upon learning this, Hamlet is initially shocked, but then flies into a rage, cursing his uncle and calling him a “smiling, damned villain” (Act 1, Sn. 5, ln. 25-112). The fact that Hamlet is willing to kill his own uncle in order to avenge his father goes great lengths to show his devotion. It is clear from this that loyalty is a crucial element of Hamlet’s character. As well as allowing the audience a much better understanding of what type of person Hamlet is, this insight into his personality gives a glimpse of his
Hamlet begins play by breaking bonds with his family. The death of his father, the former king of Denmark, leaves Hamlet in a state of depression. During Gertrude’s, Hamlet’s mother, and Claudius's, the new king and Hamlet’s paternal uncle, wedding ceremony, Hamlet is the only one wearing “nighted colour” (1.2.68), which are clothes for mourning. He isolates himself from the joys of everyone and instead chooses to wallow in his own dark world, with his initial grief for his father being the catalyst for his descent into isolation. Hamlet begin to have hopes to commit “self-slaughter” (1.2.132) as he is frustrated with his life in its current state. Hamlet is rejecting his family as it is, instead lamenting on his father, to the point where he contemplates suicide. By isolating himself from the land of the living, Hamlet believes he does not have a purpose anymore. When his mother comments on Hamlet seeming sad during the ceremony, Hamlet replies that he “know not ‘seems’” (1.2.76), commenting on his mother’s use of the seem and saying that his depression is not an act, but genuine. His mother notices that “His father’s death and our o’er-hasty marriage” (2.2.57) could be the cause of his emerging familial isolation and regrets to not have been able to do anything to help her son. Having seemingly lost his purpose in life, Hamlet begins his isolation by removing himself from his family.
“Alas, he's mad” (Hamlet III, iv, 116). This shows that Prince Hamlet’s fixation on revenge drove him to the brink of insanity and murder. That being said, insanity and murder is a reoccurring theme throughout the play of Hamlet. After realizing, that his father the King of Denmark was assassinated then none other than his own uncle Claudius, Hamlet begins to lose his mind through the process of gaining his revenge against his uncle and threatens to kill anyone who gets in his way. This insanity leading to murder can be connected back to many serial killers .
Madness is defined as “mental delusion and the eccentric behavior arising from it.” In William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, the delusional state that Hamlet embodies has to be seen with a “discerning Eye.” While Hamlet claims his insanity is simply an antic disposition, his awareness of his deteriorating mental state is questionable. This state of madness can be judged reasonable as it allows him to investigate and avenge the unexpected death of his father. Consequently, Hamlet’s insanity results in a ripple effect, causing madness to become a central theme in the play through its effect on both Laertes and Ophelia.
His mother and his uncle have married after only 2 months of Hamlet’s father’s death. This has caused Hamlet to be in a heavy state of anger, mixed with his already deep state of mourning. According to Theodore Lidz, these two states can lead to one thinking back on all the negative wishes one may have had in the past. Considering Hamlet’s relatively young age, death wishes upon a parent are not serious but they are common among children. “…and as most, if not all, children have sometimes had death wishes toward a parent, guilt over such wishes can become intense when the parent dies.” (Lidz 48) All of these emotions mixed together so early in the play could lead to a sense of depression.
Polonius goes to the library to speak to Hamlet alone and Hamlet starts spewing nonsense to Polonius. Since Hamlet knows of King Claudius’ act of betrayal, he foreshadows it by saying to Polonius that he is reading a book about “ Slanders.. For the satirical rogue says here that old men have grey beards, that their faces are wrinkled, their eyes purging thick amber and plum tree gum.. Though I must powerfully and potentially believe,
Throughout Hamlet, written by Shakespeare, Hamlet’s emotions, actions, and thoughts cause much trouble during the play. Hamlet encounters stages of sarcasm, inanity, suicidal tendencies/self-deprecation, and procreation/indecision which develop not only his personality but the play itself. Hamlet uses sarcasm to express his emotions, pretends to be insane (ultimately leading him to become truly insane), self-deprecates throughout the play due to family events, and procrastinates because he is indecisive. Hamlet encounters many life-altering events throughout the play such as his uncle poisoning his father and quickly remarrying Hamlet’s mother, to accidentally killing Polonius thinking it was Claudius, all the way to debating upon: his own
Shweta Bali writes in her review, “Distraught as he is at the death of his father, the hasty incestuous marriage of his mother and the general unnerving atmosphere of Denmark further unnerve Hamlet. He displays a definite inability to cope with the losses and a spirit of intolerant has surface,” (Mechanics of Madness in Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear page 3). Hamlet exhibits restlessness and weariness around the people he distrusts, and is overwhelmed with the loss of his
It is evident Hamlet has lost the will to live and engage in worldly affairs, even prior to his encounter with the ghost, wishing “that this too-solid flesh would melt.” The death of his father led Hamlet on a mournful path, but it was the betrayal felt by his mother’s actions, through her “o’er hasty marriage” with Claudius, which stimulates his melancholy. Consequently, he begins to explore human nature in more depth, but his findings, all partial to his pessimistic outlooks, only show him a reflection of his thoughts. In the midst of this court of distrust, Hamlet’s accelerating descent is halted by the arrival of Horatio who provides him with something else to focus on as opposed to his thoughts contemplating suicide. The entry of a loyal friend, from before the events leading to his depression, provides Hamlet an infallible companion whom he can rely upon and confide in as his distrust in humanity within the Danish court continues to expand.
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is laden with tragedy from the start, and this adversity is reflected in the title character. Being informed of his father’s murder and the appalling circumstances surrounding the crime, Hamlet is given the emotionally taxing task of avenging his death. It is clear that having to complete this grim undertaking takes its toll on Hamlet emotionally. Beginning as a seemingly contemplative and sensitive character, we observe Hamlet grow increasingly depressed and deranged as the play wears on. Hamlet is so determined to make his father proud that he allows the job on hand to completely consume him. We realize that Hamlet has a tendency to mull and ponder excessively, which causes the notorious delays of action
With Hamlet’s return to Denmark he is made aware of his father’s death, Old King Hamlet. His reaction to his father’s death is
The tragedy of Hamlet by William Shakespeare is about Hamlet going insane and reveals his madness through his actions and dialogue. Hamlet remains one of the most discussed literary characters of all time. This is most likely due to the complex nature of Hamlet as a character. In one scene, Hamlet appears happy, and then he is angry in another and melancholy in the next. Hamlet’s madness is a result of his father’s death which was supposedly by the hands of his uncle, Claudius. He has also discovered that this same uncle is marrying his mom. It is expected that Hamlet would be suffering from some emotional issues as result of these catastrophes. Shakespeare uses vivid language, metaphors, and imagery to highlight how Hamlet’s madness
Hamlet in William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, is faced with the emotional trauma of the realization that his father, King Hamlet Sr., was brutally murdered by his beloved Uncle, Claudius. With Hamlet acknowledging the sin of his Uncle, he must decided to avenge his father’s death or to justify his uncle’s past actions. While doing so, he undergoes a shift from his original state of reluctance to act. Shakespeare utilizes internal conflict through various literary techniques to establish a shift in Hamlet’s character motive.