What do you get when you have a ghost, a moody thirty year old and an evil stepfather? A family reunion. A normal family? No, this is a Shakespearean tragedy, you're not getting any of that “family love” instead we get issues of incest and revenge, both which might be taking familial bond a bit too far. The dominant theme of madness in Shakespeare’s Hamlet is revealed through the conflict of concealing vs. revealing, especially when considering how Hamlet hides behind a mask of madness, Polonius’s urge to meddle leads to his downfall and Claudius being consumed by self.
In Act 1, Scene 5, the ghost of King Hamlet revealed to Hamlet that he was murdered by King Claudius, his brother. Hamlet then promises to do nothing but seek revenge and
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He is constantly checking up on his son, Laertes: having people spread rumors about him and instructing Ophelia in everything she does in life, the “typical” embarrassing dad. And the fact that Polonius is willing to use his daughter to become best of pals with Claudius without even blinking an eye is what any great dad would do for his daughter. He was a part of the blame of Ophelia’s downfall by manipulating his own daughter for selfish reasons. In Act 2 Scene 1, Ophelia approaches her father almost frantically and describes Hamlet looking and acting like a love sick man. Polonius then concludes that Hamlet has gone mad with love for Ophelia so of course he investigates because that’s what he does he likes to be in the middle if everything and meddling in everyone’s business.. He went and talked to Hamlet but Hamlet uses madness to mock Polonius. In Act 2 Scene 2 the noisy Polonius says “though this be madness, yet there's method in’t” he’s assertion is ironic because he’s right and wrong. Right because there is reason behind Hamlet’s madness which no one knows why except for him and wrong because Hamlet wasn’t mad because of his undying love for Ophelia. As much as the self-absorbed man wanted to be right about everything, it led him to his …show more content…
In Act 3, Scene 3 he admits “my offense is rank. It smells to heaven. It hath the primal eldest curse upon’t, a brother’s murder…My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent.” (Shakespeare, ) Claudius feels extremely guilty about killing his brother but not guilty enough to give the crown back. Aside from the wife-stealing and crown-stealing, Claudius doesn't let his conscience get in the way of what he wants and needs to be done which makes him a good leader. But as a father figure and husband? He is no better of a father than Polonius, he pretends to be a caring stepfather to Hamlet even while shipping him off to England to be killed. Also he let’s his wife, Queen Gertrude drink wine that is poisoned because he has to follow through will killing Hamlet, her son. He doesn’t want anything to get in the way of his plans. In Act 5, Scene 2, he does in fact try to “warn” her, “Gertrude, do not drink.”(Shakespeare,) Then he quietly says to himself that it was poisoned which would have been a more effective way to stop her from drinking the wine. But then that would mean he would have to reveal his true intentions. “Don’t drink the wine, honey! I poisoned it to try to kill your son because he knows I killed your ex-husband.” Maybe that would be too much for him so instead he watched his wife that he loved so much, drink the poison and die because he
While Hamlet’s “mad” behavior starts out as an “antic disposition,” his mental state deteriorates. Does Hamlet truly go “mad,” or is all of his wackiness an act?
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
In the final act of the play Claudius reveals he does not love Gertrude and that his love had been dishonest the whole time. This is shown when Gertrude picks up the poisoned wine glass. He knows she will dies once she drinks from it. Yet Claudius does nothing to stop her to save her life." Gertrude do not drink...It is the poisoned cup. It is too late" (5.2.286-288). Claudius did not love her enough to save her life and think of her before himself. He let power and his selfishness take over him.
His feigned madness permitted Hamlet to express these emotions freely towards Ophelia: “...Get thee to a nunnery, / farewell. Or if thou wilt needs marry, marry a / fool; for wise men know well enough what monsters / you make of them...” (3.1.138-41). It was also important for Hamlet to be so vulgar towards Ophelia because it would not have been possible for him to continue being a caring loving boyfriend while attempting to avenge his father’s death. Lastly, by pretending to be mentally disturbed, it provided Hamlet with an excuse for any sinful deeds he would commit on his pursuit of revenge. Hamlet exemplifies this conception as he seeks for Laertes forgiveness for murdering his father Polonius: “If Hamlet from himself be ta’en away, / And when he’s not himself does wrong Laertes, / Then Hamlet does it not, Hamlet denies it. / Who does it then? His madness...” (5.2.230-33). Hamlet’s pursuit of the truth and revenge was much better accompanied by madness rather than sanity which gave Hamlet a clear motive to fabricate insanity in the play. In the midst of Hamlet’s supposed madness, the prince continues to speak rationally with certain individuals as well as maintain sensible and logical thoughts. This idea is depicted through his conversations with his good friend Horatio who is assisting Hamlet in his search for the truth behind Old Hamlet’s death. For example, before the
First they think that Hamlet is lovesick over Polonius' daughter, Ophelia, but after the king spies on Hamlet and Ophelia in conversation, he comes to the conclusion that Hamlet is mad, a threat to his rule, and must be sent to England to be executed. This is a sign of the king's uneasiness over the mettle of Hamlet's anger which is directed towards him. The last thing that Claudius wants is for Hamlet to be unhappy with him, in fear that Hamlet will overthrow him, discover the murder, or possibly kill him. The king becomes increasingly nervous as time passes, making him a bit paranoid over Hamlet.
Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, is a complex play, filled with layers of meaning. These are often revealed through the madness of the characters and the theme of madness throughout the play. Although Hamlet and Ophelia are the only characters thought to be so afflicted, the reactions of other characters to this madness mirrors their own preoccupations.
His motivation for this response is that he knows the King and Polonius are eavesdropping on his conversation. Attempting and succeeding in embarrassing her, he questions Ophelia's virginity. Later while attending a play with other royalty, Hamlet again questions Ophelia's chastity in another attempt to humiliate her. This time his assault on her character is in front of a much larger audience. In both of these instances, Ophelia tries to dismiss Hamlet's insinuations. These two instances also serve to show Hamlet's irrational behavior, further justifying Polonius' belief that Hamlet's madness is connected to sex.
Hamlet is a young man who has become crazy from his trials and tribulations in life. He lost his father due to his uncle murdering them and then had to watch his mother marry the killer. Hamlets insanity can be demonstrated by his crude language and disregard for the well being of his mother. It can also be shown by his depression, which causes him to second guess everything including his life and finally his love, Ophelia helps to justify his absurdness by acting as a mirror. His foolish behavior worries many in the kingdom and creates a hostile and paranoid environment for those around. While some in the castle may believe that Hamlet is putting on an act, he proves that he is mad through his violet actions, his mental health and Ophelia.
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.
William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet relays Hamlet’s quest to avenge the murder of his father, the king of Denmark. The late King Hamlet was murdered by his brother, Claudius, who took the throne and Hamlet’s mother Gertrude for himself. Hamlet is beseeched by the ghost of his father to take vengeance upon Claudius; while he swears to do so, the prince inexplicably delays killing Claudius for months on end. Hamlet’s feeble attempt to first confirm his uncle’s guilt with a play that recounts the murder and his botched excuses for not killing Claudius when the opportunity arises serve as testimony to Hamlet’s true self. Hamlet is riddled with doubt towards the validity of the ghost and his own ability to carry out the act necessary to
Both Hamlet and Claudius betray many to reach their goals of ridding themselves each other other. Even from the very start of the play, when Hamlet is first introduced, he is visibly unhappy with the situation at hand with his new father, but he can’t really do anything about it. This is the way things stand until the end of the first act, when the spark that ignites the plot and theme of treachery takes place. Old Hamlet appears to Hamlet on the outer walls of the castle and tells him of the treachery that his uncle has committed. Of course Hamlet is shocked but he still isn’t ready to take action on his uncle. Not until he knows for certain that it was his uncle, Claudius who killed his father. Act 2 is almost entirely betrayals, Claudius and Gertrude hire Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to spy on Hamlet, while Polonius commits a similar act. He orders one of his servants, Reynaldo to go to France and spy on Laertes.
In Shakespeare's play Hamlet, there are several questions that come to the reader's mind regarding the emotional state of Hamlet. Was Hamlet really suffering from madness, as many of his friends and family thought? Was he mad or just pretending to be mad? Did Hamlet start out pretending to be mad, and his obsession drove him to madness? The reader gets insight into Hamlet's mental status through other characters and through Hamlet himself. If the characters had the information that Hamlet had about the murder of his father, would they have thought differently of his actions and his sanity?
Ophelia is shortly affected by the protagonist’s mad conduct. And immediately she goes to her father, Polonius, to explain how she is “so affrighted” as a result of Hamlet’s visit:
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.
Polonius uses Ophelia as a pawn and manipulates her to get information from Hamlet. When Polonius sees that Hamlet has gone mad, he thinks it is the result of Ophelia’s lack of affection. Claudius says “We have closely sent for Hamlet hither, / That he as ‘twere by accident, may here / Affront Ophelia”(III. i. 32-34). He then says that Polonius and him are going to listen to the conversation. Polonius is hoping that Hamlet shows signs that his madness is due to Ophelia and being lovesick. Polonius is manipulating Ophelia to do whatever he wants. He doesn 't seem to care what she wants. He just wants to be happy. First he tells her to