The Tragedy of Hamlet
In life the border between sanity and madness is thin and undefined. At best it is a gray area, fuzzy and unclear. Yet it is this area that Shakespeare so deftly depicts in
The Tragedy of Hamlet. The gray environment he weaves eventually renders it almost impossible to tell the sane from the insane, the ability to reason ultimately becomes the audience's sole determiner of a character's mental condition. Thus, Shakespeare is able to successfully tie his thoughts on reason and emotion to a character's sanity. In the play
Hamlet, by Shakespeare, the main character fits the description for being a tragic hero. A tragic hero is a character who has experienced life more fully, whether by heroic action
or
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Hamlet is rational enough to realize that the
"undiscovered country from whose born/ No traveler returns" (3.1.79-80) may hold far worse realities for him than his present earthly uncertainties. The prince's composure and cool reason prevent him from taking his own life, or as he puts it, "the native hue of resolution/ Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought" (3.1.84-85). This view, that Shakespeare believed that suicide was only a legitimate option to the insane, is supported by evidence that he did not intend Hamlet to be insane. The most compelling evidence is found in the way Hamlet switches between being rational and acting mad, according to who he was talking to. For example in scene two Hamlet acts quite mad for Polonius. The old advisor even remarks upon Hamlet possessing "a happiness that often madness hits on, which reason and/ sanity could not so prosperously be delivered of" (2.2.211-213). Then, only moments later, Hamlet switches gears to deliver his "What a piece of work is man!" (2.2.297-314) speech, to Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern. Likewise, his "To be or not to be..." (3.1.56-90) soliloquy, a rational and coherent speech on death, is directly followed by the famous "Nunnery Scene" (3.1.153).
Also, the
He differentiates between madness as a clinical condition and a mystical madness. He further supports his argument with Elie Wiesel distinctions of the two. Clinical madman isolates himself from the world while mystical madman brings the Messiah in him (112). Patterson further discusses the notion of madness before the creation of human and
How does the use of comic relief best contrast the tragedy of Hamlet? In great works of literature a comic relief is used as contrast to a serious scene to intensify the overall tragic nature of the play or to relieve tension. As illustrated in Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet, intense scenes are joined with character’s banter and vacuous actions as to add a comic relief. In Hamlet, Polonius acts as a comic relief by his dull and windy personality, Hamlet uses his intelligence and his negativity toward the king and queen to create humor, while on the other hand Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are a comic relief by their senseless actions and naïve natures. Polonius, Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are all used as a comic relief to
Hamlet’s sanity has made many people question him. “Hamlet certainly displays a high degree of mania and instability throughout much of the play, but his “madness” is perhaps too purposeful and pointed
Shakespeare's play "Hamlet" is about a complex protagonist, Hamlet, who faces adversity and is destined to murder the individual who killed his father. Hamlet is a character who although his actions and emotions may be one of an insane person, in the beginning of the book it is clear that Hamlet decides to fake madness in order for his plan to succeed in killing Claudius. Hamlet is sane because throughout the play he only acts crazy in front of certain people, to others he acts properly and displays proper prince like behavior who is able to cope with them without sounding crazy, and even after everything that has been going on in his life he is able to take revenge by killing his father's murderer. In the play Hamlet by William
Throughout the Shakespearian play, Hamlet, the main character is given the overwhelming responsibility of avenging his father’s "foul and most unnatural murder" (I.iv.36). Such a burden can slowly drive a man off the deep end psychologically. Because of this, Hamlet’s disposition is extremely inconsistent and erratic throughout the play. At times he shows signs of uncontrollable insanity. Whenever he interacts with the characters he is wild, crazy, and plays a fool. At other times, he exemplifies intelligence and method in his madness. In instances when he is alone or with Horatio, he is civilized and sane. Hamlet goes through different stages of insanity throughout the story, but his neurotic and skeptical personality amplifies his
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.
A tragic hero can be described as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is
Hamlet says that he knows the difference between a hawk and a handsaw, in other words, he is very far from being mad, and he is perfectly capable of recognizing good from bad, right from wrong, friends from enemies. Hamlet shows that he understands his actions, and consequences through his thoughts and words.
This madness can be defined in many ways, such as schizophrenia or a personality disorder, but is most accurately defined as depression. The dark cloud that possibly loomed over Hamlet’s head could have easily prevented him from fully committing to any serious action. The symptoms of this “acute depressive illness,” (Shaw 1), don’t just appear at one point, but at many points in the duration of the play. Low mood is one of the many symptoms that A. B. Shaw brings to light in his article and the perfect example of what is quite possibly Hamlet’s lowest point, is in the very first act of the play. The famous ‘To be or Not to Be’ soliloquy reveals Hamlet’s suicidal
A tragic hero is defined as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined for downfall, suffering, or defeat. The hero in these tragedies is often presented as a noble however, flawed character whose demise is often impart to their own decisions, often due to their previously mentioned flaws, error in judgment and imprudent actions. Written in the early 1600’s Shakespeare wrote one arguably one of his greatest and highly controversial plays, the tragedy known as Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Shakespeare in his play introduces us the pays one of his most popular, enigmatic, and dynamic characters the tragic hero Prince Hamlet. Hamlet is presented to us a sensitive, religious, loyal, moral, intellectual, and young
must be brave and noble. Hamlet is the perfect example of the tragic hero. Hamlet has all the good traits needed to be a tragic hero. He is brave and daring. One example of this is that when he went to England, he was taking a big risk and knew they were out to kill him. His loyalty to his father, was the reason he was so angry with Claudius and his Mother.
A Tragic Hero is a common figure in many of Shakespeare’s works. A Tragic Hero is usually a figure of royalty, fame or greatness. This person is predominately good, but falls from prominence due to personality flaws that eventually lead to self-destruction.
Men have called me mad, but the question is not yet settled, whether madness is or is not the loftiest intelligence--whether much that is glorious--whether all that is profound--does not spring from disease of thought--from moods of mind exalted at the expense of the general intellect. Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night - Edgar Allen Poe
“To some extent insanity is a form of conformity; people are always selling the idea that people who have mental illness are suffering. But it’s really not so simple…I think mental illness or madness can be an escape also” (qtd. in “John Forbes Nash”). To many “normal” people, the terms “insanity” or “madness” portray a negative connotation-- the unfortunate ones “suffer” from mental illness. However, brilliant mathematician and Nobel laureate John Forbes Nash, who has paranoid schizophrenia, cherishes his unique condition as a means of retreat from the brutalities of reality (“John Forbes Nash”). Since ancient times, people have observed the link between madness and creative genius. Indeed, research has proven that the two conditions of
as these lines relate back to the development of Ophelia’s character, as well as play an important role in the plot of the play, and a major conflict that is portrayed.