Derangement in Denmark: Hamlet’s Madness
Is he or isn’t he? This is a question often asked by readers regarding Hamlet’s madness in the the play of the same name by William Shakespeare. Hamlet is a tormented character, as he deals with the loss of his father and his pompous and guilty uncle Claudius who has assumed the throne of Denmark instead of Hamlet. His mother Queen Gertrude remarried to Claudius just a month after Old Hamlet’s death. Hamlet is clearly torn about the remarriage, as he often insults Claudius and Gertrude with snide remarks. Eventually, the ghost of Old Hamlet appears and tells Hamlet to avenge him, in other words kill Claudius. To do this, Hamlet must play the fool so as not to appear suspicious, but through the course …show more content…
Hamlet’s madness is often shown through his actions to Ophelia, his potential love interest: “It [ignorance] hath make me mad. I say we will have no more marriage. Those that are married already, all but one, shall live. the rest shall keep as they are. To a nunnery, go” (2.3.145-157). Hamlet is talking to Ophelia after she confronts him after he denies sending her love letters. The way Hamlet acts shows stark contrast to his former personality. Hamlet was nothing but earnest and decent to Ophelia. By saying “go to a nunnery”, Hamlet calls Ophelia a whore. He says that there will be no marriages because all women are like her, unreliable to him. Even to his childhood friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Hamlet acts cold and aloof. Since the two followed the King’s orders, Hamlet demonizes them and manipulates them into getting beheaded: That, on the view and knowing of these contents,/ Without debatement further, more or less,/ He should those bearers be put to sudden death...” (5.1.47-49). Hamlet is telling Horatio how he escaped going to Britain with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet faked an official letter that stated that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern would be beheaded once they arrived in England. Hamlet has spoken fondly of the memories that the three shared together as children on many different occasions during the play. Hamlet, however, feels absolutely no sense of …show more content…
Throughout the play, Hamlet is fixated on one goal and one goal only: to avenge his father. In the first four acts, Hamlet is unwilling to actually kill Claudius, since he does not have a stable sense of identity and direction. Critic Tabassum Javed explain hamlet’s unwillingness to act in greater detail: “Why can Hamlet not act for himself? Because Hamlet is not definite; he is unable to interpret himself even to himself, and because he is impelled to act for somebody else” (Javed). To do this, he must find the perfect moment to kill Claudius, and in the end of Act 5, Hamlet turns his thoughts into a reality: “The point envenomed too! Then, venom, to thy work” (5.5.338-339). Before Hamlet kills Claudius, he must engage in a fencing match with Laertes, however, there is more than meets the eye to the simple game. Laertes plans to kill Hamlet, with the aid of Claudius, using a pointed, poisoned fencing rapier. Claudius’ backup plan consists of him offering a cup of poisoned wine to Hamlet after the first round of the match. Claudius figures out earlier in the play that Hamlet plans to kill him, so he manipulates Laertes to do the work for him. Laertes wants to kill Hamlet because he kills his father Polonius in Act 3, and is indirectly responsible for the suicide of Ophelia. The plan goes awry, since Hamlet sees the pointed rapier, and kills Laertes with it.
Is he or isn’t he? This is a question often asked by readers regarding Hamlet’s madness in the the play of the same name by William Shakespeare. Hamlet is a tormented character, as he deals with the loss of his father and his pompous and guilty uncle Claudius who has assumed the throne of Denmark instead of Hamlet. His mother Queen Gertrude remarried to Claudius just a month after Old Hamlet’s death. Hamlet is clearly torn about the remarriage, as he often insults Claudius and Gertrude with snide remarks. Eventually, the ghost of Old Hamlet appears and tells Hamlet to avenge him, in other words kill Claudius. To do this, Hamlet must play the fool so as not to appear suspicious, but through the course …show more content…
Hamlet’s madness is often shown through his actions to Ophelia, his potential love interest: “It [ignorance] hath make me mad. I say we will have no more marriage. Those that are married already, all but one, shall live. the rest shall keep as they are. To a nunnery, go” (2.3.145-157). Hamlet is talking to Ophelia after she confronts him after he denies sending her love letters. The way Hamlet acts shows stark contrast to his former personality. Hamlet was nothing but earnest and decent to Ophelia. By saying “go to a nunnery”, Hamlet calls Ophelia a whore. He says that there will be no marriages because all women are like her, unreliable to him. Even to his childhood friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Hamlet acts cold and aloof. Since the two followed the King’s orders, Hamlet demonizes them and manipulates them into getting beheaded: That, on the view and knowing of these contents,/ Without debatement further, more or less,/ He should those bearers be put to sudden death...” (5.1.47-49). Hamlet is telling Horatio how he escaped going to Britain with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet faked an official letter that stated that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern would be beheaded once they arrived in England. Hamlet has spoken fondly of the memories that the three shared together as children on many different occasions during the play. Hamlet, however, feels absolutely no sense of …show more content…
Throughout the play, Hamlet is fixated on one goal and one goal only: to avenge his father. In the first four acts, Hamlet is unwilling to actually kill Claudius, since he does not have a stable sense of identity and direction. Critic Tabassum Javed explain hamlet’s unwillingness to act in greater detail: “Why can Hamlet not act for himself? Because Hamlet is not definite; he is unable to interpret himself even to himself, and because he is impelled to act for somebody else” (Javed). To do this, he must find the perfect moment to kill Claudius, and in the end of Act 5, Hamlet turns his thoughts into a reality: “The point envenomed too! Then, venom, to thy work” (5.5.338-339). Before Hamlet kills Claudius, he must engage in a fencing match with Laertes, however, there is more than meets the eye to the simple game. Laertes plans to kill Hamlet, with the aid of Claudius, using a pointed, poisoned fencing rapier. Claudius’ backup plan consists of him offering a cup of poisoned wine to Hamlet after the first round of the match. Claudius figures out earlier in the play that Hamlet plans to kill him, so he manipulates Laertes to do the work for him. Laertes wants to kill Hamlet because he kills his father Polonius in Act 3, and is indirectly responsible for the suicide of Ophelia. The plan goes awry, since Hamlet sees the pointed rapier, and kills Laertes with it.