Did Hamlet Really Drive Hamlet's Madness?

What is madness? Madness is when someone is in a state of mind that prevents them from normal perception, behavior, or social interaction. Madness is subjective, therefore it’s based on personal feelings or you opinion. Many evil things in the play “Hamlet” drive Hamlet to his madness such as his mother, his father being murdered by his uncle, and the betrayal of his friends.
The first thing that drives hamlet mad is the remarriage of his mother. Hamlet in his first soliloquy said “A little month, or ere those shoes were old with which she followed my poor father’s body… married with my uncle” (1.2. 151-152/155). This drove Hamlet to his madness because he was angry at how fast his mother got remarried after King Hamlet’s death. That was not the only reason Hamlet was mad. It was also because the man Gertrude (Hamlet’s mother) married was the brother of her dead husband. She mourned about King Hamlet’s death for less than a month, and that drove hamlet crazy. Also, Hamlet was mad at how weak his mother was. We see this when hamlet says “Frailty, thy name is woman” (1.2. 146). Hamlet was driven to his madness because of his mother in many different ways. Hamlet’s mother is …show more content…
The main reason the betrayal drives Hamlet to madness is because Hamlet, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern have been friends since they were kids, and they stabbed him in the back. “When he needs what you have gleaned, it is but squeezing you, and, sponge, you shall be dry again” (4.2. 19-21). Hamlet says this to Rosencrantz because he soaks up all the information the king wants to know, and then it’s wrung out. That is all Claudius uses him for. Hamlet knows his friends are trying to manipulate him into telling them where the body is, but Hamlet is not stupid and knew exactly what they were trying to do. This frustrated Hamlet very much. This was another reason that drove Hamlet to his madness and made him the “crazy” person he