Why Is Hamlet's Existential Crisis

The character Hamlet presents based on his language in scene 2 suggests that he could take contumacious actions in the future because of his emotional state. Understandably, Hamlet is still lamenting his father’s recent death. He’s shown to be distraught and skeptical of Claudius’ almost immediate marriage to his mother. When conversing with his her, he presents a rather dark view of life, seeming depressed and suicidal. It’s like he is going through an existential crisis because he feels that something/someone (likely Claudius) is corrupting his family and life. He wishes that his “Sullied flesh would melt/ Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew,/ Or that the Everlasting had not fixed/ His canon against (self-slaughter)” (1.2.133-136). From this, he creates the impression of being quite melodramatic, as he feels that there is no point in living anymore. Unfortunately, Hamlet is not reacting well to the fact that his world has turned upside down, comparing it to an “unweeded garden” (1.2.139). Every thought that Hamlet has is followed by some degree of bitterness and pessimism.
In addition, Hamlet reveals his wittiness when he describes the new relationship between his Claudius and his mother to be (aside) “A little more than kin and less than kind” (1.2.67). This phrase, his first lines in his play, holds great meaning within a few words. This remark about having too much kin shows his uneasiness with his uncle Claudius recently appointing himself as his father and …show more content…
His darkly humorous response to his mother is amusing, besides that he sadly reveals the full extent of his grief. In these lines, his lengthy expression of his sadness shows that he must be constantly thinking and pondering about what is going on in his