One of the primary inquiries that arises from Shakespeare’s famous work,Hamlet, is whether the protagonist is truly insane or whether he is just pretending to be so. Unlike some of Shakespeare’s other work such as Macbeth where the “discerning eye” can determine whether the character is actually insane or not and where the madness was born, Shakespeare leaves Hamlet’s madness up to interpretation. In the play, Hamlet’s madness can be viewed as rational or viewed as completely crazy. Hamlet’s madness is shown through his rash decisions, mood swings, and his “nutty as a fruitcake” speeches. The method behind his madness can be reasoned through the fact that in his madness he is protected by the king, he makes fools of king and everyone around him, and he gets plenty of time to plot his revenge against Claudius for the murder of his father.
The first of Hamlet’s brilliant “feigned” madness moments is in act 2 scene 2 where Polonius is trying to discern the reason behind Hamlet’s melancholy attitude. The words uttered by Hamlet upon Polonius’ arrival on the scene seem to be said only through madness, “You are a fishmonger” (Shakespeare, line 171). Hamlet is clearly taunting the self-important Polonius with the incorrect identification, under the cover of his feigned madness. Polonius believes Hamlet to be truly mad when in actuality Hamlet is fooling Polonius into thinking he is mad. In the same scene, Hamlet’s second soliloquy displays a seed of rational thinking. Hamlet plots a way to catch “the conscience of the King” (line 531). He plans to put on a play so that “the guilty creatures” will be “struck so to the soul” that they will “proclaim their malefactions” (line 516-518). A truly insane person would not have enough cognitive...
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...r is but variable service, two dishes, but to one table.”(line 19-24). If this reply came from anyone else, they would suffer immediate consequences, but it is from Hamlet whom he can’t touch. By the King’s position and desire for the favor of his people, Claudius is unable to harm Hamlet through most of the play in turn giving Hamlet protection from the King.
Hamlet has all the means to be completely insane such as: the death of his father, the crowning of his uncle, the marriage of his mother to his uncle, his murder of an innocent man, and Ophelia’s forbidden relationship with him and eventually her death. But was he really insane or was Polonius right in saying “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t” (line 201-202). Hamlet has both rational and irrational aspect making him an inconsistent character therefore, leaving his madness up to interpretation.
Throughout William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Hamlet undergoes a transformation from sane to insane while fighting madness to avenge his father’s death. The material that Shakespeare appropriated in writing Hamlet is the story of a Danish prince whose uncle murders the prince’s father, marries his mother, and claims the throne. The prince pretends to be feeble-minded to throw his uncle off guard, then manages to kill his uncle in revenge. Shakespeare changed the emphasis of this story entirely, making Hamlet a philosophically minded prince who delays taking action because his knowledge of his uncle’s crime is so uncertain. To begin with, Hamlet portrays himself as sane.
In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet the main character Hamlet experiences many different and puzzling emotions. He toys with the idea of killing himself and then plays with the idea of murdering others. Many people ask themselves who or what is this man and what is going on inside his head. The most common question asked about him is whether or not he is sane or insane. Although the door seems to swing both ways many see him as a sane person with one thought on his mind, and that is revenge. The first point of his sanity is while speaking with Horatio in the beginning of the play, secondly is the fact of his wittiness with the other characters and finally, his soliloquy.
He tells Horatio that he is going to "feign madness." and that if Horatio notices any strange behavior from Hamlet, it is because he is putting on an act. I, v. a. a. a. a. Hamlet also tells his mother that he is not mad, but mad in craft. " III, iv. - a. - a In addition to his confessions. Hamlet's madness only manifests itself when he is in the presence of certain characters.
Throughout Shakespeare?s play, Hamlet, the main character, young Hamlet, is faced with the responsibility of attaining vengeance for his father?s murder. He decides to feign madness as part of his plan to gain the opportunity to kill Claudius. As the play progresses, his depiction of a madman becomes increasingly believable, and the characters around him react accordingly. However, through his inner thoughts and the apparent reasons for his actions, it is clear that he is not really mad and is simply an actor simulating insanity in order to fulfill his duty to his father.
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 persona of seeming insane to the other characters. Hamlet comes up with the idea to fake madness in the beginning of the play in order to confuse his enemies. However, for Hamlet to fulfill his duty of getting revenge, he must be totally sane. Hamlet’s intellectual brilliance make it seem too impossible for him to actually be mad, for to be insane means that one is irrational and without any sense. When one is irrational, one is not governed by or according to reason. So, Hamlet is only acting mad in order to plan his revenge on Claudius.
Throughout Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, the main character, Hamlet, must seek revenge for the murder of his father. Hamlet decides to portray an act of insanity, as part of his plan to murder Claudius. Throughout the play, Hamlet becomes more and more believable in his act, even convincing his mother that he is crazy. However, through his thoughts, and actions, the reader can see that he is in fact putting up an act, he is simply simulating insanity to help fulfil his fathers duty of revenge. Throughout the play, Hamlet shows that he understands real from fake, right from wrong and his enemies from his friends. Even in his madness, he retorts and is clever in his speech and has full understanding of what if going on around him. Most importantly, Hamlet does not think like that of a person who is mad. Hamlet decides to portray an act of insanity, as part of his plan to seek revenge for his fathers murder.
Hamlet chooses to go mad so he has an advantage over his opponent and since he is the Prince of Denmark certain behavior is unacceptable, so by faking madness he is able to get away with inappropriate sayings and actions. We can see this when he talks to Claudius, Polonius, Ophelia and his mother. When Hamlet talks to Horatio in the first act he says how he is going to "feign madness" and that:
Hamlet throughout the play seems insane but in reality it is only an act to achieve his goal of killing his father's murderer. Hamlet chooses to go mad so he has an advantage over his opponent and since he is the Prince of Denmark certain behavior is unacceptable, so by faking madness he is able to get away with inappropriate sayings and actions. We can see this when he talks to Claudius, Polonius, Ophelia and his mother. When Hamlet talks to Horatio in the first act he says how he is going to "feign madness" and that:
...ing madness to sanity are reminiscent of a bi-polar disorder such as manic depression. It is possible that Hamlet put on his antic disposition to allow himself freedom from the usual constraints and etiquette of the court so that he could use different means to discover Claudius' guilt without being discovered himself. Or his feigned madness may have been a reaction to the stress of his predicament, because in doing so he frees himself from having to make decisions on courses of action and he effectively becomes a spectator in the running of his own life.
I thought Hamlet demonstrated his madness greatly here because it seemed like Polonius knew he was mad and just played along. Polonius didn't want Hamlet to get annoyed because Polonius disagreed with him. If Polonius didn't have any idea that Hamlet was going mad he probably would have said something about what Hamlet was talking about and would have asked him why he was acting like he was. Polonius also would have done something to change the way he had been acting or help him out.
One example of Hamlet’s madness is how he mocks Polonius. He would not do so normally because Polonius is older than he is so he would normally treat him with a certain amount of respect which he does not do following the sighting of the ghost of Old Hamlet. The Ghost tells Hamlet of his murder, and to test the truth of what he is told, Hamlet puts on “an antic disposition”. Hamlet manages to convince Polonius that he is inconsiderate of others, knowing that with seeing this odd change i...
With Claudius and Polonius consumed with anxiety over Hamlets evident insanity, Hamlet is free to conspire and carry out his plan for revenge. And while those in the court becomes more convinced with Hamlet’s madness, he admits to his mother that his madness is feigned saying “That I essentially am not in madness / But mad in craft,” (3. 4. 209-210). Hamlet is filled with such anger towards his mother that this information comes out during his unfiltered, rage-fueled
Hamlet's madness at times is justified, and at other times is pure insanity. At first Hamlet seems to be going mad over the fact that Ophelia is not allowed to see him. Subsequently it seems that Hamlet is going mad over the fact that he is overwhelmed with his father's death, and begins to fight with himself over the thought of suicide. He is then determined to avenge his father’s death and goes about torturing Claudius in a systematic and genius manner. Finally, Hamlet is caught up in his feelings about mother’s actions, which brings him back to the point of insanity. In conclusion, Hamlet is torn between two worlds, that of the rational and that
A great controversial point of the play Hamlet, is whether Hamlet is mad or in fact acting mad. The definition of madness is a chaotic state where one is unable to distinguish right from wrong. Hamlet comes up with the idea to fake madness in the beginning of the play in order to confuse his enemies and avenge his father's death. However, for Hamlet to fulfill his duty of getting revenge, he must be totally sane. Hamlet’s intellectual brilliance makes it impractical for him to actually be mad, for to be insane one must be irrational and without any sense. Verifying that there's structure with his madness, and that hamlet is very much in control of his fate. William Shakespeare’s, Hamlet, demonstrates the power of Hamlet’s intelligence to achieve avengement for his father's death. Demonstrating qualities such as composure, intelligence, and restraint to carry out his plans.
Hamlet, a brilliant and witty character, was almost too smart for his own good. The act of insanity he plays not only convinces others of his madness, but almost manages to lead himself to believe it to be true. The front Hamlet exhibits manifests itself when he is engaged with certain characters. Particularly, when Hamlet is around Horatio, Francisco, Bernardo, the Gravedigger, and the Players, he acts rationally. On the other hand, Hamlet’s behavior becomes irrational when with Polonius, Gertrude, Ophelia, Claudius, or Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. For example, when having a conversation with Polonius, Hamlet says: