Hamlet Uncover The Truth In Hamlet Analysis

Considered to be one of the most famous playwrights written in the history of English literature, Hamlet is no doubt a complex play and far from being easy to decipher. The protagonist finds himself entangled within a slew of different predicaments ranging from love, incest, death, murder, and even touches upon the spiritual world when his father’s apparition presents himself with the task of avenging his death. How he goes about handling all of these difficulties has been a debate for decades and continues to baffle even the greatest minds today. However, in order for Hamlet to uncover the truth and fulfill the task he is given, he must put on an act of madness in which the other characters mistake him to have truly lost his mind. While he

When first confronted with the ghost that has taken the form of his father, he questions whether he can trust his senses and the ghost stating the possibility it may be the devil in disguise trying to fool him as he says: “May be the devil, and the devil hath power T ' assume a pleasing shape” (II, ii, 611-12). In Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, Plato makes the same argument that what perceive is not always what it seems, and can in fact be an illusion created by our senses, tricking our minds and our sense of perceptions. To overcome this he says we must “unshackle” ourselves, become philosophers, and seek the truth and reality beyond our caves. Hamlet does just that and uncovers the truth by cleverly having the players reenact a play similar to the murder to evoke some kind of “guilty” reaction out of the suspected murderer, his uncle Claudius. During these scenes, Hamlet’s moral unconscious, according to Carl Jung and his repression theories, is preventing him from making any rash actions without evidence because if he were to do so he would have to suffer the consequences. We see his unconscious at work a second time when Hamlet is given a clear opportunity to finish the task, but withdraws on the reason of religion. He states if he was to kill Claudius while he is praying and repenting, Claudius would rise to heaven and he would be condemned

Polonius then proceeds to incorrectly conclude that this behavior is the result of Hamlet’s lovesickness with Ophelia as he says, “This is the very ecstasy of love, whose violent property fordoes itself, and leads the will to desperate undertakings.” (II, i, 102-04)

Knowing that Ophelia will relay what she had just witnessed to Polonius, and knowing Polonius will relay what Ophelia had just told him to Claudius, he has them exactly where he wants them. Hamlet in essence, has created his own shadows for the other characters and the “Truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images.” (Plato 868) During parts of the play one can argue, Hamlet is no longer feigning madness and has already crossed onto the side of insanity. For instance, during his meeting with his mother in her bedchamber, he begins to yell at her, scaring her in the process causing her to believe her own son is about to kill her (III, iv, 22). In that same scene he stabs and kills Polonius without the slightest hesitation (III, iv, 24-26), and then he essentially mocks Claudius and plays games with him when asked where he has taken the body. However, one can also conclude his erratic behavior only surfaces in the presence of these specific characters. When in the presence of other characters, specifically Horatio he is sane, calm, rational, and in complete control of his behavior. His word exchanges with Horatio are not from a madman, but rather