There can be no denying that Hamlet displays extreme intelligence. This was inevitable, as he was accepted and educated at the prestigious University of Wittenberg. The only reason he left the university was to attend his father's funeral, and he planned to return after it was through. He delayed his plans only at the request of his mother, and did that grudgingly.
The most noticeable demonstration of Hamlet's intelligence shows in his fondness for puns. Breaking out of commonly accepted speech patterns and delving into deeper meanings takes a lot of mental effort. Hamlet does this every time he talks with someone who would hinder him in realizing his objectives. Let us look at a particularly poignant example. Observe:
Claudius: How is it that the clouds still hang on you?
Hamlet: Not so, my lord, I am too much i' the sun.
There are three levels here. The first is extremely literal, in that Claudius thinks Hamlet is surrounded by clouds, and Hamlet refutes by saying that the sun has evaporated them. This, however, is preposterous. Giving it its logical symbolism shows that Claudius is wondering why Hamlet is still depressed. Hamlet replies that anyone who has as much of the kings favor (the sun) as he did could not be depressed. This is normal for Hamlet, to take peoples metaphors and expand them. The third level is more intelligent and is thus: Claudius has been treating Hamlet like a son, which offends Hamlet. He feels that, not only has Claudius commandeered Old Hamlets title, possessions and wife, he is also trying to appropriate Hamlet's feeling for his father. With a quick wit, Hamlet turns the conversation yet again in the way he wants it to go. It is this kind of verbal control that makes Hamlet a forbidding...
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...ss come to a logical conclusion. This is thought. Not so valued is subconscious thought. It works in the same way as primary thought, but it happens without effort, and without you perceiving it. The end result is vague feelings that a particularly perceptive person can act on. Hamlet shows that he senses these subliminal warnings with his comment, "It is but foolery, but it is such a kind of gain-giving as would / perhaps trouble a woman. (V, ii, 202 - 3) However, he does not place much stock in these feelings, calling them womanly.
Hamlet did make mistakes throughout the play, such as Killing Polonius when he intended to kill Claudius and failing to check over Laertes fencing blades. However, those choices were all made in the heat of the moment. Whenever Hamlet has time to bring his intelligence to bear, he comes to the correct decision every single time.
Hamlet, we first learn, is an intelligent student. Now by the end of the play
Custer’s Last Stand. The Battle of Stalingrad. Napoleon’s Russian Campaign. The introduction of the Pontiac Aztek. All epic failures, yes, but moreover, all epic failures caused by arrogance on behalf of the aggressor. Custer’s rampant jingoism caused him to assault those Native Americans with only a meager squad of troops. Napoleon’s Napoleon complex pushed him to drive his troops thousands of miles across Eurasia only to face the Red Army in winter. GM’s bravado at an upswing in the market cycle led it to release a hideous crossover with no true target audience. Whether it is some raging lust that blinds us to our faults or an innate flaw that leads us to secretly desire carnage and disorder, pomposity is often the cause of the pockmarks and events that define the timeline of human existence; that is, the defeats that go down in the history books are the ones induced by the attacker’s sense of self-importance. Shakespeare ensures that conceit will once again wreak havoc on the lives of the unsuspecting in Hamlet with two seemingly harmless words: “Buzz, buzz” (II, ii, 417). This, Hamlet’s pretentious dismissal of a loyal friend by comparing his news to the drone of idle conversation, makes it clear that hubris and the blindness that accompanies it, whether intentional or not, are the ultimate source of tragedy in Hamlet.
Hamlet's actions and words have a "method" to them; there appears to be a reason behind them, they are logical in nature. II, ii.
...th him in case he is biased. A madman would not have had the foresight, reason, or possibly even care, to think in this very organized fashion. Even when questioning whether ?to be or not to be (3.1.64)? Hamlet is sane in his thinking. He measures the ?pros and cons? of his situation, and although at this point he appears mad to most everyone, he is most definitely sane in thought.
...nd not making any sense whatsoever. In comparison, Hamlet speaks in regular sentences, and is able to converse normally with those around him. With much thought, and careful planning, Hamlet searches for evidence to determine the truth about his father's murder. And with this in hand, he departs on a path to avenge his father that is both reasonable and rational. While Hamlet might not carry the best of luck with him throughout the play, he certainly holds onto his mental integrity and ability to reason through challenges.
Hamlet's first words are rhetorically complicated, and also challenging and puzzling. Does he pretend to be flippant or boorish in order to keep his thoughts to himself, or to contain his pain? Or does he express rational criticism in savagely sarcastic comments spoken only to himself? Or is the energy of his mind such that he thinks and speaks with instinctive ambiguity? Words are restless within his mind, changing meaning, sh...
At the beginning of the play, Hamlet has learned that his brother, the newly king, Claudius, murdered his father. In Christian Wertenbaker: What is the riddle in HAMLET? (Sirs.com, 2011) it is stated, “From then on, Hamlet has to find his own way. He has become a seeker of truth. Unless he verifies the facts for himself, he cannot do the act” (1). This shows that Hamlet can’t back away from what he is meant to do. In his eyes he sees himself as being chosen to avenge his father. In fact, Hamlet proclaims, “The time is out of joint. O, cursed sprit, That ever I was born to set it right” (I. V. 207-208)! Already Hamlet is stressed out by his misfortune. He sees no other option, but to kill his uncle.
He shows the reader this when he convinces the people around him that he is mad to confuse his uncle and hide his knowledge of the truth about his father’s death. After all, he knows that he must disguise his knowledge to avenge his father. Also, Hamlet demonstrates his intelligence when he uses double meanings to speak to others around him. A good example of this is in Act IV, Scene II, when Hamlet states, “the body is with the King, but the King is not with the body (4.3.23-24).” He means that Claudius is with his body but does not hold true kingship. However, the others do not understand this. Through double meanings, Hamlet tells the other characters in the play what he knows without them being aware of it. Finally, he demonstrates his intelligence through his play to observe his uncle’s guilt; a kind man, he knows that he could not seek revenge on Claudius without proof of his guilt. When the actors arrive, Hamlet comes up with his plan to have the actors perform a play which closely resembles the way he believes his father was killed. His uncle’s reaction to this play would, after all, show whether Claudius was truly to blame for the death of Hamlet’s late father. Prince Hamlet’s intelligence would have made him a great
After encountering his father’s ghost, Hamlet finds out Claudius has murdered his father thus, sets a goal to kill Claudius. Although he has one goal, Hamlet makes harmful decisions that strongly affects other around him. The author describes the situation shortly after Polonius dies to Hamlet and says, “Hamlet says, ‘Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell. I took thee for thy better. Take thy fortune. Thou find’st to be too busy is some danger’” (3.4.32-34). This quote displays Hamlet’s character as foolish and hasty. To explain, Hamlet does not use logical reasoning to figure out who is behind the curtain but rather makes the decision quickly to stab the unknown figure. His strong passion to kill Claudius causes this event to occur. Not only does Hamlet commit harsh actions but also speaks harsh words. The author describes Ophelia and Hamlet conversing and says, “Hamlet says, “I have heard of your paintings too, well enough. God has given you one face, and you make yourselves another. You jig and amble, and you lisp; and nickname God's creatures and make your wantonness your ignorance’” (3.1.144-148). This quote displays how Hamlet speaks without using logical reasoning such as how Ophelia might love him and how she believes he loves her. He is strictly focused on killing Claudius and has no care for what he does to others. To add on, this also
Sometimes, revenge can be utterly nasty and repeated. A Serbian patriot once slayed an Austrian archduke to exact his revenge for Austria’s occupation of his land. Austria retaliated by starting World War I. After the war, the Allied powers took revenge by enforcing massive fines and taking away land from the defeated countries. One of them was Germany. This led to Hitler’s rise to power and took revenge against France by making them sign their surrender in the same train where Germany gave up in World War I. Following World War II, Germany was obligated to repair some of the damage done by paying war reparations to the Allies and Jewish people after the war. When countries recur to revenge, history reiterates, more often than not, it means war. On a smaller scale, in Hamlet, the prince of Denmark begins an inner war that provokes quite significant inner struggles as well as an outer war with Claudius to avenge his father’s death. William Shakespeare masterfully portrays Hamlet, whose experiences and emotions drive him to alternate between the realms of sanity and insanity to achieve his ambition. As the ancient proverb states, “desperate times call for desperate measures.” These “desperate times” include the murder of his father Hamlet Senior, King of the Danes, by his malicious uncle, Claudius, the seeming suicide of his love, Ophelia, his mother's quick remarriage to Claudius after his father's death.
Claudius begins his speech with an acknowledgement of Hamlet’s death and his own marriage to Gertrude. Claudius claims that the “green” memory of his “dear brother’s death” “befitted” Denmark to contract into “one brow of woe” (1.2). Despite Claudius’ affectionate reference to Hamlet, his hypocrisy is transparent. The colour imagery reveals the freshness of Hamlet’s death. The metaphor used suggests the kingdom is expected to unite and share the grief over its loss but the diction in “befitted” hints Claudius disapproval of expected mourning rites, causing the audience to doubt his sincerity. Furthermore, Claudius adds that “discretion fought with nature” causing him to think of Hamlet together with a “remembrance of [himself]” (1.2). The metaphorical conflict between “discretion” and “nature” contrasts Claudius’ hasty marriage to the expected mourning after Hamlet’s death. Moreover, in Claudius’ statement, the dependen...
There are many personality traits that could be associated with Hamlet, even some that contradict each other. Hamlet is obviously knowledgeable, which you can
Hamlet can be a very smart and noble person but in parts of the play he exhibited actions that are completely opposite of the person he can be. He acted with a sense of madness that made me think he was actually going mad. He acted obnoxious and annoying to other characters in the play. Here is a scene where Hamlet is talking to Polonius and they get into a little argument over what figure a cloud forms.
In Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, protagonist Hamlet, experiences many rises and falls throughout the play that have a major impact on his mentality decline. The way in which readers interpret the character, Hamlet, can vary in many ways. For instance, Hamlet delivers many soliloquies throughout the work, giving readers a better insight of his state of mind. Additionally, two significant soliloquies in both Acts II and III show a clear view of Hamlet’s mental and emotional state.
Without Hamlet's patient and meticulous thought process he would not be able to outwardly expose the king of his wrong doings to Horatio: There is a play tonight before the King.