Shakespeare the Psychologist?

Shakespeare the Psychologist?

I have found that most of the characters in William Shakespeare's plays seem to

be "mad", or mentally disturbed in some way. Shakespeare's characters display

psychological disorders such as schizophrenia, senility, psychosexual disorders,

and many more. Was this an early form of psychology or was he just relating to

his own personal experiences. In my paper, I will discuss some basic concepts

of psychology, and how I believe Shakespeare explored the world of psychology

through the individuals in his works. I will also diagnose some of his famous

characters from the plays “Hamlet” and “King Lear.”

Psychological Concepts have been around since practically the beginning of time.

Even Aristotle asked questions that would be classified as psychological in

today's era (Wade and Tarvis, pg. 5). So Shakespeare was not the first person to

use psychology but he may have been the first person to use a form of it in

plays for an audience to see. Psychology is defined as the discipline concerned

with behavior and mental processes and how they are affected by an organism's

physical state, mental state and external state (Wade and Tarvis, pg. 4). It is

evident in the plays that I have read that some of the characters in the plays

have psychological disorders such as schizophrenia, split-personality disorder,

Oedipus Complex, senility, and delusions.

Schizophrenia is defined as a psychotic disorder marked by positive symptoms

such as delusions, hallucinations, and incoherent speech; and negative symptoms

such as emotional flatness and loss of motivation (Wade and Tarvis pg. 485). A

person suffering from schizophrenia may have imaginary events happen to them or

have imaginary people in their lives. For example, a man suffering from

schizophrenia may believe he has a best friend named Joseph, when in fact there

is no best friend at all. This disorder can be treated with medication but

never cured. Another disorder showed in Shakespeare’s works is the

split-personality disorder. The Split-personality Disorder is defined as a

disorder marked by the appearance within one person of tow or more distinct

personalities, each with its own name and traits (Wade and Tarvis pg. 479). The

Oedipus Complex is another psychological disorder presented in

Shakespeare’s work and is defined as a conflict in which a child desires