Theme Of Sarcasm In Hamlet

Throughout the play, Hamlet uses sarcasm to express his disgust and annoyance toward certain people and situations in a humorous way. “Thrift, thrift, Horatio! The funeral baked meats did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables.” (I.ii.179-80). Hamlet sarcastically speaks of his mother’s quick marriage not even a month after his father’s passing. He basically stated that they used the food from the funeral at the wedding and it was barely cold. In reality, they did not use the funeral food at the wedding, but in order to express his disgust toward the fact that his mother remarried so quickly, Hamlet uses sarcasm. This form of sarcasm is also used to bring humor to this tragic play. Hamlet’s uncle is now his step father, and his step father is his uncle. This makes the family tree complicated, but the relationship between them is now more than blood. Under his breath Hamlet whispers “A little more than kin and less than kind.” (I.ii.65). this exemplifies how,

“How strange or odd soe’er I bear myself/ (As I perchance hereafter think meet/ To put an antic disposition on)” (I.V.171-173). Although he says things to make people believe he is acting, his actions and statements come across as very melancholy, and as sadness alone is not a sign of depression or madness, the symptoms become more prevalent as they play progresses. In an article written by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) they stated that “Trauma, loss of a loved one, a difficult relationship, or any stressful situation may trigger a depression episode.” Many of these occurred for him in a short amount of time. In less than a month, Hamlet’s father died and his mother remarried to his uncle, who was the man behind the murder of Hamlet’s father. That would definitely cause excessive amounts of stress, on top of the mourning of his lost