Madness of Hamlet
The madness of Hamlet has always been a topic of controversy when discussing William Shakespeare's Tragedy of Hamlet. In this play, the tragic hero contemplates his own concepts of moral judgment and, in the process, may be considered mad. Hamlet both feigns madness and actually has some characteristics of a madman. His madness is defined by his inability to decide between right and wrong and to make appropriate decisions based on standards of society. Hamlet's mere circumstances at the opening of the play are a major contributing factor to his madness. His father, King Hamlet, has just been murdered; his mother, Gertrude, has married his uncle Claudius only a month after her late husband died, stripping Hamlet from his natural right to the throne. The loss of his father, as well as his uncle's new role as King of Denmark and father to Hamlet, contribute to Hamlet's disturbed mental state. The play illuminates this trapped position Hamlet experiences, both in circumstances and in his own mental state. The first sign the audience receives that Hamlet may be mad is after his encounter with Ophelia. Ophelia is Hamlet's secret love and her father has forbidden her to see Hamlet any more. She must discontinue he
She has returned his letters and presents, "My lord, I have remembrances of yours/ That I have longed long to redeliver. Obviously a man who is contemplating his own death is not completely sane. Other small factors in the play also contribute to Hamlet's state of mind: the country is currently on the brink of war with Fortinbras; Hamlet learns that he is to be sent to England, accompanied by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern who are later executed by the order of Hamlet, where he will be promptly put to death by the order of King Claudius; and when Hamlet returns to Elsinore, he learns that his dearest Ophelia has drowned. Hamlet is doubly dismayed to learn that his own mother, the "seeming-virtuous queen," committed adultery with Claudius and possibly had a hand in King Hamlet's murder. / Thou know'st 'tis common; all that lives must die,/Passing through nature to eternity," says Gertrude (25). All of these occurrences influence Hamlet's way of thinking and actions. Hamlet's state of mind is filled with thoughts of vengeance against his father's murderer, yet the guilty murderer is Hamlet's own uncle. That death is common does not soften the loss of his father. "Do not forever with thy vailed lids/ Seek for thy noble father in the dust. This decision puts Hamlet in a heightened state of confusion and temporary madness. Washington Square Press: New York, 1992. The ghost tells Hamlet to avenge him: "If thou hast nature in thee, bear it not. Hamlet ultimately decides against suicide for fear of God's punishment after death. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark.
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