Ever since the first production of William Shakespeare's Hamlet, audiences and scholars have debated over the question of whether or not Hamlet's madness is real or feigned. Hamlet's moods seem to change from one scene to the next, leaving the kingdom and readers wondering what are his true intentions and state of mind. During most of the play, Hamlet's true intentions, i.e. the revenge of his father's death, are not revealed and the kingdom willing believes that he is in deed, mad. A love of acting enables him to feign madness and to appear a grieved, love stricken, Prince in order to find the perfect opportunity to enact his revenge. It is necessary for him to feign madness in order to successfully fulfill his obligations as a Prince, to find the truth about his father's death, and to find the peace in himself that justice will be served.
Hamlet is melancholy in his first appearance. He is in mourning over the death of his father. The black clothes he wears reflects his dark mood. His mother, the Queen, is concerned that he has mourned long enough, and needs to get on with his life. In his response, Hamlet states:
Seems, Madam? Nay, it is. I know not "seems."
'Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother,
Nor customary suits of solemn black,
Nor windy suspiration of forced breath,
No, nor the fruitful river in the eye,
Nor the dejected havior of the visage,
Together with all forms, moods, shapes of grief,
That can denote me truly. These indeed seem,
For they are actions that a man might play;
But I have within which passeth show-
These but the trappings and the suits of woe. (I.ii.81-91)
Hamlet is revealing the depth of loss he has for his father. This melancholy should not be mistaken for madness. He is truly grieving for his father, and will later do whatever it takes in order to avenge him. He is also warning his mother with his words that there are
man...