Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare is a tale of madness and tragedy. The question is simply this, who is mad? Has Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, gone mad over the deceitful death of his father? Has his own anguish caused him to lose sight of his one true love and everything else in his life that is important? Or has Hamlet caused everyone around him to go mad? All of these questions present many different viewpoints from which one can analyze this story. The plot takes many twists and turns throughout the story, but Hamlet's desire for vengeance against his mother and uncle is constantly present. In the end, everyone pays for the misdeeds of the King and Queen of Denmark.
             The question at hand is was Hamlet mad? Did his father's death and reappearance as a ghost drive him to distance himself from those that loved him most? The answers to these questions are uncertain. We can, however, gather that Hamlet was a very intelligent man with a wealth of feelings and emotion. He is said to be "an admirable and consistent character, deeply acquainted with his own feelings, painting them with such wonderful power and accuracy...Such a mind as Hamlet's is near akin to madness ". We can believe that the deceit of Hamlet's mother and uncle was enough to cause him to lose trust in the people closest to him. We see Hamlet's family and friends turn against him, as the plot grows deeper. They begin to turn against him because of his erratic behavior. This behavior is what has created the illusion in their mind that Hamlet has gone mad. It seems that everybody that he encounters shares this same point-of-view.
             One great example of Hamlet distancing himself from those around him is when he denounces his love for Ophelia. In one scene, Ophelia talks about the love letters that she has received from Hamlet. She tells her father of the love that they have shared and how she wants to mar
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