...Hamlet is a young adult from the sixteen hundreds, he is going through a very tough time in his life. His father has been killed and is back as a ghost. His mother is now married to his uncle. Hamlet is known as the person who goes mad during this play. Everyone has turned against him, the only option he had to maybe save himself was to act mad. Hamlet proves he is not actually mad because he talks to other people perfectly normal. He puts on his act only when he needs to, which is around people that he can not trust. He is afraid they will tell the king the things he says that is why he acts mad. Hamlet despises the king, his uncle father. Hamlet once said, “But my uncle-father and aunt-mother are deceived.” Hamlet despises their relationship and wants it to end. Hamlet is the only one that can talk to the ghost of Old Hamlet. The ghost told Hamlet “I’m the ghost of your father, doomed for a certain period of time to walk the earth at night, while during the day I’m trapped in the fires of purgatory until I’ve done penance for my past sins.” Admitting it is Hamlets father Hamlet is talking to. He is the only one that can talk to the ghost because the ghost only wants to talk to him. Others explained by saying they could see him but could not talk to him, because he only wanted to talk to his son....
Words: 448 - Pages: 2
...story of Hamlet there are multiple villains and no heroes. Everybody has a fault that leads to something tragic or dramatic during the story the main villain in this story is Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. In Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark the main character Hamlet goes through a series of very unfortunate events throughout his life, and mostly negative things come out of them. During the beginning of the play we find out that Hamlet loses his father the King of Denmark. This causes a great depression to Hamlet. Soon after Hamlet becomes even more upset due to the fact that he finds out that his uncle Claudius will be marrying his mother Gertrude and be the new King of Denmark. This causes Hamlet to go crazy, insane, and mad. Over the course of the play Hamlets madness continues to build due to everything that happens between the beginning and the end. At the end Hamlet has gone completely and incredibly mad. This madness ends up breaking out of him and spread throughout the ending scene of the play. The main reason for Hamlets madness is due to his father passing away and him having to deal with his uncle Claudius. He soon finds out that his uncle will be marrying his mother. These events only get him upset, sad, and gloomy. Later in the story one of his friends and the guards of Elsinore confront a mysterious creature wandering the castle. Hamlet ends up discovering that this creature is a ghost, and not just a ghost but the spirit tells Hamlet “I am...
Words: 1136 - Pages: 5
...Hamlet is thought to be one of William Shakespeare's most honored works and is a piece of art in its form that has been studied in depth by many scholars since its time. The storyline of Hamlet follows a vein of madness that begins with Claudius' murdering King Hamlet and ending with the tragic killing of almost every main character. Many reasons have been proposed for the ultimate tragedy, which occurs at the conclusion of the play. Indeed Hamlet is mad, but the other characters' madness also helped in contributing to his own. It is or is it not true that Hamlet was faking his insanity? Highly doubtful that Hamlet was faking the whole thing. The meaning for insanity on Dictionary.com is “a permanent disorder of the mind.” Hamlet didnt have a permanent disorder of the mind he knew what he was doing and even planned the majority of the events that happened. Most of the time anyway. Having your father die is bad enough, but to have your mother marry your uncle, within a few weeks of your father’s death? Then to see the ghost of your dead father. That would drive anyone a little insane, but maybe not to the extent that everyone thought Hamlet was acting. Hamlet is torn between acting sane and letting everyone else see him as insane. Throughout the story Hamlet pretends to be insane and even dies acting out this front of insanity. At first it seems as though Hamlet is just acting, but then it appears that he does truly indeed go insane. Even after he has gathered evidence against...
Words: 1932 - Pages: 8
...madness whether it is feigned or not to be presented in literary works. William Shakespeare and Euripides depict this theme in their works Hamlet and Medea. Medea and Hamlet have experienced familial hardships; as a result they believe that the only way to obtain what they desire is through manipulation. Indeed both characters have become masters at the art of deceiving. In both works the theme of madness can be discussed as we cannot be certain that these personas are truly lunatics. Madness can be here considered as a tool to achieve ones end. Indeed Medea and Hamlet feign insanity in order to achieve revenge over their disloyal family. Medea and Hamlet have been betrayed by their family, the first through the murder of his father by his uncle and the marriage of his mother to the same man and the second by her husband who has agreed to marry somebody else. Both are left alone dealing with these events. As madness may be described as “mental incapacity caused by an unmentionable injury”, it is with no surprise that Hamlet or Medea would fall in the hands of insanity. However their actions and words prove the opposite. We can thus suppose that they are both feigning madness to achieve revenge. Medea thinks about the consequences before taking action “what state would take me in? What friend would offer me his land as refuge”. Hamlet weighs also his options as he does not know whether he should defend his father’s honor or not, “Now might I do it pat, now he is praying;...
Words: 1630 - Pages: 7
...Humes English IV April 4th, 2013 Hamlets Sanity Is Hamlet mad, is he sane, what is he going to do with his madness or sanity? In this mind twisting play, Hamlet by: William Shakespeare, there are many situations throughout the play that are enough to bring Hamlet to insanity. Take, for example, Act IV, scene II, after Polonius's death. Hamlet's day has been crazy, he finally decides that Claudius has killed his father. The chance to kill Claudius confronts him, and he comes very close to convincing Gertrude that Claudius killed his father. Hamlet accidentally kills Polonius and finally, the ghost of his father visits him. Though at this point these situations create plenty of reasons for Hamlet to be insane, he remains sharp and witty. Hamlet remains in this state of madness, .his intelligence remains clear, but his way of thinking takes a turn for the worse. Hamlet reveals to his friends and his mother of his plans to pretend act insane. He tells Horatio that he is going to “feign madness”, and that if Horatio” notices any strange behavior from Hamlet, it is because he is putting on an act”. (I.v.166-180). Hamlet also tells his mother that he is not mad, "but mad in craft." (III.iv.188-199). In addition to his confessions, Hamlet's madness only shows itself when he is in the presence of certain characters. When Hamlet is around Polonius, Claudius, Gertrude, Ophelia, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, he behaves in a bad manor. When Hamlet is around Horatio, Bernardo, Francisco...
Words: 632 - Pages: 3
...P.4 28 March 2012 The Difference of Insanity: Hamlet against Ophelia In the Renaissance, madness was the theme of William Shakespeare's writings. He attended grammar school, but nothing further. So for his writings to be written with intelligence, it was greatly admired by many. Shakespeare’s career was in the time of Elizabeth I, 1558-1603 and James I, 1566-1625. His writings were not his own original work. It has been said that he took the story, Hamlet, from Saxo Grammaticus and changed the way Hamlet was portrayed from his story into a more “mad” version of Hamlet that waits to get revenge and is not truly mad from the start. It is also said that Shakespeare stole a majority of his stories from other writers during his time, making them more well-known and changing the moral of the story. In the Renaissance, people looked at insanity as if it were a crime. It was looked down upon. People did not understand that it was something that occurred within the mind, so they thought if they sprayed people with water it would shock them out of their insanity. The Renaissance culture also gave an intellectual rendition to three specific kinds of madness: folly, demonic possession and melancholia. In that time, thoughts of madness were confused by religious beliefs and sometimes even mistaken for nonsense. The dictionary defines madness as “extreme anger, excitement, or foolishness” and in Hamlet, Hamlet is characterized as insane because he fits the definition the dictionary gives...
Words: 1294 - Pages: 6
...In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the protagonist, Hamlet, leads an antic disposition that causes his downfall and leads him to insanity. The cause of his insanity was quickly developed at the beginning when the sudden death of his father, King Hamlet, was announced to him. The tragic Hamlet plotted to murder his father’s murderer, thus the act of madness was introduced. His antic disposition affects his judgment, destroys relationships and creates a belief that he is truly mad. Throughout the play, Hamlet is consumed with anger of his father’s death which causes him to act through emotion and without reason, thus affecting his judgement. Hamlet’s main goal is to avenge the death of his father. His actions to do so are hindered because of the irrational decisions he has made through the antic disposition he has put on that has finally led to his misguided judgement. Hamlet’s irrational decisions began after the death of his father. As any normal human being would be allowed to grieve, Hamlet was not, he was expected to accept the death of his father and move on. “Do not for ever with thy vailed lids, Seek for thy noble father in the dust. Thou know'st 'tis common. All that lives must die, passing through nature to eternity.” (Act 1, Scene 2. 69-74) These lines spoken by the Queen, Hamlet’s mother, are proof that Hamlet is obliged to accept his father’s death. With little time to grieve and a mother that seems to care less about her deceased husband, Hamlet’s mind was given the...
Words: 1495 - Pages: 6
...In Shakespear´s "Hamlet", the character of Prince Hamlet pretends to be insane. For a person in his situation, having almost everyone thinking that you are crazy can be an advantage. The king, his father, had died, and just a few weeks after his tragic loss, a ghost appears to Hamlet. This ghost has the appearance of his father. The spirit tells Hamlet that he did not die peacefully, but instead his brother, Claudius, murdered him by pouring venom into his ear. Claudius usurped the throne and also married his brother´s wife, Gertrude. Hamlet swears to his father´s spirit that he is going to avenge his death, and he would commit this by acting insanity. There are actions in the play that would be almost impossible to achieve if Hamlet did not act like a mentally unstable person. The clues that we can find in this tragedy helps proving that Hamlet´s sanity is the motive behind his simulated madness. The first reason Hamlet has to make everyone think he had gone mad is to accomplish the freedom he gains because of this. Societies have taboos and social norms that people must follow to be accepted. However, there are some exceptions, like the mentally unstable or the insane, so Hamlet realizes that being crazy would...
Words: 1841 - Pages: 8
...A PLAY REVIEW ON HAMLET The play Hamlet was performed at the Toronto Centre for arts theatre. I saw the Hamlet play on a Thursday 1st May 2014, which commenced at 11:30am. The author of the play being William Shakespeare and was directed by Charles Roy. The cast consisted of: Jonas Noel as Hamlet, Alanna Bale as Ophelia, Joshua Browne as Laertes, Benjamin Blais as Rosencrantz ghost, Jeremy Hutton as Claudius Jeffery Simlett as Polonius, Mitchell court as Guildenstern, Bernardo, Osric and player, Nadeem Umar-Khitab as Horatio, Anna Wheeler as Gertrude. I think the major conflict in the play is when Hamlet tries to revenge for his fathers death by murdering his uncle, Claudius and a good theme for this play is revenge. Also the dominant tone for the play is serious and ironical. The play was serious by the use of the sounds and light effects which causes suspense and ironical in the part of when Jonas as Hamlet tries to pretend by acting insane which the audience knows about but the characters in the play feels that he’s actually gone insane. I think the concept and interpretational approach was good because they acted their parts rightfully and the authors that acted the play were very loud and audible to the audience, as we didn’t need to strain our ears to hear them. All the elements of the production was compatible and co- ordinated because the play went in line with the book and at a point it made me feel it was actually real that hamlet, Claudius and other...
Words: 747 - Pages: 3
...Many questions have been asked if Hamlet, McMurphy and Chief Bromden are crazy or sane. Hamlet is the main character from a play by William Shakespeare called Hamlet. McMurphy and Chief are characters from a novel by Ken Kesey called One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. There have been many scenes in the play where Hamlet might seams crazy but without a doubt he is sane. Even though McMurphy do some crazy things he is definitely not crazy because he is aware of his actions and he does all these insane things just to make the Nurse Ratched mad. Chief Bromden’s character can easily be identified as sane because he knows how to stay out of trouble and from getting electric shock treatments. Hamlet says to Horatio “How strange or odd soe'er I bear myself, As I perchance hereafter shall think meet to put an antic disposition on,” (I. v. 172-174). This quote is said right after when the Ghost tells Hamlet that his uncle Claudius has murdered his father. Hamlet plans on pretending to be a crazy so he can get revenge on Claudius. He also mentions to Horatio that to keep this to himself as a secret. This is perfect quote to proof Hamlet is not crazy and puts on an act as a madman. When Hamlet talks to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, he tells them in a way that he would be portray as a madman that he has been acting insane. “I am but mad north-north-west: when the wind is southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw.” (II. ii. 132-133). He also let them know that their true reason for visiting...
Words: 766 - Pages: 4
...Shakespeare's play "Hamlet" is about a complex protagonist, Hamlet, who faces adversity and is destined to murder the individual who killed his father. Hamlet is a character who although his actions and emotions may be one of an insane person, in the beginning of the book it is clear that Hamlet decides to fake madness in order for his plan to succeed in killing Claudius. Hamlet is sane because throughout the play he only acts crazy in front of certain people, to others he acts properly and displays proper prince like behavior who is able to cope with them without sounding crazy, and even after everything that has been going on in his life he is able to take revenge by killing his father's murderer. In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare Hamlet is sane but acts insane to fulfill his destiny of getting vengeance on his father's murderer. Hamlet throughout the play seems insane but in reality it is only an act to achieve his goal of killing his father's murderer. Hamlet chooses to go mad so he has an advantage over his opponent and since he is the Prince of Denmark cert... ... middle of paper ... ...al individual's, if an individual was crazy they would not be thinking everything through and if someone were crazy they would definitely not have the capabilities of outsmarting someone, like how Hamlet outsmarted Claudius. All these reasons and much more are why Hamlet is not insane, he is as sane of an individual as any other, but unlike others he had to go through...
Words: 280 - Pages: 2
...Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the main character, Prince Hamlet, displays erratic behavior; however, he is not insane. Hamlet describes what he is doing to multiple characters, showing that he understands what he is doing, only acts mad around certain characters, demonstrating that he has enough of a grasp on reality that he can act normal when he wishes, and his actions do not parallel the madness of another character, Ophelia, who is clearly genuinely insane. The idea of insanity lends itself to the lack of ability to articulate the logic behind one’s actions; however, Hamlet is fully capable of...
Words: 632 - Pages: 3
...William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, there are many themes of betrayal, plotting, deceit, and revenge. With so much going on it can be hard to distinguish a character’s motives and plots, especially with regards to the main protagonist, Hamlet. This clearly disturbed character, whose problems over the course of the story take their toll on his emotional as well as physical health. His plot for revenge is never explicitly clear to the reader, as his monologues get more and more dark and vague. This leaves a lot of his actions up to interpretation, most clearly his descent into madness, which while some see as an act, others see as the result of a deep depression. Many people have vastly different opinions on the topic, and for the rest of time they will only be that, as Shakespeare is no longer here to give a definitive answer of his intentions. That is not to say that these different ideas have no merit however, as it has been a topic that has been heavily debated for years. Some say that Hamlet was driven insane by the death of his father, and the “betrayal” of his mother. Others say that his madness was all a plot to trick and confuse the antagonist, Claudius. While others even see it as a mixture of both, with Hamlet slowly losing his mind over...
Words: 1432 - Pages: 6
...Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark In the Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, by William Shakespeare, the sane Hamlet occasionally switches between the realms of sanity and insanity. When madness suits Hamlet's purpose, he puts on an "antic disposition" (I.V.173). On the other hand, when sanity proves worthy, Hamlet reverts back to being logical. Hamlet claims he is "mad north-north-west" (II.ii.376), meaning he is mad sometimes and sane other times. Therefore, to achieve his short-term goals, Hamlet shifts between sanity and insanity, which ironically, slows his overarching goal of revenge. To begin, Hamlet shifts into the realm of insanity to achieve his short-term goals. Hamlet uses his insanity as a weapon, changing insanity into the form of words or action. Furthermore, Hamlet is only insane towards his enemies or his enemy's allies. For example, Hamlet attacks Ophelia, who has allied herself with Claudius, with words: "are you honest" (III.i.104), "are you fair" (III.i.106). Hamlet "speak[s] daggers" (III.ii.387) to Gertrude, because she is an obstacle to Hamlet. Also, Hamlet slays Polonius so violently that Hamlet guarantees that Polonius is "dead, for a ducat, dead" (III.iv.25). Hamlet gravely harms both Ophelia and Gertrude with his words of insanity, while sending Polonius to the grave with his actions of insanity. All three people, Ophelia, Gertrude, and Polonius, are Claudius' allies, and by wounding Claudius' allies, Hamlet is indirectly wounding...
Words: 818 - Pages: 4
...humorous play that is William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is a story of complete lunacy. Prince Hamlets Uncle Claudius kills his father King Hamlet so he could have the throne. After becoming King, Claudius takes the opportunity to become Prince Hamlet's "Uncle Father" by marrying Queen Gertrude (Prince Hamlet’s mother, King Hamlet's easy, now ex-wife) in what seemed like a mere minute after King Hamlet's funeral. Prince Hamlet was told by the ghost of his father that Claudius was his murderer. Hamlet goes mad at the fact that not only was his mother now his "Aunt Mother", and his Uncle was now his "Uncle Father", his dead father appears from the dead telling him to avenge his murder that came at the hands of his now "Uncle Father" aka King Claudius. Hamlet is just as mad (only in love) with Ophelia, who is daughter of Polonius (King Hamlet's ex "right hand man"), whom Hamlet ends up killing during the story. Ophelia ends up killing herself because Hamlet makes her go insane. Hamlet is torn between how he should deal with all of the drama surrounding him. He sort of taunts Claudius with the fact that he knows what he's done to King Hamlet and tries to expose his guilt by directing a performance of how the murdered played out during a pageant. Claudius tries to have Hamlet killed during his return to studying abroad. Hamlet knows that Claudius tries to have him killed and outsmarts him completely. Upon returning from his schooling, Hamlet finds out that Ophelia drowned herself and...
Words: 559 - Pages: 3
