Examining Hamlet's Insanity in the play ‘Hamlet' by William Shakespeare (Research Paper Sample)

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Examining Hamlet’s Insanity in the play ‘Hamlet’ by William Shakespeare
Insanity can be defined as the state of being seriously mentally ill or madness. Symptoms vary from one person to another. Insanity may show itself through guilt, suicidal thoughts, insomnia, faulty judgment, psychopathic behavior, nervousness or close association with evil forces or evil forces. The relationship between a character and other characters in relation to his behavior can be used to establish whether that particular character is insane. Due to his fascination with the human mind, Shakespeare examines the reasons behind insanity and how it is portrayed in his play. Through the characterization of Hamlet, Shakespeare is able to investigate and illustrate the nature of insanity in its various forms.
In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays the character of Hamlet in a way that supports both the idea that Hamlet is insane and that Hamlet is not mad. In so doing, the author explores the duality of the single human brain, whereby the person shows the duo ability to of being both mentally unstable and mentally stable all at the same time. This is displayed by Hamlet as being probably very divergent in nature and complex to comprehend in Shakespeare’s understanding of insanity. Readers view Hamlet as a man of reflection rather than a man of action.
The notion that Hamlet is not insane is supported by the proposal that he only exhibits insanity so that he can say and behave how he wants and get away with it. In the play by Shakespeare, Hamlet is able to rebuke the marriage of his mother and uncle without getting in trouble. In addition, he calls Polonius a tedious fool and a fishmonger but he walks scot-free. By faking insanity, Hamlet is not only able to get away with whatever he utters, but he is also able to act in cruel manner towards Ophelia. Hamlet is scolded by Gertrude for upsetting his uncle but Hamlet is able to evade the situation by letting his insanity prevail. However, Hamlets ability to think and speak in a logical way shows that he is not really insane as portrayed throughout the play CITATION Tav69 \l 1033 (Taversi).
Hamlet is as rational as everyone else when he is around his friend Horatio. In various instances throughout the play, Hamlet shows his trust in Horatio. Moreover, Hamlet acts irrationally and speak out his opinions about everybody by changing his behavior on the surface. In this case, other characters in the play assumes that Hamlet’s madness is driven by a particular motive.
Claudius and Gertrude are both convinced that Hamlet’s insanity is due to the death of his father and their hasty marriage. For example, in the beginning of the play, both Claudio and Gertrude plead with Hamlet to end his period of mourning. Here, they both plead with Hamlet even though they suspect that his madness might be driven by other motives CITATION Tav69 \l 1033 (Taversi).
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern do not know what to tell Claudius about the motive of Hamlet’s madness since they are not able to get the truth from him. Guildenstern observes that Hamlet might be faking his insanity so that he does not have to explain himself to anyone. The only reason that the two men get for Hamlets madness is that Denmark is too narrow for his mind.
Although in most cases Hamlet is illustrated as having feigned his insanity, Hamlet also exhibits symptoms that are associated with insanity. Shakespeare is able to examine why a person’s mind might start degenerating. He does this by portraying Hamlet experiencing symptoms of insanity such as suicidal thoughts, loss of reality, lack of good judgment, intense anger and association with ghost. Gertrude Hamlets mother does not wait for the mourning of his father pass, before she goes ahead and marries his uncle. Hamlet sees this as a betrayal of his father. As a result Hamlet feels suicidal, but he is frustrated since he is aware that it is against his Christian faith
After being informed by his dead father’s ghost that it was Claudio who killed his father, Hamlet feels deceived by her mother due to her marriage with his uncle. In realizing this, Hamlets attitude towards women, Principally Gertrude and Ophelia, becomes vicious. This is clearly demonstrated when Hamlet expresses intense anger or an extreme level of cruelty when he is around Gertrude or Ophelia. He frequently rebukes his mother through threats. The rage that Hamlet takes out on Gertrude and Ophelia can viewed as a symptom of degenerating mind.
Although Hamlet sees his father’s ghost, this cannot be a justification for insanity...