Madness in William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Madness was considered a seriously bad thing in the 17th century, but
the meaning for madness now compared to then has changed dramatically.
Hamlet in the 17th century plays may have seem mad by Shakespeare's
audience then but not now in the 21st century. In the 21st century a
madman means an insane person, which is quite an offensive word. But
in the 17th century a madman was just a person acting a bit out of
character.
Hamlet's behaviour throughout the play changes from a high to a low
quite a lot. Although we do never find out if hamlet is sane or not,
his first line I find is a little bit confusing, "a little more than
kin, and less than kind" I don't really know what it means and sounds
like a sign of madness. As we progress through the play then hamlet is
slowly and slowly becoming more and more mad, unlike Ophelia's
madness, which is very sudden and is spurred by a certain event, the
death of her father. The play begins with guards, whose main
significance in the play is to give credibility to the ghost. If
Hamlet were to see his father's ghost in private, the argument for his
madness would greatly improve. Yet, not one, but three men together
witness the ghost before even thinking to notify Hamlet.
There are many events that may have impelled hamlet to go mad. The
first one being the loss of his father, there is however no proof for
this as it happened ahead of the play so that we do not know if he was
already mad. The second main event that may have caused hamlet to go
mad is seeing the ghost of his father this is one of the most obvious
one as this may make anyone go mad. But he seemed sane enough to
understand that the ghost was saying that his uncle killed his father
so this is a very doubtful answer to his madness.
Another event that could have turned hamlet mad was the marriage of
But I am convinced that he was "…not in madness, but mad in craft." I also
... is a fictional character. This is also true because to categorize a person as ‘mad’ or melancholic there has to be a defined societal norm but that norm is different for everyone making that classification nearly impossible. Hamlets madness also acts as a buffer for speaking the truth so bluntly that it seems impossible to agree upon. His language ensures no one is able to decide if he is sane or not. Ultimately Shakespeare uses Hamlets ‘madness’ to share the truth that humans categorize each other to affirm their own sanity against someone different.
“I plead guilty by reason of insanity,” is Hamlet’s plea if he was sitting in a modern courtroom. In Hamlet by William Shakespeare, it is evident that Hamlet himself is indeed out of his mind. The reader understands the reason for his anger and frustration, but how he “fixes” the situation is beyond a sane mind. To be fair, his madness deals more with emotional instability referred to as melancholy or madness than a person who is incoherent. Hamlet’s madness becomes clear in his actions and thoughts, in his erratic relationship with Ophelia, and in the murder of Polonius.
death when his mother and the king enter the room and question him on his
Hamlet decides to portray an act of insanity, as part of his plan to seek revenge for his father's murder. As the play progresses, the reader may start to believe Hamlet’s “insane” act, but throughout the scenes, Hamlet shows that he knows right from wrong, good from bad, and his friends from his enemies. Hamlet shows that he still has power and control over his actions. As Elliot says “Hamlet madness is less than madness and more feigned”. Hamlet portrays a mad man, in order to be free from questioning, thus allowing him to have an easier path towards revenge.
Intelligence is often mistaken for brilliance, and conversely genius is mistaken for madness. Some of the greatest minds have been misconstrued in there time, and it is not until their whole life is taken into observance from the outside looking in, that their genius is realized and appreciated. Websters dictionary defines madness as "the act of being foolish or illogical." Ironically this form of thought has prompted some of the greatest advancements in government, science, and technology. It was the thought that every common man and woman should be included in his or her respective governments that prompted Democracy, a form of government unheard of before the signing of the Magna Carta. It was scientists and inventors thinking outside of the lines that inspired the cure for Small Pox and the invention of the computer. It can clearly be seen that serious thought is often the by-product of irrational thinking, this is also true for literature. It is while in madness, both feigned as well as sincere, that the characters in William Shakespeare's Hamlet are able to practice true mental clarity and express themselves in a manner free of treachery and falsehood.
Throughout Shakespeare?s play, Hamlet, the main character, young Hamlet, is faced with the responsibility of attaining vengeance for his father?s murder. He decides to feign madness as part of his plan to gain the opportunity to kill Claudius. As the play progresses, his depiction of a madman becomes increasingly believable, and the characters around him react accordingly. However, through his inner thoughts and the apparent reasons for his actions, it is clear that he is not really mad and is simply an actor simulating insanity in order to fulfill his duty to his father.
Macbeth displays the characteristics of an insane character because of his foolish acts and poor mental state when he visualizes the floating dagger, speaks to a ghost, becomes obsessed with killing others and with the idea of being invincible. When Macbeth begins talking to a ghost, his insanity becomes very apparent to the reader. From another one of the witches prophesies, Macbeth is threatened by Banquo because his sons are to be king one day as well. Macbeth begins to see Banquo’s and makes foolish comments. He says, “[Macbeth] The table’s full.
Shakespeare's tragic hero, Hamlet, and his sanity can arguably be discussed. Many portions of the play supports his loss of control in his actions, while other parts uphold his ability of dramatic art. The issue can be discussed both ways and altogether provide significant support to either theory. There are indications from Hamlet throughout the play of his mind's well being.
Hamlet is without a doubt one of the most complex pieces to interpret for many different scholars and people. The question of the truth behind his madness has become a debate among anyone who lays eyes on the play. In fact, madness becomes a large role within the play that will cause many situations as well as effect them. I believe Hamlet unintentionally went mad attempting to act as a mad man.
" You fancy me mad? Madmen know nothing about this. But you should have seen how wisely I proceeded-with what caution-with what foresight-with what dissimulation I went to work!" In addition, every night at midnight the narrator slowly went into the room of the old man. He claims this was done so wisely that he could not be insane.
Throughout the Shakespearian play, Hamlet, the main character is given the overwhelming responsibility of avenging his father’s "foul and most unnatural murder" (I.iv.36). Such a burden can slowly drive a man off the deep end psychologically. Because of this, Hamlet’s disposition is extremely inconsistent and erratic throughout the play. At times he shows signs of uncontrollable insanity. Whenever he interacts with the characters he is wild, crazy, and plays a fool. At other times, he exemplifies intelligence and method in his madness. In instances when he is alone or with Horatio, he is civilized and sane. Hamlet goes through different stages of insanity throughout the story, but his neurotic and skeptical personality amplifies his persona of seeming insane to the other characters. Hamlet comes up with the idea to fake madness in the beginning of the play in order to confuse his enemies. However, for Hamlet to fulfill his duty of getting revenge, he must be totally sane. Hamlet’s intellectual brilliance make it seem too impossible for him to actually be mad, for to be insane means that one is irrational and without any sense. When one is irrational, one is not governed by or according to reason. So, Hamlet is only acting mad in order to plan his revenge on Claudius.
situation and rid all the limitations that a “cultured” state of mind would pose. The term “mad” is defined as mentally disturbed, while the term “sane” is defined as to be free from mental derangement. In this tragedy, I feel that the characters that were deemed sane, such Claudius, are just as crazy, if not more so, than they deem Hamlet to be.
Davis, Tenney L. “The Sanity of Hamlet.” The Journal of Philosophy 18.23 (1921): 629–634. JSTOR. Web. 25 Apr. 2014.
...r the reader to notice the parallels between them and the differences from everyone else. He also does this so that we can see the contribution it has on the characters. The madness of each individual is not itself realistic, but the idea that death, grievance, and revenge can drive someone to do things that seem to be mad or make them do things out of their nature.