Effects Of Stress In Hamlet

Post Traumatic Stress

Throughout William Shakespeare’s tragic play, Hamlet, the main character and protagonist, intentionally named Hamlet, is faced with many difficult decisions. In attempt to avenge his father’s death, Hamlet acts confident when he is in the public’s eye but while he is alone he is constantly conflicted by his conscience and his heart. The character of Hamlet is defined by his soliloquies, which include an amalgamation of feelings of guilt and pondering cause and effect. In doing so, Hamlet causes his madness to cloud his judgement. As Prince of Denmark he is held to a higher standard and has a tremendous amount of pressure on his shoulders. After Hamlet’s father’s murder, his mother, Gertrude, decides to form a relationship

When Hamlet gets the chance to speak with Ophelia’s father, Polonius, he puts on the tough guys act because he knows he is well educated and ranked higher in society than Polonius. Although Hamlet displays his confidence on others, behind closed doors he is confused. He says, “Oh, what a rogue and peasant slave am I? / He would drown the stage with tears / And cleave the general ear with horrid speech...Yet, I / A dull and muddy-mettled rascal…” (2.2.562-567). In Hamlet’s third soliloquy, he starts to show his mind’s weakness because he cannot understand why a man can so easily cry over the death of a fictional character, while he is still unable to avenge his own father’s death. He feels guilty, so he concocts a plan of his own that will throw Claudius for a

On this trip, Claudius is actually sending him to his death. While Hamlet pretends to accentuate his madness and go along with Claudius 's demands, he creates a diversion ahead of time. In a convoluted letter back to Claudius, Hamlet claims that he got captured by pirates and he is on his way back. While Hamlet is alone again, he presents his seventh soliloquy saying “Led by delicate and tender prince...How stand I, then, / That have a father killed, a mother stained...And let all sleep” (4.5.56-60). In this soliloquy, Hamlet is once again frustrated with his lack of action. He knows Fortinbras, Prince of Norway, formed an army for an insignificant piece of land and here he is, Prince of Denmark and he can’t even help his father out. He beats himself up over it and wishes he would have just killed Claudius when he had the