Hamlet’s Madness in Craft

In Act I, Scene V, after hearing the ghost’s demand for revenge, Hamlet says in advance that he will consciously feign madness while seeking the opportune moment to kill Claudius. Therefore, it is hard to conclude that he coincidentally became insane after making such a vow. Hamlet’s supposed madness not only becomes his way of relating to the other characters during the majority of the play, but also that which develops his character as throughout the play. Still, the question remains: Is Hamlet really crazy or just pretending?

The major conflict which seems obscures the possibility of obtaining clarity on the answer to this question is Hamlet’s inability to find any certain moral truths as he works his way toward revenge. Even in his intitial encounter with the ghost, Hamlet questions the general appearances of things around him and worries about whether or not he can trust his perceptions, his senses, not trusting in his father’s apparition and its words. Since, he is all too thoughtful, Hamlet’s knowledegable choice to pretend madness will, every so often, lead him close to actual madness. Indeed, one might argue that because of this conflict, it is impossible to say for certain whether or not Hamlet actually does go mad, and, if so, when his feigning becomes reality.

Conversely, Hamlet’s sharp and targeted observations lend significant credence to his feigning madness; most remarkably, he declares, “I am but mad north-north-west: when the wind is southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw” (II.ii.361–362). That is to say, he is only “mad” when he is oriented in a certain way, but that he is lucid the rest of the time. Nevertheless, Hamlet state of confusion somehow translates into a state of mind that is indicative of authent...

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...e his half-apology to Laertes and self-contradiction of his repeated statement that he is only feigning madness, Hamlet’s desire to attain Laertes’ pardon clearly represents an important shift in his mental state. Whereas Hamlet was previously self-obsessed and preoccupied with his family, he is now able to think sympathetically about others. He does not accept responsibility for Polonius’s death, but does seem to act more compassionately after the upset of Ophelia’s death.

In conclusion, and in light of Hamlet, one should ask onself the following question: if someone in a rational frame of mind chooses to act as if actually crazy, for the purpose of abusing others, while giving free license to speech and thought to make the role seem more complete, could one be wholly certain at what point that someone stops feigning madness and actually starts to be insane?