Melancholy in Hamlet

1043 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: —hamlet’s melancholy as a character

Melancholy in Hamlet

Melancholy has caused many to look down on the world and themselves, driving themselves to suicide or treating their life like it has no meaning. Hamlet is a lonely and melancholic soul who doesn't think highly of women or his own life. Melancholy forms the basis of Hamlet's character starting with the moment he arrives in Denmark and hitting a low note when Ophelia dies. Thoughts of suicide loomed throughout the play commencing with the news of old Hamlet's death and showing in his "To be or not to be" soliloquy. Throughout the entire play, Hamlet has various opinions and views, which show how he disrespects women, especially the one he should love the most, his mother. All of these character traits of Hamlet are well described by Shakespeare in every line spoken by Hamlet. These traits show the reader who the real Hamlet is, during the time that hamlet himself does now know who he is.

Melancholy is the first emotion we see in Hamlet. Upon his arrival in Denmark, Hamlet receives the tragic news that his father died. When he arrives, he realises that Denmark has changed in a way that doesn't please him. " 'Tis an unweeded garden that grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature possess it merely," (I; ii; 135-137), is a reference to the changed Denmark that Hamlet has grown unfamiliar to. Melancholy is also evident when he realises that Ophelia has died. When Hamlet says " Woo't weep? Woo't fight? Woo't fast? Woo't tear thyself? Woo't drink up esill? Eat a crocodile? I'll do't. Dost thou come here to whine? To outface me with leaping in her grave? " (V; I; 252-254), he means he would do anything to be with the woman he loves at that moment, and would 'be buried quick with her' (V; I; 255...

... middle of paper ...

...rs and is not afraid to say what is on his mind.

Although many have turned on the world, Hamlet is not one to give up without a fight. Hamlet indeed does have a lonely and melancholic soul, which makes him contemplate suicide and causes him to lash out at the opposite sex. Hamlet's sadness is evident as he arrives in Denmark as well appearing when his true love, Ophelia, dies. Suicide is on his mind when situations do not go his way. Disrespecting his mother is apparent when Hamlet speaks his mind about his mother's marriage. Hamlet has a way of mixing up his attributes with his flaws, causing himself to be indecisive about his life. He was also envious of others, when he was the one other’s could have envied. The play taught the readers that they should fight for what they believe in and not to give up until they have achieved their ultimate goal.

Show More
Related

  • Psychoeducational Group Case Study

    728 Words  | 2 Pages

    A women group members may find themselves addressing anxiety, fear, stress, depression, and other feelings that one may have experienced. (Graham-Bermann & Miller-Graff, 2015). In addition, women that are pregnant tend to have babies that have a low birth weight (Graham- Bermann & Miller-Graff, 2015). On the other hand, men may feel some of the same feelings. However, there is little information about female abusers and the men that are abused by them. Women that have been found guilty of intimate partner violence are required to attend the same groups as male perpetrators (Walker,

    Read More

  • Hamlet Literary Analysis - Stages of Grief

    1300 Words  | 3 Pages

    While Hamlet may still be feeling depressed Hamlet moves into the stage of denial and isolation. Hamlet feels the effects of denial and isolation mostly due to his love, Ophelia. Both Hamlet’s grief and his task constrain him from realizing this love, but Ophelia’s own behavior clearly intensifies his frustration and anguish. By keeping the worldly and disbelieving advice of her brother and father as “watchmen” to her “heart” (I.iii.46), she denies the heart’s affection not only in Hamlet, but in herself; and both denials add immeasurably to Hamlet’s sense of loneliness and loss—and anger. Her rejection of him echoes his mother’s inconstancy and denies him the possibility even of imagining the experience of loving an...

    Read More

  • If Martin Luther King Were Ali

    549 Words  | 2 Pages

    I somewhat believe that the death of Dr. King was a conspiracy. So many questions about the assassination have not been answered, and the ones that have, are filled with loopholes. I think that the government knows more than they tell us they do, but maybe not knowing certain things is better.

    Read More

  • Sex and Creativity: Unveiling the Connection

    752 Words  | 2 Pages

    After taking a closer look at the study, here are five things we can take away about the link between sex and creativity.

    Read More

  • Hamlet and his battle with depression

    1756 Words  | 4 Pages

    Hamlet, a Shakespearean character, constantly struggles in a battle with his mind. He leads a very trying life that becomes too much for him to handle. Hamlet experiences hardships so horrible and they affect him so greatly that he is unable escape his dispirited mood. In speaking what he feels, Hamlet reveals his many symptoms of depression, a psychological disorder. While others can move on with life, Hamlet remains in the past. People do not understand his behavior and some just assume he is insane. However, Hamlet is not insane. He only pretends to be mad. Because Hamlet never receives treatment for his disorder, it only gets worse and eventually contributes to his death.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Memento

    716 Words  | 2 Pages

    Encoding failure can be explained as not committing a piece of information into your long-term because of lack of focus or not paying attention to the information presented. When thinking about this particular theory I am reminded of Leonard’s photos. He has a picture of everything from the sign from the motel he his residing to his car as a substitute for imbedding new memories. The decay theory is describes as the process of losing memories that are not used so they slowly leave our minds. Sometimes we are not able to recall something because we have not though about it. This theory explains why we cannot remember exactly how to solve old high school math test problems years after we graduate. We are not practicing these types of problems therefore, we cannot recall them as they simply fade away. We also have the theory of interference. This can be caused when we are not focused on something and our attention was divided. Retroactive interference can be explained as “out with the old and in with the new.” You are at a loss because you cannot remember the old password to your computer because the new password is the one you have forcibly remembered. This leaves you to forgetting the older password in the process. There is an example of this type of interference found in the film when Leonard is looking for a pen trying to focus on writing his argument with Natalie down, but he is

    Read More

  • Is Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs?

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a theory in psychology that was first presented by Abraham Maslow in a paper entitled “A Theory of Human Motivation” in 1943. The theory includes five hierarchy levels of needs and is usually displayed as a pyramid. The bottom level is “Physiological”, the next level is “Safety”, the level above that is “Social”, the next level is “Esteem” and the highest level is “Self-actualization”. As told by McLeod (2007) an individual must fulfill lower level needs before advancing upwards towards the next level of needs. The bottom level, “Physiological” needs are basic physical requirements such as; food, water sleep and warmth, the next level up is “Security” and it refers to

    Read More

  • Comparing Cathedral, By Raymond Carver's Cathedral And A Pair Of Tickets

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    Her tone is so happy through out the whole story because she is so happy to go to China to meet her new family members and also rekindle with old family members. “And I can’t help myself. I also have misty eyes, as if I had seen this a long, long time ago, and had almost forgotten.” (264) She said that as she was arriving to China, showing how happy she was. On the other hand, the main character who is nameless in Cathedral is so bitter through out the whole story. His wife even mentions that he doesn’t have any friends. The only time he didn’t seem like he was in a bad mood was at the end of the story, when drew a cathedral with the blind man, so that the blind man could “see” what a cathedral looked like. Robert tells the man to draw with his eyes closed, then when he was done, he told him to open his eyes and tell him out the picture looked, but he didn’t. “My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like I was inside anything” (42) He was different now and had a better attitude towards blind

    Read More

  • Grief in Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1120 Words  | 3 Pages

    According to Webster’s Desk Dictionary, grief is defined as “keen mental suffering over affection or loss” (397). Various characters in Hamlet choose to deal with grief in different ways, with many of their methods harmful in the end. Ophelia is dealt two setbacks during the course of the play, one being her father’s death and the other being Hamlet’s disrespectful treatment. Her brother Laertes must also deal with Polonius’s death, as well as Ophelia’s. From the beginning of the play, Hamlet grieves over his father’s murder. His grief is what sparks his quest for revengeand his battle to kill Claudius.

    Read More

  • Hamlet's Grief

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sadness is the first emotion that is usually related to death. In the play, Hamlet does not try to disguise his sorrow after his father’s murder. This sadness is intermingled with disgust for the others around him who moved on with their grief and criticized him for continuing to mourn. After being criticized by Gertrude and Claudius, Hamlet chooses to talk to open space to reveal his feelings (1.2.129-158). Hamlet clearly shows the sadness in his heart, as well as the idea of bitterness. He continually attacks his mother’s quick grieving: “O God, a beast that wants discourse of reason / would have mourned longer” (1.2.150-151). This sadness continues in his fake madness, seeping into conversations that show his need for escape. In a confrontation with Polonius, Hamlet ends the con...

    Read More

  • Historical and Social Symbology in Beowulf

    1490 Words  | 3 Pages

    On the surface, the poem Beowulf seems to be a simple tale of a brave hero who triumphs over three monsters and who engages in several other battles in order to preserve what is just and right. A more thorough reading, however, reveals that the epic poem is filled with events that symbolize historical and social conditions that prevailed during the European reign of the Scandinavians in the seventh century to around the ninth century, following the Danish invasion of England (Sisson 1996).

    Read More

  • Personality Traits Of Hamlet

    503 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is obvious that Hamlet is depressed in this play. His depression can be seen in Act I scene II lines 129-132, when Hamlet says:

    Read More

  • Free Essays - Hamlet as a Tragic Hero

    1445 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet’s anger and grief- primarily stemming from his mother’s marriage to Claudius- brings him to thoughts of suicide, which only subside as a result of it being a mortal and religious sin.  The fact that he wants to take his own life demonstrates a weakness in his character; a sense of cowarness, his decision not to kill himself because of religious beliefs shows that this weakness is balanced with some sense of morality.  Such an obvious paradox is only one example of the inner conflict and turmoil that will eventually lead to Hamlet’s downfall.

    Read More

  • How the Internet Has Changed our Shopping Habits

    3113 Words  | 7 Pages

    The Internet is rapidly becoming widespread and widely used as a tool for globalization across the world. As the Internet became more easily accessible by most people in the world, the web is bringing significant implications and changes to the way we live, including the way we shop. There is a rapid growth with e-commerce and moving businesses onto the web and retail success is no longer about stores and shopping centers. In developed countries, about two thirds of the population have access to the Internet making the option of online shopping is easily accessible to most people (Valerio). With the ease of shopping in your own home there are many benefits of doing your shopping online. Consumers can easily compare prices online, there is a larger range of products on the web, you can save time by having your shopping delivered right to your doorstep and it also overcomes physical barriers. Over the last decade online shopping has challenged and replaced the traditional means of physically going into shops as the digital world has provided customers with further convenience, flexibility and comfort from shopping from your own home.

    Read More

  • The Advantages and Risks of Online Shopping

    1027 Words  | 3 Pages

    The main advantage of online shopping is convenient. Online shops open 24/7. People who live in remote areas do not need to speed long time on the traveling to the stores. Consumers who come from other cities/countries can easily buy the native and specialty goods by just a click instead of going to that cities/countries themselves. The relevant information of products can be received from any location in seconds. Study showed that 72% of online shoppers preferred surf online than go to retail store to attain information about a product (Lokken et al., 2003). Online shopping also has greater price information (as cited...

    Read More

More about Melancholy in Hamlet

Open Document