Throughout Shakespeare’s career he superficially wrote about love, ironic tragedy, drama, and so much more. In his play, Hamlet, he wrote about a character, that I think, could be diagnosed with a psychological disorder, known as Bipolar disorder. In this play there are many signs of his bipolar-ness including: being happy, then all of a sudden being furious, “Behaving impulsively and engaging in pleasurable, high-risk behaviors.”(Bipolar Disorder) Hamlet’s behavior in the play relates to a story that took place in Texas, in 2004. A 35 year old named Dena Schlosser killed her 11 month year old daughter for no apparent reason but later still wanted to take it to court to say plead that she was innocent. Both of these stories are interesting in the sense that neither of them realized that they had such a disorder …show more content…
In act III scene IV of the play, Hamlet sees a figure behind a set of curtains and stabs through it thinking it is Claudius, but kills Polonius instead. When others ask him about what he has done he responds by saying “a horrible act-almost as bad, my good mother, as killing a king and marrying his brother.” (Shakespeare). Overall, he did this because of the death of his father. No matter what Hamlets intentions were, it was a psychotic and selfish act. Even if it was the king, he was having a conversation with his mom, and has a sudden mood swing, then took someone’s life because he thought it was someone he despised. In my opinion, Hamlet suffers from these conditions because of the tragedy and the love for Ophelia. Recent studies show that “the death of a loved one (Hamlets father), the birth of a child, or even falling in love can trigger bipolar disorder in some people.” (Nordqvist) In theory, if Hamlet would not have suffered from these events leading up to his diagnoses of bipolar disorder, all the tragedies in the play would have been
He is mentally disturbed by the thought of his uncle killing his father to the point where he loses touch with sanity. Hamlet is a tragedy that will never have a straightforward answer as to if he faked being crazy or not. My belief is that Hamlet had in fact lost touch with reality. The slow decline of his mental health throughout lead me to believe he did go crazy, even if he might have been faking it at first. After seeing his father’s ghost, I believe he started acting like he had lost his mind to blame his future actions on the fact that he was crazy. I also believe he truly did lose his mind shortly after when he found out about Claudius murdering his
death when his mother and the king enter the room and question him on his
In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet the main character Hamlet experiences many different and puzzling emotions. He toys with the idea of killing himself and then plays with the idea of murdering others. Many people ask themselves who or what is this man and what is going on inside his head. The most common question asked about him is whether or not he is sane or insane. Although the door seems to swing both ways many see him as a sane person with one thought on his mind, and that is revenge. The first point of his sanity is while speaking with Horatio in the beginning of the play, secondly is the fact of his wittiness with the other characters and finally, his soliloquy.
Riddled with ambiguity by its very nature, the text of William Shakespeare's Hamlet has been a commonly debated subject in literary circles since its first performance. The character Hamlet undergoes intense physical and emotional hardship in his quest for revenge against his despicable uncle. This hardship, some argue, leads to an emotional breakdown and, ultimately, Hamlet's insanity. While this assessment may be suitable in some cases, it falls short in others. Since Hamlet is a play, the ultimate motivation of each of the characters borrows not only from the text, but also from the motivations of the actors playing the parts. In most respects, these motivations are more apt at discerning the emotional condition of a character than their dialogue ever could. Thus, the question is derived: In Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of Hamlet, does the character Hamlet suffer from insanity? Giving halt to the response, this paper will first endeavor to establish what insanity is and will then provide sufficient examples both from the text, film, and Branagh's own musings on his motivations as proof that Hamlet's character, at least in Branagh's version of the play, is not insane.
Hamlet has mood swings as his mood changes abruptly throughout the play. Hamlet appears to act mad when he hears of his father's murder. At the time he speaks wild and whirling words:Why, right; you are I' the right; And so, without more circumstance at all, I hold it fit that we shake hands and part... [Act I, scene V, lines 127-134]. It seems as if there are two Hamlets in the play, one that is sensitive and an ideal prince, and the insane barbaric Hamlet who from an outburst of passion and rage slays Polonius with no feeling of remorse, Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! / I took thee for thy better. Take thy fortune;/ Thou find'st to be too busy is some danger.- [Act III. scene IV, lines 31-33] and then talks about lugging his guts into another room. After Hamlet kills Polonius he will not tell anyone where the body is. Instead he assumes his ironic matter which others take it as madness. Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. / A certain convocation of political worms a e'en at him. [Act IV, scene III, lines 20-21]
He was truly a victim of a fatal situation that led him to his insanity. People who suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder are “considerably more likely to the victim of violence, including rape and other crimes,” (“What is BPD?”1). Although Hamlet is a casualty if the disorder, it is completely justified by the occurrences in his life. The traumatic event of losing his father really did affect the way he will live on throughout the play. In conclusion, Hamlet may not be completely psychotic, but he does suffer from Borderline Personality Disorder, that he exhibits when interacting with other
An understanding of William Shakespeare’s philosophies reinforces the meaning of the human condition found in the play Hamlet. The revenge tragedy is an example in the exploration of good versus evil, deceit, madness, inter-turmoil, and utter existence. Shakespeare, fascinated by the human mind and human nature, clearly and completely illustrates the meaning of “self.” Hamlet is a drama that examines one’s personal identity. From the beginning of the story atop the castle when the guards enter the platform to the conclusion of the performance as Hamlet lies, dying in Horatio’s arms every characters’ psychological type is
Shakespeare 's play "Hamlet" is about a complex protagonist, Hamlet, who faces adversity and is destined to murder the individual who killed his father. Hamlet is a character who although his actions and emotions may be one of an insane person, in the beginning of the book it is clear that Hamlet decides to fake madness in order for his plan to succeed in killing Claudius. Hamlet is sane because throughout the play he only acts crazy in front of certain people, to others he acts properly and displays proper prince like behavior who is able to cope with them without sounding crazy, and even after everything that has been going on in his life he is able to take revenge by killing his
In William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, various mental illnesses are displayed. The mental illnesses are frequently discussed by various critics. Some believe Hamlet is simply love sick, while others argue he has no disease at all. Poet and Shakespeare contemporary, Ben Jonson says, “If you be sick, your own thoughts make you sick.” Ben connects mind with body to imply that a person’s mental state can relate directly to their physical state. This quote relates directly with Hamlet’s mentality. Hamlet has driven himself to madness and, in his own mind, has made himself sick. Hamlet shows clear signs of clinical depression, and because no one is there to help and support him it only gets worse. A person with depression needs
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.
Shakespeare shows Hamlet is going through many mood changes throughout the play. At times it seems he is depressed, hyper, excited and bad-tempered. People would just come to a conclusion that Hamlet simply just went mad during the play. Although, looking closer and during an examination, it is seen to be that Hamlet is showing clear symptoms to be diagnosed with bipolar I disorder.
In the playwright Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Hamlet often shows many signs of depression. It is argued whether he is putting on the act, or if he is actually severely depressed. I believe after the death of his father, Hamlet becomes very emotionally unstable. Three things affect Hamlet, the death of his father, the remarriage of his mother, and Ophelia. Hamlet contemplates death, and becomes prepared to die near the end of the play.
iv. 67-69). Hamlet argues that it is necessary for him to begin killing people, especially King Claudius. It was Claudius that murdered his father, and that needs to be met with death. However, declaring that he will only kill people will only bring more harm to himself and others around him. Hamlet implies that he will not only kill the people responsible for his father’s death, but also innocent people, to fulfill his revenge. A normal-minded person would realize that setting one’s mind to kill and only to kill will have real consequences. It could land a person in jail, or even result in death to him or herself. However, Hamlet’s mind is not functioning properly. His Type Two Bipolar Disorder is preventing him from seeing the consequences of his actions. He completely disregarded the fact that his actions he committed while in his excited state caused the death of an innocent man: Polonius. Even worse, he did not think about the long term effects of Polonius’s death, including the state of Ophelia’s mind. People suffering from Type Two Bipolar Disorder both suffer from major depressive and excited
In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the influence of Hamlet’s psychological and social states display his dread of death as well as his need to avenge his father’s death. In turn, these influences illuminate the meaning of the play by revealing Hamlet’s innermost thoughts on life, death and the effect of religion. Despite the fact that Hamlet’s first instincts were reluctance and hesitation, he knows that he must avenge his father’s death. While Hamlet is conscious of avenging his father’s death, he is contemplating all the aspects of death itself. Hamlet’s decision to avenge his father is affected by social, psychological and religious influences.
In writing Hamlet, William Shakespeare plumbed the depths of the mind of the protagonist, Prince Hamlet, to such an extent that this play can rightfully be considered a psychological drama.