Is Hamlet Insane Essay

There are many different reasons for a major theme of Hamlet to be considered that of madness. Seeking revenge for his father’s death Hamlet acts with passion to give off the perception that he is indeed mad. This leads to the question many people ask: is Hamlet truly insane, or is he just acting? As D.J. Snider writes in his article entitled “Hamlet” in The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, “[physicians] carefully reckon up the symptoms and show the various stages, evidently regarding Hamlet as a treatise on insanity” (73). Many, like the aforementioned physicians, regard Hamlet’s madness as concrete. Loosely defined insanity can mean different things but most commonly refers to someone who is suffering from a deranged state of mind, is foolish,

The reader knows Hamlet better than anyone in the play, and perhaps better than Hamlet even knows himself. In order to determine the true nature of Hamlet’s mind, one must look to Hamlet for guidance. Polonius provides a decent argument for Hamlet’s insanity, but he has an ulterior motive: he does not want Ophelia to be caught in the tangled webs of a Prince’s love and he seems to genuinely dislike Hamlet. If it is solely Hamlet’s sanity that is in question, then one must ignore the words of any other character; as they are all jaded by their own personal motives. The question of whether or not Hamlet is mad must be answered through Hamlet

They believe that the loss of his father and his overwhelming love for Ophelia has turned him mad. His rants and raves to and around these characters are used as evidence against his sanity. However, after examining the lines of Hamlet, particularly those of dialogue between Hamlet and the others, one will find that Hamlet is playing with the heads of the other characters, especially those he dislikes. Hamlet pokes fun at the other characters by being sarcastic or mocking them. When viewed from the opposing character’s perspective, this can be seen as incoherent and irrational ramblings. However, these exchanges and Hamlet’s seemingly illogical replies are merely mind games on Hamlet’s part.

An example of this can be found in Act 3, Scene 2 beginning at line 100 when Polonius brags about his acting and Hamlet mocks him. Using plays on words Hamlet makes fun of Polonius by saying: “It was a brute part of him to kill so capital a calf there” (105). These exchanges are continued throughout the play and they often leave Polonius confused and certain of Hamlet’s madness while Hamlet is secretly having a laugh at Polonius’