Evaluate Whether Hamlet Is Pretending to Be Mad, Truly Mad or a Little of Both

Evaluate whether Hamlet is pretending to be mad, truly mad or a little of both.

Justice? Is it fair to have a human being killed for authority and power? A deep scar inside the heart has been formed after the death of a great personality, forgotten about. It is a life of a man who is in grief and misery because of disclosure and mysterious actions. Feeling revengeful, wanting to kill. Knowing the truth, keeping it secret until the end; the time for a great heartbreak. Is this the nature of a man who is passionate?

Hamlet, one of the most famous plays in the entire English language, explores the revenge tradition of a huge kingdom during the time period of great troubles and wars. Learning that his uncle Claudius killed his father the previous king of Denmark, Hamlet takes into battle vengeance. Retribution can cause anyone to act blindly through anger, rather than through explanation. It is based on the belief of settling the scores, but this principle is not always a clever theory to live by. The way in which Hamlet seeks for revenge is rather mystifying; his family are all affected by the consequences and are shocked to see him acting strangely. A big question remains behind, is Hamlet sane?

For centuries, people have been discussing the topic on whether prince Hamlet was mad. This question is not as simple as it sounds to answer; this is for the reason that there are several point of views to support both sides of the argument. It is easy to believe that Hamlet was certainly mad since his behaviour throughout most of the play is extremely unpredictable and violent. Nevertheless, there is another way to look at his actions; there is support within the play that there was actually a process in his madness, suggesting that he was not mad at all and only pretending to. Through his inner thoughts and the apparent reasons for his actions, it is clear that he is not really mad but is simply an excellent actor, acting mad in order to fulfill his revenge duty to his father.

Furthermore, Hamlet claims madness because this allows him to say and perform actions he otherwise would be forbidden from. This seems to be part of his initial plan for seeking revenge. His madness allows him to talk to Claudius, Gertrude, Ophelia, and Polonius in a behaviour inappropriate for a prince. He is often disrespectful towards everyone around him and this is noticeable throughout the play.

At the beginning of the play Hamlet was very depressed and was mourning because of his father’s death. When Claudius asked Hamlet why he was wearing black mourning clothes, bitterly Hamlet replied that his inner sadness was so big that his appearance was a poor image of how he was feeling. ‘Together with all forms, moods, shows of grief that can denote me truly’ Hamlet was heartbroken over the sudden death of his father, which is reasonable, but added to this is the marriage of his mother to his uncle in the limited time which is intolerable to him. The disappointment has let Hamlet to feel in a state of shock and grief. In Hamlet’s eyes, his father deserves more than one month of mourning. By remarrying so hastily, the queen has ruined King Hamlet’s memory. This remarriage is a sin, however, special right was made because she is the queen. In the following quote Hamlet comments on the speed of her remarriage ‘Within a month ere yet the salt of most unrighteous tears had left the flushing in her galled eyes she married. O most wicked speed...it is not or it cannot come to good’ We may argue that these words reflect his depression and even the early stages of madness.

On addition, it is clear that Hamlet feels anxious about the way the Kingdom has changed. ‘tis an unweeded garden’. In his point of view, he thinks that Denmark is corrupt because of the rapid changes that happen. Alone in the room, Hamlet exclaims that he desires he could die, that he could evaporate into the thin air and stop to exist. He remembers how deeply in love his parents seemed, and that now everything has changed ‘O heaven! A beast that wants discourse of reason, would have mourn’d longer,-married with mine uncle, My father’s brother…within a month ere yet the salt of most unrighteous tears’

The discovery of his father’s murder was the first consideration for revenge. Shortly after midnight, Hamlet was watching the castle together with his friends Horatio and Marcellus, waiting for the ghost to come into view. Hamlet was very desperate to know what actually the ghost wanted. Even though he was unsure of the ghost’s elevation to him, he declared that he was ready for all surprises and followed the ghost as soon as it appeared. Claiming to be his father’s spirit, the ghost speaks to Hamlet, in the middle of the night, telling him the truth behind