How Is Hamlet Insane

Many people have seen Hamlet as a play about uncertainty and about Hamlet's failure to act appropriately. It is very interesting to consider that the play shows many uncertainties that lives are built upon, or how many unknown quantities are taken for granted when people act or when they evaluate one another's actions. Hamlet is an especially intriguing production, both on the set and on the screen because of its uniqueness to be different from what most people expect to be in a revenge themed play. Hamlet's cynicism and insane like behavior cause him to seem indecisive, but in reality he is always judging and contemplating his actions in the back of his mind in order to seek revenge for the murder of

In William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, we, as readers, increasingly question the sanity of the protagonist, Hamlet, as the play continues. His seemingly psychotic banter with the other characters of the play begins to convince us that Hamlet is, indeed, insane. Hamlet, however, states, “How strange or odd soe’er I bear myself, as I perchance hereafter shall think meet to put an antic disposition on” (1.5.171). He specifically tells Horatio and Marcellus that he will be acting mad, as a front. Hamlet has an exceptional grasp on mental philosophy and the uses and effects of logic, more so than the other characters of the play. Because of this, Hamlet appears insane to others, but in fact remains true to his

When speaking on the topic of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” one of the most brought up topics is whether Hamlet is mad or sane. This is partly due to Hamlet’s decision to put on an antic disposition. Through Hamlet’s Antic disposition and his other decisions, the reader begins to see certain characteristics developing in Hamlet. Most notably, the character exhibits many symptoms found in mental illness’ common in the Elizabethan era. These characteristics show that Hamlet’s insanity is no longer just a mask. Hamlet has developed actual madness. The character, in reference to the Oxford English Dictionary’s definition of madness, is in “The state of being mentally ill.”

Other times, he is completely psychotic. For example, when young Hamlet finds out his late father is dead, he is emotional at first but soon acts as if there is a mission for him to fulfill. Also, during this process of having a mission to fulfill, Hamlet's step's and processes are so concise and important it seems as if he would have to be sane in the moment. Finally, when Hamlet is doing his actions of trickery, the situation is so serious that it would seem possible for him to be insane and to come up with such wit. It is a fact that insane people come up with the craziest ideas and somehow pull it off, therefore, Hamlet does slip into insanity in some parts of the

Throughout the Shakespearian play, Hamlet, the main character is given the overwhelming responsibility of avenging his father’s "foul and most unnatural murder" (I.iv.36). Such a burden can slowly drive a man off the deep end psychologically. Because of this, Hamlet’s disposition is extremely inconsistent and erratic throughout the play. At times he shows signs of uncontrollable insanity. Whenever he interacts with the characters he is wild, crazy, and plays a fool. At other times, he exemplifies intelligence and method in his madness. In instances when he is alone or with Horatio, he is civilized and sane. Hamlet goes through different stages of insanity throughout the story, but his neurotic and skeptical personality amplifies his

Determining whether someone is insane or sane is very difficult to do. Looking at the actions of the individuals does not give the full picture. Hamlet plays the role of an insane man in order to get revenge on Claudius. Hamlet only tells Horatio and his mother that he is pretending while others believe he is insane. There are some that believe that Hamlet is insane due to the loss of his father but their evidence is not very strong. By looking at examples from the play that show Hamlet is pretending to be insane, we will clearly see that Hamlet is very successful in the act of being mad.

     Hamlet is in a situation where his sanity is turning into insanity. He is like one of those people who tell so many lies that they start believing their own lies. Hamlet’s acting is so vivid to him that, unconsciously,

However, some believe since Hamlet is acting crazy, he slips into actually being insane. As they say,

When Hamlet is going crazy in some points, and you feel like he is totally going insane, you may want to think. What if he is becoming insane little by little, but as it is said in The Hamlet, everyone is already getting scared. No one really knows what is happening, and they don't want Hamlet to go into the darkness of insanity. And if Hamlet is becoming insane, the only thing that can save him, would be the one thing that made him go insane in the first

Throughout Shakespeare?s play, Hamlet, the main character, young Hamlet, is faced with the responsibility of attaining vengeance for his father?s murder. He decides to feign madness as part of his plan to gain the opportunity to kill Claudius. As the play progresses, his depiction of a madman becomes increasingly believable, and the characters around him react accordingly. However, through his inner thoughts and the apparent reasons for his actions, it is clear that he is not really mad and is simply an actor simulating insanity in order to fulfill his duty to his father.

By evidence, he left everyone who was not in on his plan fooled into thinking he was insane, even though he stated himself multiple times that he was not truly insane, very prominently so to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and to Gertrude. Even though he had confidence in front of everyone else and did state to others on his own will that he was faking his madness, he was, like anyone else, his own worst critic and did not believe the bravado and "act" he was convincing others with in his ploy. Even though others would think that Hamlet was completely absorbed in carrying out his father's word and his own vow, he still took time at points within the play to question his own motives and actions. Hamlet clearly transitioned, as one can see, from "insanity" instantly to bouts of rationalism, like his bouts of solemnness to extreme depression, and effectively succeeded in achieving his goal with the murder of King Claudius in his last moments. Although the interpretation of Hamlet's actions and character can vary from adaption to adaption there is no denying the textual evidence, the original source of the genius tragedy created by the Bard

Hamlet wants juicy, dirty secrets and he has found a perfect way to get them because mad people can pull anything from someone. This madness allows him to get away with outlandish things, being in places he should not be, and overhearing private conversations dripping with

If any man has had a truly impactful effect on the course of history, then M'naghten is the founding father for the modern insanity plea because of his frantic decision making when he allegedly assassinated the secretary of the prime minister of England in 1843. To which, the case was under heavy scrutiny from the public, but the house of Lords ruled the convicted as insane and could not tell right from wrong. Hence, in the play “Hamlet,” the protagonist Hamlet, disregards the image M’naghten, and is to be deemed not insane due to his ability to differentiate between moral standards which were not negatively affected by any psychosis, for his affairs could be conducted as usual.

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 father's murderer. In the play Hamlet by William

Hamlet's madness is not in vain. As Polonius says in Act II, "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't" (109). The reason Hamlet is pretending to be insane is to exact revenge against his father's murderer, the King. He is aware that the King will be concerned about his behavior and he is right. After the play all the characters attend, the King is very disturbed. His reason for being disturbed is that he just witnessed a play which depicted the murder he committed against his own brother, the former King of Denmark. The King knows Hamlet knows of the murder and is aware that Hamlet may not be completely insane. Because he is afraid of losing his power and title of King, the King decides that Hamlet should go to England.