Hamlets Sanity Essay - 1522 Words

Hamlets Sanity 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. Hamlet only claims madness because it allows him to say and perform actions he otherwise would be prohibited from, while keeping people from†¦show more content†¦On the other hand, Hamlet acts perfectly sane when acting insane is unnecessary. When he talks to Horatio about watching Claudius for signs of guilt during the play, he says ?Give him heedful note, for I mine eyes will rivet his face, and, after, we will both our judgments join in censure of his seeming (3.2.87).? His words to Horatio are those of a sane man. Horatio is one of the few people to whom he does not need to prove he is ?insane,? and as such, he does not try. Also, when he is explaining to the players how to act, he is surprisingly organized and natural sounding. For example, he asks ?You could, for a need, study a speech of some dozen or sixteen lines, which I would set down and insert in ?t, could you not (2.2.565) His question is direct and simple as all his instructions are, and it seems that the play er not only understands completely, but also is comfortable with Hamlet and what he asks. It is much more plausible that a sane man could play an insane one, than an insane man could play a sane one, and so reason would deem Hamlet sensible. Additional proof that Hamlet must be sane is that even in his ?madness? he is clever in his retorts and speech, and has a full understanding of the situations around him. He plays his madman character almost too well, and each phrase he utters appears to be an attempt towards conveying hisShow MoreRelatedEssay Hamlets Flaws and Sanity1085 Words   |  5 Pagesbe, or not to be† which I find best to describe Hamlet’s character. Hamlet was given the task to avenge his father’s death. As the story progress Hamlet begins to question his worthiness, questioning his very existence. Hamlet’s emotions influence his every action throughout the story. Hamlet is not the typical hero that readers label; he has many imperfections and displays his own manner of heroism. 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