Hamlet Essay, Research Paper

Hamlet

Price of Denmark

Hamlet is faking madness to confuse his enemies so he can get his revenge. As I perchance hereafter shall think meet to put an antic disposition on (1.5.191-192). Hamlet is telling Horatio and Marcellus that he may choose to act mad in the future. Several times in the play, it is told to us that Hamlet will seem mad but in reality he is sane.

Hamlet would want to act insane for several reasons. If he is thought to be insane, no one will pay much attention to his actions. He will be able to get his revenge without any interference. Hamlet also needed time to prove that Claudius killed his father. It would have been hard to wait for proof he needed if people knew what he was planning. They would have tried to stop him if they knew her was waiting for a reason to murder the king. If Claudius had always known what Hamlet knew he would have sent Hamlet to be killed even earlier.

Hamlet did have a reason to act madly but his sanity can also be seen is his actions. He does not always behave like a madman. There is a definite method to his madness. Polonius realizes this when he says Though this be madness, yet there is method in t (2.2.223-224). Polonius says that to himself after having a strange conservation with Hamlet. Hamlet acts crazy and insults Polonius at the same time. When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern first arrive, Hamlet is happy to see them and behaves normally. He then realizes that they have been sent to spy on him so his behavior changes. He acts crazy so they will report back to Claudius that he is crazy.

Hamlet plans out everything before he does it. An insane person does not plan; they just act on instinct. Hamlet devises an ingenious plan to determine if Claudius truly murdered his father. He asks the players to perform a scene where a king is murdered. Hamlet will use Claudius reaction to determine his guilt. It is simply impossible for an insane person to come up with a plan that clever. If Hamlet was insane he wouldn t have even waited for the proof. He would have killed Claudius as soon as the ghost told him that he murdered his father. Madmen do not make plans and do not wait for proof.

After Hamlet finds out from his mouse-trap play that Claudius did kill King Hamlet he goes to kill him but changes his mind. Now might I do it {pat}, now he is praying, And now I’ll do’t. And so he goes to heaven, And so am I {revenged}. That would be scann’d: A villain kills my father; and for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send To heaven. (3.3.77-83). Hamlet realizes that Claudius is praying so if he kills him now he will go to heaven. Hamlet decides to wait until Claudius has committed a sin so he will go to hell. A crazy person would not have stopped when they were about to get their revenge. They would have just killed him because they wanted their revenge so badly. Hamlet is planning again like he always is. He plans a way to make sure Claudius suffers for all eternity.

Hamlet can not be insane. He plans out oll of his actions ahead of time. He behaves logically and rationally. More so than any other character in the play. It is shown that Hamlet is a good actor and that is what he does throughout the play. He acts crazy and plans his revenge.