In what ways, and with what dramatic effects, does Shakespeare present Hamlet’s
madness in the play?
Is Hamlet really mad? Shakespeare masterfully addresses Hamlet’s madness as a vicious,
absurd and ever changing entity, beguiling even the audience, who questions the protagonist’s
sanity throughout the entirety of the play. Madness is a paramount topic that has been
explored for centuries: from the ancient greco roman era to the mediaeval period until
modern times. Particularly, physicians in the renaissance, when Hamlet was written, admired
the ancient Greek theorists, associating the concept of insanity with an imbalance of the
humours. During said era, the playwright and mental illness coexisted tangentially:
Shakespeare was widely known, as was insanity famous for being a chiefly public issue.
Furthermore, this connection was more than merely coincidental: Shakespeare and the
science of the mind went on to become intimately intertwined, to the point where
psychologists utilised characters present in his plays to illustrate and prove their theories,
treating them as humans instead of simple fictitious beings. King Lear, Macbeth, his Lady
and a myriad of psychotic dramatis personae were employed in the playwrights’ creations,
reflecting the concern and relevance of madness in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Tus, this positioned the writer as a master of delineating human character. However, Hamlet
is by far his most studied character, due to the fervent, profound intricacy of his sentiments.
The English essayist Hazlitt commented Hamlet “embodies humanity in all its complexity”
(William Hazlitt). Therefore, the audience is obligated to consider Hamlet is mad, even to a
certain extent, and even amiss copious perplexion. Moreover, said insanity is demonstrated
through the usage of metadrama, the dichotomous nature of the soliloquies and comedic relief
and the opposition between Hamlet and the rest of the characters.
Firstly, analysing the characters present in this tragedy, as well as their relationship with the
protagonist, is fundamental in order to truly comprehend Hamlet’s madness and its evolution.
To begin with, it is cardinal to mention the inception of the protagonist’s exacerbated
feelings: the death of his father and the subsequent overnight marriage between his mother
and uncle. This overwhelming emotional stress then resulted in Hamlet’s intense desire for
revenge, overpowering rage and exhaustive depression. Also, the protagonist’s apparent
madness first manifested itself as a scheme to get Claudius to admit his sins. The audience
first sees this stratagem manifested in the first scene of act two, when Ophelia agitatedly
madness in the play?
Is Hamlet really mad? Shakespeare masterfully addresses Hamlet’s madness as a vicious,
absurd and ever changing entity, beguiling even the audience, who questions the protagonist’s
sanity throughout the entirety of the play. Madness is a paramount topic that has been
explored for centuries: from the ancient greco roman era to the mediaeval period until
modern times. Particularly, physicians in the renaissance, when Hamlet was written, admired
the ancient Greek theorists, associating the concept of insanity with an imbalance of the
humours. During said era, the playwright and mental illness coexisted tangentially:
Shakespeare was widely known, as was insanity famous for being a chiefly public issue.
Furthermore, this connection was more than merely coincidental: Shakespeare and the
science of the mind went on to become intimately intertwined, to the point where
psychologists utilised characters present in his plays to illustrate and prove their theories,
treating them as humans instead of simple fictitious beings. King Lear, Macbeth, his Lady
and a myriad of psychotic dramatis personae were employed in the playwrights’ creations,
reflecting the concern and relevance of madness in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Tus, this positioned the writer as a master of delineating human character. However, Hamlet
is by far his most studied character, due to the fervent, profound intricacy of his sentiments.
The English essayist Hazlitt commented Hamlet “embodies humanity in all its complexity”
(William Hazlitt). Therefore, the audience is obligated to consider Hamlet is mad, even to a
certain extent, and even amiss copious perplexion. Moreover, said insanity is demonstrated
through the usage of metadrama, the dichotomous nature of the soliloquies and comedic relief
and the opposition between Hamlet and the rest of the characters.
Firstly, analysing the characters present in this tragedy, as well as their relationship with the
protagonist, is fundamental in order to truly comprehend Hamlet’s madness and its evolution.
To begin with, it is cardinal to mention the inception of the protagonist’s exacerbated
feelings: the death of his father and the subsequent overnight marriage between his mother
and uncle. This overwhelming emotional stress then resulted in Hamlet’s intense desire for
revenge, overpowering rage and exhaustive depression. Also, the protagonist’s apparent
madness first manifested itself as a scheme to get Claudius to admit his sins. The audience
first sees this stratagem manifested in the first scene of act two, when Ophelia agitatedly
