Hamlet Essay

"Though this be madness, yet there is method in't"

 Spoken by Polonius while talking to Hamlet about the wrong doings of King Claudius and the scheming with Gertrude, can describe the whole Hamlet play. 9 words, that's all it took. Through the extensive description and detail given by Shakespeare to set the scene of the play and so specifically his syntax and diction, all that anyone needs from this play is 9 words coming together in a simple line. And still this line can apply to every generation of people and will extend to so many more because of the silver lining. As a person and a character within this play, there are actions that are always done in which others may see as insane and crazy, yet to the person whom is performing those actions it is perfectly fine in its entirety. Shakespeare combined the simplicity of 9 words to form the complexity that would span centuries after his time.
 In many instances within the play, Hamlet is seen to be crazy and suspicious of wrong doings by other characters yet in all fairness, every character is acting the same way. From start to finish there are scenes that all major characters within the play have actions that can be seen as ridiculous or over the top and make the character seem 'mad' when Hamlet is simply the only one that is being focused on and ridiculed. I believe this to be so because of the fact that Hamlet is normally seen by his peers as noble and much more prominent in status than he is supposedly 'acting' to be. However, this does not seem to be stopping Hamlet at all. He continues to go through his daily tasks acting as if he was someone completely different not caring what others believe as do all the other characters.
 Each and every character within Hamlet have some action or saying that makes them seem as if they were 'mad' by another person. Yet in their own understanding of what they are doing, it is completely sane and because you accused them of doing something wrong, you were now labeled as the 'madman.' The theme within Hamlet is one of many in which can be inferred by the way that you seem to read and infer situations. In my personal style of reading, I have come up with the idea that everyone believes that their opinion and thought process are correct and have their own coping method in which to justify their head. Each character may or may not be crazy but because of their past and the history behind each persona they all have reasons to be or not to be [mad].

Hamlet. The Madman

     Hamlet is a piece of writing that demonstrates a young man who goes through hardships that is always surrounding him from the sudden death of his father to the cruel marriage between his own uncle and mother. Hamlet is constantly conflicted throughout the play because he is confronted by his father's ghost who speaks about what really happened to him before he was killed by "King" Claudius. As he learns about the truth, he grows into a being that mainly focuses on getting revenge towards Claudius and Gertrude for the sake of his late father and when his plan finally starts he affects all those around him to the extent that they all think that he has become a "lunatic". In reality, the audience senses that Hamlet is not necessarily "crazy" throughout the play but a man who uses his intelligence and dedication to get into peoples' heads for revenge.
     Hamlet possesses this connection with the spirit of his father and how the ghost controls him on what is the best way to get revenge on Claudius, which is by directly killing him, and Gertrude, which is to let her live and rot with the the guilt the rest of her life. We notice that Hamlet doesn't really have his own voice or actions through the beginning of the play because he feels pressured and secured in a difficult position from his father's authoritative presence stuck within him. He resumes to complete his duties and is not confused on what to do by imagining of what he will do to his disrespectful uncle, but their was one thing holding him back --ability to actually killing someone, especially someone that is a part of his family.  As the story goes on, the characters especially Gertrude and Claudius notice that Hamlet has been gradually getting crazier and crazier, but they can't really tell anyone because no one would believe them since Hamlet is seen as an cautious, quiet individual by the public. Since Hamlet isn't a man to talk back to his elders, his thoughts on attacking Claudius and lashing out at others is kept within himself, which is obviously seen in his "to be or no to be" soliloquy because he finally explodes. He explodes about the confusion he got himself in on whether he is capable of doing the deed. Am I doing the right thing? or Is this morally wrong of me to do? Hamlet finally notices that he must make his own decisions and that he should have his own voice be heard and seen, so he takes on actions that Claudius and Gertrude can be warned. He also has a one-on-one conversation with his mother where he finally speaks about he is embarrassed of what she has done to just remain as Queen and gradually the conversation becomes more intense that Hamlet raises his voice with much passion of his own thoughts. He starts to get out of control because he was influenced so much from the past and motivated to do anything to just finish what he started --making sure Claudius and Gertrude suffer just like the "late" Hamlet.
   From DeBoer's paper, he addresses how Hamlet is just trapped under the perceptions of his surroundings that he can't even manage to create his own thoughts  and bring them into reality. Throughout the whole play, Hamlet has been trying to identify his "real self" and manage to converse about his own choices and how it could benefit others and destroy those who has slowed him down.We will also learn more about a character in Shakespeare on the syntax they demonstrate and how they deliver each and every word to the audience, this connects the performance of Hamlet with his true feelings. Most of Hamlet's speeches are soliloquies or one-on-one conversations because he just holds all his emotions inside and just talks all about his issues and thoughts when he is all alone. DeBoer also explains that Shakespeare makes his plays feel more realistic by addressing emotional relationships between the characters. One is the relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude on how they grew to actually find each other crazy and an embarrassment, but in reality they do care about each because they are still mother and son. Lastly, Hamlet is not mainly focusing on Hamlet to get back at Claudius and Gertrude for his father's sake but to just be recognized and fully respected by the most important person in his life --himself.
     Personally, I don't think Hamlet is "nuts" because he is a man who is simply tricking everyone to think he is a "lunatic" so he can have the last laugh and fulfill all his duties on getting revenge. He grows into an individual that has his own voice and takes on his own actions because  he gets to confront his mother for her horrible decisions and killing Polonius. He slowly gets into Claudius's radar in the play and once he is finally recognized by Claudius, that is the time for him to take action and finish what he has started. Hamlet is a being that is not "crazy" and "ballistic", but one who is acting "nuts" just to look vulnerable in everyone else's perspectives and finally prove that he is a man that is always on the side that is morally right.

Hamlet Soliloquy

Hamlet Rap

Ghost why you disruptin'? We didn't do nothin'

My dad just died, slice me up some revenge pie.

You come without a voice, but we ain't got no choice.

We need Hanlet here before you disappear. 

Gertrude is a hoe and everybody knows. 

Her new husband blows, and he ain't your average Joe caus he Rollin' in that dough

You'll never be my father so don't f*ck*n bother. 

You give Denmark a bad name, stop putting us to shame. 

I met up with a ghost in which my fathers soul was host. 

I was warned twice but the truth I had to entice

You ripped my family apart by stoping my fathers heart

So now I'll act insane even if it puts my name to shame. 

I know what I'm doing but you're just misconstruing. 

You think I want the throne, but I'm just in the love zone. 

She thinks my frame of mind is t so aligned, 

That's only cause he's blind to what I've been assigned. 

My parents wanna know the truth so they went back to my youth. 

The paid my two fiends to see what's wrong with my head. 

They think I'm senseless but soon they'll be defenseless.

I know this comes off tough but it's all just really fluff. 

I need more real emotion so his legacy receives notion.

Disgrace has put my thoughts to sleep but I know that talk is cheap

The one thing left to do is prove that he is liable with hard evidence that will be undeniable.