Hamlet

Term Paper # 99770

Drama and Theater > English
English > Analysis
Shakespeare > Hamlet

Hamlet

This paper analyzes the state of Hamlet's mind in William Shakespeare's play of the same name.

1,188 words () | 2 sources | MLA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses Hamlet's inability to carry out his desire to avenge his father's murder. The paper describes Hamlet's schizophrenic shock and shows how he was suffering from manic depression. The paper labels "Hamlet" a dark play and demonstrates how it was staged in Hamlet's mind.

From the Paper:

"We first see Hamlet dejected in black mourning in contrast to the brightly lit court of the new King (Act I, Sc. 2). His melancholy attire mirrors the foreboding of the ghost on the ramparts and his passionate, broken hearted soliloquy contravenes the staid, artificial dialogue of the familial scene at court. It reveals his depression as a result not just of his grief for his father but also for his mother and her "disgusting dexterity to incestuous sheets" (Act 1, Sc.2). The sordidness he sees reflect the schizophrenic shock that is beginning to affect his ability to act. The forbidden idea of suicide, the image of his father as "Hyperion" to his uncle's "satyr", the counterpoint between things divine and those of earth grossly profane, "unrighteous tears" and "galled eyes", twist his
depression into a knot in his throat "for I must hold my tongue", and a desperate feeling of low self-esteem and inadequacy "no more like my father than I to Hercules"."

Sample of Sources Used:

"About Shakespeare." Hamlet's Soliloquies. 2006 <http://shakespeare.about.com/library/ weeklt/aa061500c.htm>
"Hamlet: Summary of the Scenes." 2006<http://www.compusmart.ab.ca/hamlet/ham_sum.htm>