Hamlet. 'To Be Insane or Not To Be Insane That Tis The Question'

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'To Be Insane or Not To Be Insane That Tis The Question'

With in Hamlet, Shakespeare gives a psychological dimension to the thouoghts and

actions of each of his characaters, exspecially hamlet. Shakespeare gives the reader an

indepth look into the mind of Hamlet. If shakespeare had not given the reader the complex

psychological state of Hamlet, then yes one could say Hamlet was insane, but Shakespeare

did. He made sure that there was an explanation, logical reason for all of his actions.

Hamlet, at the very least was sane. In the play Hamlet was percieved as being mad, but

there was a just cause. The symbolic meaning of Hamlet's actions are the underlining

meaning for his unconscious motivation toward his actions. This means that Hamlet, maybe

not knowing it at the time, would logically justify his actions. For example in act III,

Hamlet said to Ophelia:

You should not have believed me;

for virtue cannot so inoculate our

old stock but we shall relish of it.

I loved you not. ... Get thee

to a nunnery!...Go thy ways to a nunnery.

(Sc.I 125)

Here we can see that Hamlet had told Ophelia earlier in the scene how deeply he loved her,

but here he has changed completely, saying that he had never loved her. With in this quote

he slips in that Ophelia should go to a nunnery. This is his just cause for his maddness. He

tries to get Ophelia to forget him and go to the nunnery so that she can be safe, and away

from all his troubles that would soon come. Here we see his justcause as well as his

foreshadowing for things to come.

Like many Princes, Hamlet has been highly educated in Whittenburg, England. Here he has

learned to think logically and...