In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Hamlet claims, "to put an antic disposition on." He maintains this false sense of madness throughout the play, though his sanity is put into question by other characters. His selective 'madness', self-belief in his sanity, and the reasons he holds for his 'mad' outbursts and his lunacy in general reflect his sanity. Hamlet deals with issues such as the confliction of values, life, murder, the afterlife, madness, revenge, death and love.
Hamlet is a classic play of the revenge tragedy genre. Hamlet, the central character, is the Prince of Denmark, son of the late King Hamlet and Gertrude who married Claudius (Her late husband's brother) shortly after King Hamlet's death. The ghost of King Hamlet appears to his son and tells him that Claudius murdered him. Hamlet must seek revenge for his father's death, to maintain the family's honour. He pretends to be mad and rejects Ophelia, whom he had claimed that he loved.
David Garrick in Hamlet, I, 4
English: Henry Fuseli - Hamlet and his father's Gh...
17th century English actor Thomas Betterton in a s...After Hamlet's accidental murder of her father, Polonius, Ophelia goes mad and later drowns herself. Becoming concerned about his own welfare, Claudius sends Hamlet to England with his "friends" (Really spies hired by the King), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who carry a letter asking for the execution of Hamlet- however Hamlet finds the letter and changes his name to that of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. On his return to Denmark, the King organises a fencing match between Hamlet and Polonius's son, Laertes. Laertes wounds Hamlet with a poisoned sword, but Hamlet grabs the sword and mortally wounds Laertes, who tells of the King's deceit before his death. Meanwhile, Gertrude drinks poison prepared for Hamlet, who then forces the King to drink the rest before stabbing him. After stopping Horatio from drinking the remainder of the poison, Hamlet dies, and the enemy, Norway,