Hamlet's Obsession With Death

The Tragedy of Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, in the 1600’s, is about the Danish prince, Hamlet, who's father dies months before the opening scene of the play. Hamlet is mourning his father’s death, to later find out he had been murdered by his own brother, Claudius. After murdering the King, Claudius quickly weds his brother's widow, Gertrude, and takes the throne from its rightful owner, Hamlet. Hamlet’s rage sends him spiralling into madness. The madness starts by the truth of his father’s death, and continues to fuel thoughts of death. This madness can be classified as necromania, “an obsession with death or the dead” (thefreedictionary.com). Throughout the play, the reoccurrence of death as a theme is prominent, from the classic ending of a Shakespearean tragedy, the death of all the main

Grief is defined by Merriam-Webster as the “deep sadness caused especially by someone's death” (merriam-webster.com, 1) and is characterized by five stages, one of them being depression. According to the Mayo Clinic, depression has a symptom of “frequent or recurrent thoughts of death, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts or suicide” (mayoclinic.org). Hamlet is experiencing grief and depression, and is evident by his constant talk of death or suicide. For example, his soliloquy in which he contemplates whether ”to be,or not to be: [. . .]/ To die, [ or ] to sleep [. . .]/ For in that sleep of death what dreams may come” (III.i.56-66). Hamlet is conflicting with himself about whether he should kill himself, take action by killing Claudius, or do nothing. Another example is when Hamlet states that he would kill himself if “the Everlasting had not fix’d/ His canon ‘gainst self-slaughter” (I.ii.131-132). He’s saying if there wasn’t the chance he would go to Hell because of his religion's ban on suicide, he would kill himself. This depression is not only from grief but from his temperament