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Ophelia's Use Of Trauma In Hamlet

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Hamlet: The Influence of Trauma Towards Madness
Trauma and negative experience has a direct influence on how one acts. The play, Hamlet revolves around the character's failure to grieve their pain and trauma, leading to their tragic deaths. It uses the idea of seeking revenge as a motive to illustrate Hamlet’s and Laertes’ neglected trauma. It also provides insight into Ophelia's helplessness that results from her unresolved grief. Ultimately, William Shakespeare uses Hamlet to argue that madness emerges as a result of the inability to cope with traumas.
Firstly, Hamlet employs madness to avenge his father's death by constructing a facade to prove Claudius’ guilt. Ophelia describes Hamlet’s madness as, “Pale as his shirt; his knees knocking each other; / And with a look so piteous in purport / As if he had been loosed out of hell” (II. i. 79-81). This introduces Hamlet’s act to conceal his knowledge of his father’s death from Claudius and Polonius. Subsequently, he is able to retaliate towards his fathers murderers. Furthermore, …show more content…

This is demonstrated through Laertes rage as he navigates through the death of Polonius and Ophelia. Laertes says, “And so have I a noble father lost; / A sister driven into desperate terms… / For her perfections: but my revenge will come” (IV. vii. 25-29). This illustrates how deeply the loss of his family affected Laertes and how he seeks violence to fulfill his emotional needs. Furthermore, Claudius entices Laertes to murder Hamlet to prove himself as his father’s son. Laertes replies, “To cut his throat i' the church” (IV. vii.127). This quote reveals Laertes' fury and madness, as he is willing to sin to kill his father’s murderer, mirroring Hamlet. Laertes’ conscience is blinded by his fevered emotions and Claudius’ manipulation. Likewise, to the other characters in the play, Laertes’ madness toward vengeance forces him to succumb to

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