Rhetorical Devices Used In Hamlet

Hamlet

What would you do if you discovered yourself that your very own blood relative murdered your father? Or if that same relative soon after married your newly widowed mother? Would you be able to keep your sanity or would you, too, slowly slip into madness? The novel The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, written by William Shakespeare, is about a prince that discovers the secret of the malicious murder of his father, King Hamlet. The main character of this novel, Hamlet, is seem to be quite a mentally disturbed man after he discovered his deceased fathers murder to be his uncle. Hamlets obsession of uncovering the murder mystery and exposing his uncles lead to his strive for vengeance, yet his procrastinating ways keeps him from doing so. Though he appears sane at the beginning of the novel it is truly obvious he doesn’t remain as so while the plot thickens.

Along with the many rhetorical devices used in Shakespeare’s novel, Hamlet, Sarcasm can be found

He describes this relationship as “A little more kin and less than kind” (I.ii.67). He describes the relationship this way because his uncle is now his stepfather instead of his uncle, yet he remains unfriendly and acts as more of an enemy. The quote is said with a sarcastic tone to bring humor to the table while Hamlet talks about the issue, yet it is a true statement about the relationship. Once again showing that Shakespeare used sarcasm as a way to help the audience understand the relationship fully.

Looking from a mental illness standpoint, Hamlet seems to suffer from a mental disorder known as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). He shows all symptoms of this illness and also fits the criteria of the known causes. It could be argued if Hamlet is acting insane or if his insanity is caused by a mental illness, but the facts show that his insanity seems to be caused by