Thematic Topic Of Insanity In Hamlet

Prompt: Who is the most insane person in the play?

The thematic topic of sanity/insanity has often been explored in various texts throughout the various ages of literature. The topic itself is virtually timeless as it has existed for millenniums in society and has been portrayed by authors who seek to illustrate a clear and thought-provoking message to their readers. The definition of sanity is, “the ability to think and behave in a normal and rational manner”. Shakespeare does a phenomenal job characterizing insane characters in his plays because he creates intricate details that demonstrate them with having the inability to act in a normal manner. By doing this, he is able to spread a message of how society needs to react when it comes to

Hamlet has been debated by various highly regarded literary scholars over whether he was acting mad or whether he was genuinely mad throughout the play. However, there is one passage that stands out, which can clear him of any accusations that he is indeed insane. Hamlet reveals to his friends his plans to act mad when he says, “How strange or odd some’er I bear myself/(As I perchance hereafter shall think meet/To put an antic disposition on) (1.5.190-192). Once Hamlet said this, it is concluded that Hamlet’s actions and statements towards others in the play— which made him seem insane— were only utilized as a ploy to prevent Claudius and other’s from finding of his recent interaction with the ghost and the information he provided Hamlet regarding his father’s death. Therefore, Hamlet cannot be compared to Claudius because he is not even insane in the first place. However, there are other characters who show various signs of madness in their lines during the play. One character the definitely stands out is Ophelia, who enters into a state of madness after her father’s death and Hamlet’s banishment from Denmark. Her madness is illuminated through her speech and songs that she sings while in the King and Queen’s company. In addition, she even acts strange around her brother and says to him, “There’s fennel for you, and columbines./There’s rue for you, and here’s some for me; we/may call it herb of grace o’ Sundays. You must wear/your rue with a difference. There’s a daisy. I would/give you some violets, but they withered all when/my father died. They say he made a good end “ (4.5.204-209). A connection between Ophelia and the violets can be made, as the violets represent faithfulness, which Ophelia most certainly is throughout the play. She states the violets withered when her father died, which most likely