Is Hamlet Mad or Faking It?

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IS HAMLET MAD OR FAKING IT?

Shakespeare' s masterpiece "Hamlet" is really a complex play, which concerns on many different themes. One of the major themes of "Hamlet" is madness, which is reflected through the protagonist, The Prince of Denmark, Hamlet. His madness is always a question and suspicious throughout the play. It is not answered certainly in the play, but both answers have strong evidences. Despite the fact that Hamlet's madness seems to be clear during the play, it seems slightly more logical to me that Hamlet is acting that he is mad.

In order to understand Hamlet's "maddish" behaviours' real reason, the evidences from the text could be examined. The conundrum of Hamlet's madness starts with Hamlet seeing his father, Ghost, who asked him to get his revenge from his "beast uncle". The first proof, for Hamlet acting madness, is the reality of Ghost. If Hamlet was the only person to see the Ghost, we could be sure that he is really mad, but in Act I Scene I, the sentry, Barnardo and Fransisco sees the Ghost entering the Elsinore Castle three times, as they see together with Horatio, Hamlet's best friend, as Marcellus explains the appearance of the Ghost in these lines: "Horatio says 'tis our fantasy/ And will not let the belief take hold of him/ Touching this dreaded sight, twice seen of us. / Therefore I have entreated him along/ With us to watch the minutes of this night, / That if again this apparition come/ He may approve our eyes, and speak to it. / He may approve our eyes, and speak to it." (A1.s1.L 23-28) and Horatio who did not believe the two guardsmen see the Ghost too. Therefore, this shows us that Ghost's existence is doubtless. However, he only talks with his son twice as we are not sure that Horatio and the two sentry hears Ghost's command to swear at the end of Act I (a1.s5.L-155, 162,182). After Hamlet sees his father, he declares that he will behave strangely from that time, and he makes the three followers swear that they do not tell anyone about this night: "...Here as before, never so help you mercy, / How strange or odd some'er I bear myself, / As I perchance hereafter shall think meet/ To put an antic disposition on-/ That you at such times seeing me never shall/ with arms encumbered thus, this head-shake/ pr by pronouncing of some doubtful phrase.... /So grace and mercy at your most need help you, swear" (a1.s5.L.165-181). After the sear of Horatio, Marcellus and Fransisco, there is nobody on the world to know the existence of the Ghost, so it seems very probable for Hamlet makes up his mind to use his madness to hide his anger for his uncle and his desire for revenge. Consequently, after examining the start point of Hamlet's strange behaviours it is not ver hard to realise that he decided to use madness as a camouflage for his revenge.
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From the scene that Hamlet sees Ghost to the end of play, it could be observed by Hamlet's behaviours that he is acting the mad. He only reflects his feelings and ideas from the events to his best friend Horatio and he tries to message Gertrude that he is not mad at all but only behaving it when they talk in Gertrude's private room: "...It is not madness that I have uttered. Bring me to the test/ And I the matter will reword, which madness would gambol from....That's not your trespass but my madness speaks;...Forgive me this my ...

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