In the play Hamlet acts mad. He is not crazy however but is merely pretending to be. Before he begins this act he tells Horatio and Marcellus what he is about to do. Polonius notices that there is too much sense in Hamlets charade for him to be truly crazy. Hamlet makes sure his uncle is guilty of murder before enacting his revenge.
"I am satisfied in nature, / Whose motive, in this case, should stir me most / To my revenge: but in my terms of honour / I stand aloof" Act V sc. ii. What Laertes calls honor is actually the desired vengeance, which he needs as a way to seal the death of his father and carry on with his life. Hamlet, on the other hand, acts, or better said, refrains from acting because of the conclusions he draws from his reflections and speculations. A great example of Hamlet’s complicated and elaborate ways of obtaining what he wants is the plot of the “Mouse Trap” for catching the King’s conscience.
Hamlet, the young prince of Denmark, is considerably successful in keeping his promise to the ghost of his father. While he manages to purge Denmark of its corruption and avenge his father’s death by killing Claudius, the commandment does not live “all alone…within the book and volume” of Hamlets brain, he is not indecisive, but morally astute. Hamlet finds himself trapped between two moral imperatives, whether to obey his filial duty to his father or commit a mortal sin by killing another man. Ultimately, Hamlet overcomes his moral complication and fulfils the ghost’s wishes. From the outset of the play, and the first appearance of the ghost, Hamlet knows what he must do; however, his moral obligations get in the way.
I believe that Hamlet's seeming inability to act isn't indecisiveness but prudence, that he acted the way he did because he was being careful and thorough. His delay or procrastination to act was because he wanted to make sure that his uncle Claudius was truly guilty of murdering his father and have it proven before he did anything about it. I think he also wanted to figure out if his mother or anyone else took part in it. Although I believe this, I think that Hamlet's rash murderous action in stabbing Polonius shows his inability to coordinate his thoughts and actions which could be considered his tragic flaw. I think that Hamlet did the things that he did purposefully.
It is her report to Claudius that seals his decision to have Hamlet executed. In scene I we learn a lot about Claudius’ character. He is a selfish king who is more concerned with his self preservation than achieving justice. His response to Polonius’ death is to get rid of Hamlet – not to punish Hamlet for his crime but rather to remove the threat Hamlet poses to his
After Claudius had realized that Hamlet knows he committed the murder of his father, he decides to send Hamlet to England to his death, and orders Guildenstern and Rosencrantz to follow Hamlet, and he uses the method of deception by lying to the two courtiers by telling them that he is sending Hamlet away due to his madness and weird behaviour, but Claudius is really afraid for others to find the truth behind King Hamlet’s death. As stated in the following quote “I like not him, nor stands it safe with us to let his madness range. Therefore prepare you. I your commission will forthwith dispatch, and he to England shall along with you.” (3.3.1-4). this quote indicates the dishonesty that Claudius is showing to the two
This was perfect for Hamlet. He could successfully fulfill the void of his father and falsely slip into madness. This suggestion also proves that Hamlet prolonged the death of Claudius so he would not have to return to the world where he was depressed and without occupation. Hamlet sought revenge against Claudius in a subconscious effort to help himself. Hamlet is scripted a role from his father that he acted out knowing he could help himself.
His suspicion of Hamlet is only minor until he watches the play written by Hamlet. When Claudius watches the play in Act 3 and the actors are preforming the murder in the garden, his guilt that he had been able to conceal before becomes uncontrollable. This is the first event of adversity faced by Claudius’ character in the play. By exploiting his guilty conscience, Hamlet forces Claudius to change his character from being confident in his crime, to being worrisome about being exposed. This subtle event creates a secondary plot in which the king
When Hamlets father's apparition appeared before him he was giving a task to kill his uncle, so it would be involuntary wrath. At the same time Hamlet had to follow through with the murder of his uncle out of pride. Throughout the story of Hamlet he proves himself on a far superior intellect than anyone else in the play, mostly Polonius, he Hamlet confuses Polonius "Let her not walk I' the sun. Conception is a blessing, but not as your daughter may conceive. Friend, look to 't.
Hamlet's moral struggle for revenge becomes an obsession causing a change in his character. Hamlet goes so far as to feigned madness in order to achieve his revenge here he is speaking to Marcellus and Horatio saying, ” To put and antic disposition on- That you, at such times seeing me, never shall," (Shakespeare 1379) which foreshadows a change in Hamlet’s character. For Hamlet to get revenge he must change the way he acts in doing so he starts to struggle with everything else in his life like his relationships with Ophiela, and Gertrude. When seeing his father's ghost, he unquestionably accepts all he hears as truth, but doesn't act on it until he can verify it in some way. His organization of the players' performance of "The Murder of Gonzago" shows this well; only after seeing Claudius' reaction to the play does he prepare to act on the Ghost's plea for revenge.