Essential Question #7

Do you think that Hamlet has created his own insanity, or has he lost his sense of reality completely?

Hamlet has created his own insanity by handling the death of his father poorly, and thus he has lost a sense of reality. Hamlet’s insanity is understandable given the extremely traumatic circumstances. Hamlet suffers with the question of existence: “to be or not to be” (3.1.64). He cannot distinguish his purpose in life, and it is for this reason that he loses his sanity. Hamlet considers that the trials and tribulations of life may be too much to endure. As a result, he deduces that death would bring him peace and an escape from the hardships of life. Hamlet even confides his insanity in his friends: “I have of late—but wherefore I know not—lost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercises […] the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory” (2.2.318-322). There a are numerous instances in Acts 2 and 3 where Hamlet either directly states his crazed state or he indirectly portrays this demeanor, such as his paranoid attitude that leads to the death of Polonius. When Hamlet was lost to find the meaning of his existence he was also losing his sense of reality. No one can live normally when they do not see the point of living. Considering that this is a Shakespearian Tragedy, I am certain that Hamlet’s depressed attitude will ultimately lead to either his death or the death of many others.