The Theme of Hesitation in Hamlet
Hesitation – At a Glance
The Central Conflict: Hamlet is commanded to act (avenge his father's murder) but is paralysed by internal conflict, resulting in prolonged hesitation and delay.
The Core Question: Why does Hamlet delay? The play explores the philosophical, moral, and psychological barriers to decisive action.
Key Dynamic: Hamlet's intellectual hesitation is contrasted with the impulsive action of Laertes and the methodical action of Fortinbras.
The Role of Thought: The play examines whether extensive contemplation is a sign of wisdom or a weakness that leads to paralysis.
The Outcome: Hamlet's hesitation leads to significant collateral damage, but he eventually achieves a state of fatalistic readiness that allows him to act.
The Paralysis of Thought: Hamlet’s Delay
Hamlet is arguably the most famous exploration of hesitation in literature. The dramatic tension stems not from the hero's pursuit of his goal, but from his agonising inability to achieve it. Despite having a clear command from the Ghost (Act 1, Scene 5), Hamlet spends the majority of the play contemplating action rather than taking it.
Hamlet’s hesitation is rooted in his philosophical and contemplative nature. As a scholar from Wittenberg, he is predisposed to analysis rather than violence. He frequently berates himself for his failure to act, particularly when observing others.
For example, when the traveling players arrive (Act 2, Scene 2), he is astonished that an actor can summon intense emotion for a fictional character (Hecuba), while he, with a real motive, remains paralysed.
Original:
What’s Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba,
That he should weep for her? What would he do,
Had he the motive and the cue for passion
That I have? (Hamlet – Act 2, Scene 2)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
Who’s Hecuba to him, or he to her,
That he should cry for her? How would he act
If he was motivated out of passion
Like I am?
This leads him to self-reproach, calling himself "dull and muddy-mettled." The play suggests that excessive intellectualism can become a barrier to action, a concept Hamlet himself recognises:
Original:
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought... (Hamlet – Act 3, Scene 1)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
And so, awareness turns us into cowards;
And thus our natural drive to solve a problem
Recedes and fades through over-contemplation,
Reasons for Hesitation: Morality, Uncertainty, and Melancholy
Hamlet's delay is not simple cowardice; it is a complex interplay of factors:
1. Moral and Religious Concerns: Hamlet struggles with the ethical implications of murder and the fate of his soul. Christian doctrine forbids vengeance, and committing murder risks damnation. Furthermore, his desire for perfect justice complicates his action; he refrains from killing Claudius during prayer (Act 3, Scene 3) because he wants to ensure Claudius is damned, not just killed.
2. Uncertainty and the Search for Proof: Hamlet questions the reality of the Ghost. Is it an honest spirit or a devil sent to deceive him? This uncertainty necessitates a delay while he seeks concrete proof of Claudius's guilt via The Mousetrap (Act 3, Scene 2).
3. Profound Melancholy: Grief over his father's death and disgust at his mother's hasty marriage induce a state of deep melancholy and existential despair. This emotional paralysis makes decisive action difficult, as he feels the entire world is corrupt and meaningless.
Ophelia’s True Madness: A Tragic Contrast
Ophelia's madness serves as a critical foil to Hamlet's. While Hamlet’s madness is (at least initially) strategic and intellectual, Ophelia’s is genuine, emotional, and ultimately fatal.
Her breakdown is triggered by a confluence of traumatic events: the rejection by Hamlet, the murder of her father (Polonius) by the man she loves, and the oppressive patriarchal control exerted by her father and brother. She is a character deprived of agency, and when the structures supporting her identity collapse, so does her sanity.
“Ophelia is deprived of thought, sexuality and language... she represents the strong emotions that the Elizabethans thought womanish.”
Ophelia's madness is characterised by singing fragmented songs, often laden with themes of death, lost love, and sexual betrayal. She distributes flowers, each symbolizing the flaws of the court characters.
Original:
There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember. And there is pansies, that’s for thoughts. (Ophelia – Act 4, Scene 5)Retold:
There's rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray, love, remember. And there are pansies: they’re for thoughts.
In her madness, Ophelia, like Hamlet, is granted a voice to express truths she could not articulate when sane. However, her madness does not empower her; it renders her vulnerable, leading to her tragic drowning – an ambiguous death often interpreted as suicide.
Key Quotes on Madness & Sanity
Quote 1:
Original:
How strange or odd soe'er I bear myself,
(As I perchance hereafter shall think meet
To put an antic disposition on) (Hamlet – Act 1, Scene 5)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
However strange or odd I may appear –
For I believe, from here on, that I must
Start acting like a troubled lunatic –
Quote 2:
Original:
I am but mad north-north-west. When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw. (Hamlet – Act 2, Scene 2)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
I’m only crazy when the north wind blows; in southern winds, I’m sharper than a hawk.
Quote 3:
Original:
Madness in great ones must not unwatched go. (Claudius – Act 3, Scene 1)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
Great folk, when mad, must not be left alone.
Quote 4:
Original:
Her clothes spread wide,
And mermaid-like a while they bore her up,
Which time she chanted snatches of old tunes,
As one incapable of her own distress. (Gertrude, describing Ophelia's death – Act 4, Scene 7)Shakespeare Retold (Modern Verse):
Her clothes expanded,
And, like a mermaid, held her up awhile,
During which time she sang snippets of songs,
So unaware the danger she was in.
Key Takeaways – Madness & Sanity
Hamlet's intellectual performance allows him to critique the court, but the immense pressure blurs the line between strategy and genuine instability.
Ophelia's tragic madness serves as a foil to Hamlet, highlighting the destructive impact of grief, patriarchal control, and lack of agency.
Shakespeare uses the theme to suggest that in a corrupt world, the "mad" characters may perceive reality more clearly than the "sane."
Ultimately, madness is portrayed not as a solution, but as a destructive force leading to alienation and death.
Study Questions and Analysis
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The ambiguity of Hamlet's mental state is one of the play's central debates. Initially, Hamlet is clearly pretending; he tells Horatio he will "put an antic disposition on" (Act 1, Scene 5). He uses madness strategically to investigate Claudius, and he admits he is only "mad north-north-west" (Act 2, Scene 2), suggesting he controls his performance.
However, as the play progresses, the immense pressure of his grief, his duty of revenge, and his disillusionment with his mother seem to genuinely destabilise him. Moments like his cruel outburst at Ophelia (Act 3, Scene 1), the impulsive murder of Polonius (Act 3, Scene 4), and his erratic behaviour at the graveyard (Act 5, Scene 1) suggest the line between performance and genuine madness becomes dangerously blurred.
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Ophelia’s madness is a genuine psychological breakdown caused by accumulated trauma and the oppressive patriarchal structures surrounding her. Unlike Hamlet, she does not choose madness; it is forced upon her.
The primary catalyst is the death of her father, Polonius, murdered by the man she loves, Hamlet. This event removes the dominant male authority in her life, leaving her vulnerable and isolated.
Compounding this grief is Hamlet's brutal rejection of her in the "nunnery scene" (Act 3, Scene 1). Having been obedient to her father and brother, who used her as a pawn in their political games, Ophelia is left without agency or a stable identity. Her madness, expressed through songs about death and betrayed love (Act 4, Scene 5), is a tragic expression of her inability to cope with these overwhelming external pressures.
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Claudius views Hamlet's madness with deep suspicion and fear, recognising it as a potential threat to his reign. Unlike the gullible Polonius, who attributes the madness to rejected love, Claudius senses something more dangerous beneath the surface.
After observing Hamlet's interaction with Ophelia, Claudius concludes: "Love? His affections do not that way tend... There’s something in his soul / O’er which his melancholy sits on brood" (Act 3, Scene 1). He correctly perceives that the "antic disposition" masks a hidden agenda.
His reaction is decisive and ruthless. He first attempts to uncover the cause through spying (using Rosencrantz and Guildenstern), and when that fails, he resolves to send Hamlet to England, intending to have him executed. He famously states, "Madness in great ones must not unwatched go," illustrating his view that Hamlet's instability is a direct political danger.
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Hamlet explicitly states in (Act 1, Scene 5) that he will "put an antic disposition on," meaning he intends to feign madness. This strategy serves multiple functions.
Primarily, it provides camouflage. By acting erratically, Hamlet hopes to investigate the Ghost’s claims and Claudius's guilt without arousing suspicion. It allows him to observe the court while others dismiss his actions as mere insanity.
Furthermore, it grants him a license to speak critically. Under the guise of madness, Hamlet can mock and insult characters like Polonius, Claudius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern without facing immediate repercussions. His use of puns and wordplay allows him to speak truths that would be treasonous if spoken by a sane prince. Polonius recognises this, noting, "Though this be madness, yet there is method in ’t" (Act 2, Scene 2).
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The madness of Hamlet and Ophelia serve as crucial foils, contrasting performance with genuine psychological collapse.
Hamlet’s madness is (at least initially) strategic, intellectual, and performative. He consciously adopts an "antic disposition" to deceive the court. His madness is characterized by sharp wit, philosophical musings, and calculated insults. It is a tool he uses to manipulate others and probe the truth.
Ophelia’s madness, in contrast, is genuine, emotional, and tragic. It is triggered by external trauma – the loss of her father, rejection by Hamlet, and the constraints of a patriarchal society. Her madness is characterized by fragmented songs, non-sequiturs, and the symbolic distribution of flowers (Act 4, Scene 5). Unlike Hamlet, Ophelia’s madness does not empower her; it highlights her lack of agency and leads directly to her death. While Hamlet uses madness as a weapon, Ophelia is destroyed by it.
The central plot involves Prince Hamlet, who is commanded by his father’s Ghost to seek revenge on Claudius for the murder of King Hamlet. His approach is tormented, philosophical, and characterised by delay.
The second plot involves Laertes. After Hamlet kills Polonius, Laertes seeks immediate and passionate revenge on Hamlet. Unlike Hamlet, Laertes is willing to "dare damnation" to achieve his aims, making him a crucial foil to the prince.
The third plot involves Fortinbras of Norway. He seeks to avenge his father’s defeat and death by reclaiming lands lost to Denmark. His approach is military and political, focused on restoring national honour. Fortinbras’s decisiveness contrasts sharply with Hamlet’s inaction.
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While Hamlet’s madness begins as a performance, the lines blur as the pressure mounts, suggesting moments of genuine instability.
The "nunnery scene" (Act 3, Scene 1) is a key example. His cruelty towards Ophelia seems excessive and uncontrolled, suggesting his feigned madness is overwhelmed by genuine misogyny and emotional turmoil.
Another instance is the impulsive murder of Polonius in Gertrude’s chamber (Act 3, Scene 4). This rash act, committed in a moment of high passion, contrasts sharply with his previous hesitation and careful planning.
Finally, his behaviour in the graveyard (Act 5, Scene 1), particularly his manic leap into Ophelia’s grave to fight Laertes, shows an erratic and obsessive state of mind that goes beyond a calculated performance. The cumulative stress of his mission appears to fracture his sanity.
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Madness is intrinsically linked to the theme of appearance vs. reality, as it is used as a primary tool for deception.
Hamlet’s "antic disposition" is the most prominent example. He uses the appearance of madness to conceal the reality of his intentions – investigating the murder and planning revenge. This deception confuses the court, leading them to misinterpret his actions and motives.
Furthermore, the uncertainty surrounding the nature of madness itself challenges the characters' (and the audience's) perception of reality. Is the Ghost real, or a hallucination? Is Hamlet’s melancholy a sign of true instability or a calculated performance?
The play suggests that the corrupt court of Denmark is a place where sanity and morality are inverted. In such an environment, the "madman" might be the only one who truly perceives reality. Hamlet’s insights, delivered under the guise of insanity, often expose the hypocrisy and corruption that the "sane" characters choose to ignore.