The Role Of Insane In Hamlet

The story of Hamlet the Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare is a dark and sad tale of a tragic revenge. Hamlet’s madness has been questioned for many years by everyone that has read it. Did Hamlet really go mad? Or was it all just an act? Throughout the play, there are many instances in which Hamlet seemed to have lost his mind, but it is important to remember one key thing that Hamlet told his friend Horatio, his crazy behavior will be all an act. Hamlet truly does make a believer out of the insane role he plays by the crazy, weird, and sometimes mean behavior he portrays throughout the play.
From the beginning, Hamlet is upset and depressed about his father’s sudden and unexpected death and then the sudden remarriage of his mother, Gertrude, to his uncle, Claudius. Even though he can’t put his finger on it, he knows that something is not right
For one thing, he picks and chooses when he acts crazy in front of certain people. He shows time and time again how he thinks out and acts to fit his needs for that particular moment. In other words, there is a method to his madness; it is not random, which only a sane person can do. For instance, deciding not to kill Claudius when he was praying shows that he had the ability to thoroughly think about what he was doing and make a decision based on logic and reasoning, not on impulse of madness. He even convinces his mother that he is only acting by telling her that he is not mad, but mad in his craft. His sanity is also displayed when he shows true actions of sorrow and declares that he truly loves Ophelia when he realizes that she drowned herself, after he accidently killed her father, Polonius. Lastly, on his death bed after killing King Claudius, he talks Horatio out of suicide and tells him to tell his story so all would know. This shows that he is thinking logically, not like a “mad