Hamlet: Name Your Poison

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In some way every single one of the seven “main” characters each had their own flaw in some way, shape, or form. To start off Hamlet’s flaw was his inability to act without feeling too much guilt, for example when he couldn’t get himself to kill Claudius while he was praying. Claudius’ major flaw what that his “thirst” for more power overtook the regret he was going to have for the things that he has done in order to get the power. Polonius was just very loyal to the King and he doesn’t think his actions through, as in he doesn’t think of the possible consequences and he does things impulsively. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern could be seen as possibly the smartest two in the whole play but they just have a lack of power and were made up to be puppets or the people that do the “dirty work”, also compared to Hamlet they were utter fools “I am but mad north-north-west: when the wind is southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw.” (Shakespeare, Act II scene ii) Ophelia just loved too much and got too attached to men; she also blamed herself too much which eventually led to her death also towards the end of her life, people such as Claudius started to notice that she was getting a bit crazy, “…poor Ophelia Divided from herself and her fair judgment, Without the which we are pictures, or mere beasts.” (Shakespeare, Act IV scene v) Laertes is much like Polonius in that he doesn’t hesitate to take action or do something, he doesn’t think about the cause and effect of actions. At last, Gertrude misplaced her own loyalty with her husband and her own child, which was a pretty horrible thing to do but she however did try and defend Hamlet with “Claudius: What, Gertrude? How does Hamlet?, Queen: Mad as the sea and wind, when both contend Which is the mightier: in his lawless fit, Behind the arras hearing something stir, Whips out his rapier, cries, 'A rat, a rat!' And, in this brainish apprehension, kills The unseen good old man.” (Shakespeare, Act IV scene i), but its debatable if she actually wants to help Hamlet by lying to Claudius or if she actually thinks that Hamlet is crazy.

Many may say that Hamlet was in fact insane or crazy, but in my opinion I believe that he was trying to act like he was just so that he could throw off everyone and eventually get revenge on Claudius. I think that in fact he was just stressed and he thought that it would be the best way to react to it. If Hamlet were actually crazy then he wouldn’t have been able to outsmart everyone, well nearly everyone, until the end of the play where everyone dies. He reached his objective in the end but that also cost him his life.

Works Cited

Hamlet. William Shakespeare.

McDougal Littell, IL 1997.